Caffeinated Reviewer

The Last Look by Mariah Stewart published in 2007 and is now available in audio format. Narrated by Traci Odom, this is the first book in the Last series. Special agent Dorsey Collins is stunned when a body of a woman is found dead. She’s stunned because her father convicted her killer twenty-four years ago. Join Agent Dorsey and FBI special agent Andrew Shields as they investigate what really happened….

From New York Times bestselling author Mariah Stewart comes a novel of sexy romantic suspense for fans of Nora Roberts, Catherine Coulter, and Karen Robards.

THE TRUTH WON’T STAY BURIED.

News that the body of a recently murdered prostitute–stabbed repeatedly and dumped on Georgia’s Shelter Island–has been identified as Shannon Randall stuns the FBI, particularly special agent Dorsey Collins. Twenty-four years ago, nineteen-year-old Eric Louis Beale was convicted and later executed for Shannon’ s murder–and the agent in charge of the case was Dorsey’s father. Now Dorsey is determined to find out where her father’s investigation went wrong, what part he played in the death of an innocent man, and where Shannon has been all this time.

The heat is on FBI special agent Andrew Shields to discover what happened to Shannon on that night decades ago–to find out who killed her and why. Dorsey shadows Andrew’s every investigative move, hoping to redeem her father’s reputation and capture a cunning killer. Together, Dorsey and Andrew unravel a shocking mystery that will shatter one family and rock an entire town.

Special agent Dorsey Collins remembers the day nineteen-year-old Eric Louis Beale was convicted and later executed for Shannon Randall’s murder. After all, her dad was the special agent in charge. But a murdered prostitute–stabbed repeatedly and dumped on Georgia’s Shelter Island–has been identified as Shannon Randall. Stunned isn’t the word for what Dorsey is feeling, and she is the one who tells her now retired father what they’ve discovered.

FBI special agent Andrew Shields is the lead, and Dorsey has been approved to shadow him in the investigation. The story takes us to Hatton, South Carolina, a small rural town in the bible belt that was shaken when Shannon was believed murdered the first time and shocked when they learn of current events. Both Shannon and Eric were a part of their community and events twenty-four years ago divided the town.

This was interesting from our glimpse of the interrogation by Dorsey’s dad, to the interviews performed by Sheilds and Dorsey. The story feels a little dated, but a good crime procedural novel holds its own and I found myself pulled into the case.

The story can be dark at times; with plenty of twists and a few moments of suspense. There is a soft side of romance, but fans looking for more than that will be disappointed. This truly stays in the mystery police procedural crime genre.

The case was well done. As the Shannon family was interviewed, we realize not everyone was truthful all those years ago. This is the first of the Last series to be released on audio and I look forward to the next one.

Traci Odom narrated and at just around nine hours, this is the perfect suspenseful murder-mystery to listen to. Odom sets the tone and captures not only the agents on the case but the victim’s families, witnesses and others in the small South Carolina community.

To solve the current murder, they must find out what happened in the past.

Amazon | Audible

About Mariah Stewart

Mariah Stewart is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of twenty-six novels and three novellas and has been featured in the Wall Street Journal. She is a RITA finalist in romantic suspense and the recipient of the Award of Excellence for contemporary romance, a RIO Award for excellence in women's fiction, and a Reviewers Choice Award from Romantic Times Magazine. A three-time winner of the Golden Leaf Award presented by the New Jersey Romance Writers, Stewart was recently awarded their Lifetime Achievement Award (which placed her in their Hall of Fame along with former recipients Nora Roberts and Mary Jo Putney — very excellent company, indeed!) After having written seven contemporary romance novels, Stewart found true happiness writing murder and mayhem. She considers herself one lucky son of a gun to have landed the best job in the world: getting paid for making up stories. At home. In sweats and J. Crew flip flops. Could life be sweeter?

Website | Facebook

About Traci Odom

Traci Odom, an American-born actor and voice artist, has built a successful career that spans decades. As a stage, film, and television actor, she has played everything from a tree to an Irish setter to a lawyer, but it is as a veteran narrator of more than fifty-five audiobooks that she has truly found her voice, inviting her listeners into the worlds of romance, witchcraft, devilry, and vampirism. To relax in her spare time, she daydreams of becoming the first female American Ninja Warrior—but then she would have to get off her couch to make that dream a reality, so she lives out her daydreams in her professional life, both on camera and on microphone. Working in close collaboration with her authors, she brings their creations to life with dynamic energy and commitment.

Twitter | Instagram

About Kimberly

Kimberly is a coffee loving book addict who reads and listens to fictional stories in all genres. Whovian, Ravenclaw, Howler and proud Nonna. She owns and manages Caffeinated PR. The coffee is always on and she is ready to chat. BlueSky | Facebook | Instagram

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