Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Twisted Sister-Natalie M. Roberts

Twisted Sister
Natalie M. Roberts
Five Star, Oct 2007, $25.95
ISBN: 9781594145735

In Santa Barbara, California, the first victim was Jake Higgins whose penis was cut off. At the Santa Barbara Community Hospital, Nurse Alisha Telford looks at the corpse and recognizes him as the man who raped her when she was sixteen. Her present boyfriend, Police Detective Joe Morsen and his partner Quinn Anderson lead the official investigation. However, when Joe observes Alisha looking strangely at the body of Higgins, he wonders what is going on until suddenly he suffers a heart attack in front of her; she takes her time before calling for help and Joe dies.

The second victim is a wife abuser whose spouse is friends of Alisha and her best buddy Kelsey, whose boyfriend is Quinn. As he sees the obvious connection between the two victims beyond the physical slicing off of their precious jewel, he wonders if either Alisha, Kelsey or an associate of both from the Women Against Violence group has a literal ax to grind with men.

TWISTED SISTER is an entertaining but strange combo police procedural psychological thriller. The fast-paced story line grips the reader from the opening moment when the fatale assaults Higgins and never slows down until the final slice is served. Although readers know the identity of the killer early on (and so should Quinn), fans (males may feel squeamish with a killer providing “penectomy” services) will appreciate this exciting suspense filled tale as a serial killing avenger castrates male predators.

Harriet Klausner