Author: P.M. Steffen
Genre: Thriller, mystery
Published on: August 22, 2018 by Lion Dog Press
A BRUTAL MURDER.
A STOLEN CHILD.
A PRICELESS PAINTING.
Life is about to get treacherous for forensic psychologist Sky Stone. She’s retired from police work, happily teaching at a local university, until one steamy July morning when wealthy art collector Edmund Clayworth is found brutally murdered in his Beacon Street home. Like a moth to a flame, Sky is drawn to the case.
Sparks fly when former lover Jake Farrell grabs control of the homicide investigation. Complications mount fast. A stranger begs Sky to rescue her stolen daughter. A handsome Texas cowboy from her past shows up asking dangerous questions. Add the theft of a priceless painting and Sky’s obsession with an artist twenty years dead and you have a nonstop rollercoaster ride. Sky leads the reader through Beacon Hill mansions, a posh art gallery opening, and a maze of secret underground tunnels in her quest to solve this murder before the killer strikes again.
Sky Stone returns in Killing Ulysses, the pulse-pounding sequel to The Profiler’s Daughter. Amazon bestselling author P.M. Steffen’s enigmatic and brilliant heroine battles her own demons as she tracks down obscure leads and cryptic clues, little realizing that the killer is watching her every move.
It’s here at last, the sequel to The Profiler’s Daughter. I’ve been waiting for it for a long while. Skylar Winthrop Stone, the protagonist, is a compelling forensic psychologist with a sharp mind and alluring beauty. I like female investigator characters, and Skylar easily became one of my favorites. Even though she's rich and powerful, Sky doesn't feel hard to relate with. She's not elitist at all, as she works alongside much less wealthy cops as an equal. Skylar is sort of retired from police work now, though. Her last murder case was intense and dangerous. The experience left her shaken, so Skylar is now a psychology professor.
That's not the only change in Skylar's life. She now has a baby, Samantha Crowninshield Winthrop Stone (yes, seriously), who is a few months old. Everyone calls the girl Sammy, for obvious reasons. Even with a child and a new job, Skylar can't stay away from police work for long. She just has great inherited talent. At her university office, Skylar gets an unexpected visit. It’s Detective Angel Butera, who wants her help in a new case. Skylar is reluctant to accept, partly because Butera wasn’t a big fan of her. He isn’t only reaching out to make amends, though. Butera wants Skylar’s expert opinion, as the crime scene is…interesting.
The new case is a murder. A woman, Dr. Lacey Clayworth, found her husband Edmund dead one morning. He was struck with a baseball bat that happens to belong to Lacey. Dr. Clayworth claims she wasn't there when Edmund was murdered. The case piques Skylar’s interest. She decides to help the police solve the case. Among Sky's team are Detectives Kyle O’Toole and Billy Axelrod. Skylar became close friends with them during the case in The Profiler's Daughter. O’Toole is a seasoned officer, and Axelrod is less experienced. The latter's involvement in Sky's previous case earned him respect from his fellow officers, so no one calls Axelrod "the rookie" anymore.
Another main character returns in this book. He’s Detective Jake Farrell, Skylar’s ex-husband. She left him out of grief after losing their unborn child in a car accident. I didn’t completely understand why Skylar is so afraid of rekindling things with Jake. He clearly loves her, despite a few unfortunate decisions he made during the previous case. Skylar went as far as to put a restraining order on Jake after he entered her house unannounced to see Sammy. It’s heavily implied Jake is her father. Skylar wants nothing to do with Jake. It’s too bad, as he’s assigned as the lead investigator in Edmund Clayworth’s murder case. Skylar has no choice but to remove the restraining order.
The investigation has Sky delving into the lives of a few new characters. Among them are a precocious teen girl, an old woman living alone, an ambitious yogi, and a peculiar art gallery owner. Of these, all three but the old woman are the most likely murder suspects. A significant way in which Killing Ulysses differs from book one is that the real culprit remains unknown for most of the book. In The Profiler’s Daughter, Skylar latched on to one suspect and didn’t relent until he was proven guilty. In this new case, the killer could be anyone. When the character of Ulysses was introduced, I felt he would be the main antagonist. Whether he is or not, I won’t reveal. I still wasn’t sure who Edmund’s murderer was well into the book, as the clues are revealed steadily.
Killing Ulysses was released a whole six years after its predecessor. Did it disappoint? For me, it was well worth the wait. These are long books, so the time it took the author to finish them is understandable. The books don't feel tedious, though. They're compelling reads. I'd missed Skylar and was glad when I found out book two was out. It turned out to be as good as The Profiler’s Daughter. Skylar has a new, intriguing, and expertly crafted case. The book keeps you guessing who really murdered Edmund and why. I really enjoyed reading Killing Ulysses and look forward to book three. It may be a long wait, but chances are it'll be worth it.
My rating: ★★★★ 1/2
4.5 stars - A fantastic page-turner!
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