Bad Behavior: Suspicious Behavior – L.A. Witt & Cari Z
Detective Darren Corliss is hanging by a thread. In between recovering from a near-fatal wound and returning to work at a hostile precinct, he’s struggling to help care for his ailing brother. His partner and boyfriend, Detective Andreas Ruffner, wants to help, but doesn’t know how. And with his own family crises brewing, Andreas is spread almost as thin as Darren.
For cops, though, life takes a backseat to the job. When a stack of unsolved homicides drops into their laps, Andreas and Darren think they’re unrelated cold cases. But when a connection surfaces, they find themselves on the tail of a prolific serial killer who’s about to strike again.
Except they’ve got nothing. No leads. No suspects. Just a pile of circumstantial evidence and a whole lot of hunches. Time is running out to stop the next murder—and to pull themselves back from their breaking points.
Phew! Our boys can’t catch a break. What with the hostility from their peers, Asher’s rapidly worsening Alzheimer’s, Andreas’ family trouble and a serial killer on the loose.
Narrator Michael Ferraiuolo continued to impressed me with his delivery. He was not only reading, he was really acting. I love the small but effective touches he added, like the sniffling, the coughing, the little laughs. It gives an extra something to the narration. Really awesome!
This is another addicting case to follow and I liked L.A. Witt & Cari Z’s take on the serial killer trope. Usually, it takes the entire book to uncover who the serial killer is. In this case, they know who the killer is, they just had a devil of a time proving it. Their evidence were all circumstantial.
The case proved to be a very frustrating one. They were sure their main suspect was it but life threw them curve balls and red herrings which nearly broke Darren’s confidence. Ironically, it was Andreas who remained optimistic. Their strategy was out of the box and as was their way, involved bending the rules slightly. It was great to see Andreas and Darrin evolve into a power couple, both personally and as working partners. They have developed a sort of telepathic connection where each of them instinctively knew what the other was thinking. This kind of bond usually takes years to form but Andreas and Darrin just synced really well.
The climax was full of suspense and fraught with great danger that was compounded by the fact that the other detectives continued to hold grudges with Andreas and Darrin. Detective Paula Morris, Andreas’ loyal friend and one of the best characters of the series, played a crucial role.
Although the story was still written in dual POV, I think this was a slightly Darren-centric story. He had to deal with brother’s condition and the possibility that he too might have the gene. He was also the one making major conclusions on who the serial killer is. In addition, we get to know more of Andreas’ background and family life and witness Darren squeeing at Andreas interacting with his four year old daughter, Emily.
Suspicious Behavior, the second book of the Bad Behavior series, moved Andreas and Darren’s relationship forward, dealt with the repercussions of their first case and showed that they can handle cases outside narcotics.The workaholic pair were tenacious in their pursuit of case and weren’t afraid to get creative with the rules. It was only when they broke their bones were they forced to have that much needed break. Overall, the plot was gripping with cleverly written twists and turns and major arc and character developments all around.
Love it!
P.S.
Review of book 1, Bad Behavior series, Risky Behavior here.
Rating:
4.5 Stars – perfection is only half a step away
Soundtrack: Deep Red Bells
Artist: Neko Case
Album: Black Listed
(source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34998102-suspicious-behavior)
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