The Lightkeeper's Curse - Cassie Miles (HI #2288 - May 2025)

Series: Lighthouse Mysteries (Book 2)
 
With the darkness closing in around them
They'll risk everything to bring a killer to light
 
Rookie FBI agent Skylar Gambel and police detective Jake Armstrong both had their lives shaped by the Lightkeeper Murders. Now, twenty years later, a new serial killer called the Shadowkeeper has emerged from foggy obscurity. Are the deaths the work of a new murderer, simply an evolved one…or a curse? Skylar is determined to crack the case, even as she fights her hidden phobias and her attraction to Jake. But when she is kidnapped along with the killer's next victim, Jake vows to silence the violent slayer once and for all.
 
The action and intensity begin with the first page as we see the serial killer set up his first victim. The similarities to a twenty-year-old murder spree are undeniable and leave law enforcement wondering if this is the same killer or a copycat.
 
Rookie FBI agent Skylar and her veteran agent partner, Harold, join local police detective Jake to investigate the murder. Harold was one of the investigators on the original unsolved murders. Jake was a child at the time but fascinated by the investigation. Now, they face a killer with the same MO. Harold and the now-retired sheriff he worked with before concentrate on following up on the old investigation's leads while Jake and Skylar investigate leads for the current murder.
 
The investigation intensifies when a second murder occurs. There are twists and turns leading to multiple suspects, some of whom have connections to the original murders. I stayed glued to the pages as Jake and Skylar worked through the information they collected. Matters became complicated when Skylar received taunts and threats from the killer, making her the next target. The intensity of the ending had me on the edge of my seat as the final confrontation played out.
 
I enjoyed watching Jake and Skylar's relationship develop. The sparks between them are immediate, but both are determined to keep things professional. I liked their teamwork during the investigation and how they avoided allowing their growing attraction to distract from it. I liked how Jake was tuned in to Skylar and could sense when something was wrong. I liked how he figured out her secret and reacted to it. I liked that while Jake respected Skylar's abilities, he was also very protective. I liked the ending and Jake's plan for the future.