‘Killing Fear’ by Allison Brennan
Published by Piatkus.  March 2008

Detective novels which have as their main theme the activities of a serial killer are fairly common.  The  suspense in the story is usually provided by the knowledge that the killer is working up to the point when the detective or the detective's partner is going to be the next and, as this works out, the last victim.  The victims are usually women often ones who are young, physically attractive and are involved in the entertainment or prostitute world.  Killing Fear complies with all of these requirements.  It is set in California,  in San Diego.  The Prologue,  often a feature in modern detective novels, takes place seven years earlier and the rest of the novel is being acted out in the present.  The murderer,  who is a serial killer was in jail, San Quentin, for those seven years,  suspected of killing four exotic dancers but convicted particularly on the evidence against the fourth victim.

When events move to the present day,  an earthquake occurs in the first chapter which releases the killer into the community again and gives him the opportunity to carry on with his activities.  His particular target is the owner of the exotic dancers business for whom he has an obsessive physical desire but  whom he also blames for his conviction as she , Robin, provided the evidence which sent him to prison.  When he, Theodure Glenn, escapes from the prison he sets out to murder all those who had a part in convicting him, as well as Robin and her detective partner, William Hooper, and he has considerable success in this.

The story is told in the third person which gives the writer the opportunity to tell events from the points of view of  Robin, William and the murderer Theodore at different times but there is no set pattern  in this.  I leave the rest of the novel for you, the reader, to explore for yourself.  There are some grim descriptions particularly of the early killings and some interesting glimpses into the mind and activities of the murderer.  I found the detailed descriptions of Robin's and Hooper's activities when they do get it together unnecessarily intimate.

This is the first of three linked books by Allison Brennan and I enjoyed it enough to expect I shall read the two following ones:  Silent Scream (Aug.08) & Dying Breath (Oct.08).

-------------------------
Rosemary Brown