With Full Malice by Brenda Hill, a Mysterious Review.

Review: Newspaper food critic Madison Young watched her parents be brutally tortured and killed when she was six years old. Now, twenty years later, and after years of therapy, she's just beginning to feel strong enough to be alone and not fear being attacked like her parents when she's drawn into the case of the murder of a sex offender in With Full Malice, a stand-alone thriller by Brenda Hill.

Rating restaurants did not prepare Madison for the role of hard-hitting investigative reporter, especially in a high-profile murder case. But she's the only person available and she agrees. But once involved, she cannot help but follow up on the information provided to her. Her discoveries lead her deeper into crimes involving more sex offenders and murderers. She teams up with her friend and protector Dexter Quinn, the homicide detective in charge of her parents' murder, and together they come upon a secret society that may be involved in a series of killings across the country. Even more alarming, there may be a connection to her unsolved parents' murder. When her editor dies mysteriously, Madison begins to think that she's inadvertently responsible, that her investigation may have somehow triggered her death. With time running out, Madison and Quinn must find the answers before someone else becomes a victim.

The plot moves along briskly in With Full Malice and there are many suspenseful scenes to keep the tension high. The characters are likeable, if a bit familiar, but their actions are contextually appropriate for any given situation. Readers will no doubt be unprepared for the unexpected twists and turns that will keep them guessing right up to the end. It's a good thriller, and a well told one.

Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of With Full Malice.

Acknowledgment: Brenda Hill provided a copy of With Full Malice for this review.