DAISY IN CHAINS
Standalone
Sharon Bolton
BLURB
He’s a serial killer. A murderer of young women, all killed in brutal attacks.
But despite Hamish Wolfe’s conviction, he’s always stuck to his story—he’s innocent and he’s been wrongly imprisoned. And now he wants someone to investigate and, more importantly, to write his story.
Maggie Rose is a notorious defense attorney and writer whose specialty is getting convictions overturned. At first, Maggie is reluctant to even acknowledge Hamish’s requests to meet, ignoring his letters. But this is a very charismatic and persuasive man, good-looking and intelligent.
Eventually even she can’t resist his lure…
★★★★
*4 Stars*
What is it about the “Bad Boy” and the women who flock to him as though he holds their next breath in his pocket? And by “Bad Boy” I mean a convicted felon responsible for the brutal murders of 4 women. I don’t know, maybe I’m missing the allure, but this is an actual “thing”—dangerous prisoners having fan clubs of women dedicating their lives to becoming some sicko’s one and only.
Daisy in Chains is a sort of tribute to such phenomenon, and I can’t deny that I found this particular spin on such a topic utterly fascinating. This author does a fantastic job embodying the mind of the desperate, and I’m not only talking crazy prison-love…there is really so much more.
Hamish Wolfe, this story’s “bad-boy”, is a suspected serial killer awaiting trial for the murders of 4 women, all of whom have one thing in common: they’re overweight. Hamish is intelligent; an accomplished doctor who’s charming and sexy, and, despite his circumstance, appears cocky and confident. But there is one person whom he seems determined to have on his side…
Maggie Rose is a tough lawyer/crime novelist with strong wit and razor-sharp perception. She’s known for getting the convictions of criminals overturned and has been receiving an endless stream of letters from Hamish Wolfe, desperate to plead his case.
Although Maggie is not one who’s easily convinced and her gut tells her she should fear Hamish, there is something that compels her to listen.
This plot moved rather quickly and was filled with unexpected twists and exciting turns. The story was told through a third person narrative, delivering information through a vast amount of outlets such as case files, news reports, emails, letters, psychiatric reports, and the like. There was a lot going on, but it was all neat and orderly and never grew confusing.
As a reader, I felt I was lurking around every corner, quietly watching this story unfold. I loved not knowing which direction the plot would turn at any given moment, and I wasn’t ever certain whom I should trust—which was AWESOME. This story was peppered with dry humor, which I always appreciate.
As for one of the major twists (there are a couple), I did suspect it throughout the story, but there were certainly enough residual surprises to be found. I didn’t LOVE everything about the wrap-up for reasons I can’t quite pinpoint, and that’s okay; the ride was thrilling enough. A fantastic read!