Author: Melinda Leigh
Genre: Romantic suspense, mystery
Published on: September 17, 2013 by Montlake Romance
Winner of the 2014 Golden Leaf Award
In one moment, high school teacher and single mother Brooke Davenport interrupts a vicious assault, saves a young woman’s life, and attracts the attention of a serial killer.
Sixteen years ago, Brooke lost her roommate to a brutal murder. Now she teaches women’s self-defense, still trying to heal from the guilt and grief that plague her. Convinced the predator knows his victims and is stalking his prey online, she is determined to find him before he strikes again. Her brother’s friend, Luke has the computer expertise to help. But Brooke’s unexpected desire for Luke complicates her investigation, and her fixation with the case provokes a deadly reaction from the killer.
Injured in terrorist bombing overseas, computer expert Luke Holloway is still haunted by flashbacks of his young assistant’s death in the explosion. But Luke can’t refuse the request of a deployed friend to look after his sister, Brooke. Taking on responsibility for Brooke’s safety threatens Luke’s tenuous recovery, especially after he develops feelings for her that transcend a promise to a friend. When Brooke saves a young girl from a brutal assault and becomes a killer’s obsession, Luke vows to protect her at all costs.
The She Can series gets a bit of a refresh with She Can Scream. It takes place in Westbury, just like the previous two books. The characters are new this time, though. This novel first introduces Brooke Davenport, the protagonist. She’s a high school teacher who gives self-defense classes for young women in her spare time. Brooke is running late with a class when the book starts. When she prepares to head home, Brooke hears a scream. There’s only one, so most people would just dismiss it. Not Brooke. She’s a very safety-conscious woman, and decides to investigate with the help of the building’s janitor.
Brooke’s decision proves to be pivotal. She manages to thwart a kidnapping attempt. The community center where she teaches self-defense is bordered by woods at the back. A man almost took a teenage girl with him. The girl, Maddie, is hurt but otherwise all right, and gets sent to the hospital. When Wade, Brooke’s older brother, hears about what happened, it worries him deeply. Wade is about to be deployed by the army. He’s concerned about leaving Brooke alone. This compels him to ask his best friend, Luke Holloway, to look after Brooke.
Luke Holloway is not a Westbury resident. He was born there, but now lives in New York. As a computer security expert, Luke travels all over the world for work. After a terrorist bombing (in which Luke got caught as collateral damage), he went back to Westbury to recover. What Luke never expected is to assume responsibility for a woman’s safety. In the bomb attack, Luke’s young assistant got killed. This left him wracked with guilt. Luke is terrified to fail like that again. It doesn’t help that he’s developing feelings for Brooke. So Luke goes out of his way to make sure she’s safe.
Meanwhile, the bad guy is fuming. He is outraged at having failed to kidnap Maddie. The would-be kidnapper is a meticulous planner. He’d worked out his plan for the kidnapping for weeks, down to the smallest detail. If Brooke’s class hadn’t ended late, he would have succeeded. Now the bad guy is restless. He can’t go too long without a victim, and it’s been quite a while since the last one. The guy decides to hunt another girl, not caring that it will break his pattern and that the police will notice. He’s confident that he’ll get away with his schemes.
The bad guy in She Can Scream (and his main target, Maddie) present a cautionary tale. The kidnapper was able to follow Maddie’s movements easily because she posts them all online. Pretty much everything she does is on Facebook. Seriously, Maddie posts far more stuff there than your average teen girl would write in an intimate diary. Brooke is understandably appalled when she comes across Maddie’s Facebook wall. Fortunately, the girl sees the error of her ways and is more conscious about safety by the end of the book. Things do go bad, though. Brooke has to face her inevitable confrontation with the kidnapper. This forces Luke to conquer his worst fears.
While this book is set in the same world as the previous two She Can entries, almost every character is new. For me this kept things fresh and interesting. Brooke was a likable protagonist as well. Her personality and what she chooses to do with her life reminded me a lot of Lizzy Gardner from T.R. Ragan’s mystery series. Brooke isn’t nursing a broken soul, though her past has plenty of pain in it. As for Luke, his past is even more painful. He is still unable to even get close to a skyscraper because of fear. But Luke also has a sense of duty and a strong protective side. If anyone can protect Brooke and Maddie from the madman currently running around, it’s him. In the end, She Can Scream is another unputdownable entry in this mystery/romance series. I’d definitely re-read it.
My rating: ★★★★
4 stars - Definitely enjoyed it!
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