Strong Follow Up

This story takes place a few weeks after the previous book, but if you missed that, this is a good point to step in. The main facts of that book are shortly explained, which was good for me as well as it’s a while since I read that.
When a young woman skids off the bridge on a patch of black ice, she discovers the bodies of Dana Rhodes and her 10-year-old son, Kellan. He disappeared from his uncle’s house 2 days earlier and it was assumed that his birth mother had taken him. Nobody could imagine that she would harm him though. It appears that the boy is dead for a couple of days but his mother’s death is more recent? Her wrists are slashed in a manner she could not have done self. Special Agent Nikki Hunt, who’s staying in town with her boyfriend, is asked to help with the case. The same day that Kellan disappeared, another boy that was also involved in a custody case did vanish from the neighbouring county. The local sheriff is imminent that he must have gone through the ice and drowned but a local journalist and the boy’s grandparents beg Nikki to help them.

It’s a bit odd, but I read this book and ‘The Winter Girls’ in the same week. Both books are similar in their setting and characters, even the names Hunt and Hunter are almost identical. Both are female FBI agents who’re involved with a local man. But luckily that’s where the coincidences stop. The stories are completely different. Anyway, it was a perfect read for a snowy, cold week.
Similar to the first book in the series, there are 2 different investigations that may well or not be connected.
Nikki feels still guilty about her early testimony that put Rory’s brother in jail for a very long time, even though she got him out as well by discovering the real killer. Mark and his brother forgave her but there are still a lot of people that hold it against her.
Nikki is trying to juggle her daughter, her ex-husband, and her new relationship but is a bit wary about informing her daughter Lacey and her ex. She’s also still insecure about her own and Rory’s feelings. It’s a delicate balance when both men are worried when she gives too much time or attention to the other;
Dana’s story is really tragic and sad. I felt really sorry for her. She worked so hard to get off the drugs and be a good mother and then her own sister fights that in court to keep custody of Kellan. So, she’s a good suspect for Dana’s death but surely she would not kill the boy?
This is a story of unconditional motherly love and perseverance. Where this love is a beautiful, positive sentiment, it can also lead to wrong and dangerous choices with unforeseeable consequences. This love is not only visible in the parents of the missing children but also in Nikki’s own life.
I thank Netgalley and Bookouture for their free ARC and this is my honest, unbiased review of it.