#Review - All the Pretty Girls by J.T. Ellison #Mystery #Suspense

Series: Taylor Jackson # 1
Format: Paperback
Release Date: May 5, 2026
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Source: Publisher
Genre: Mystery, Suspense

In a thrilling series from New York Times bestselling author J.T. Ellison, a serial killer is targeting young women across the South, and each new kill comes with a grisly clue pointing to the next victim.

When a young woman is found dead just outside of Nashville, strangled and handless, homicide lieutenant Taylor Jackson is quick to the scene. So is FBI Special Agent John Baldwin, whose presence suggests that the murder is not the work of a random opportunist. A love poem left nearby alludes to something more sinister: This is the work of the “Southern Strangler,” a serial killer terrorizing women from Louisiana to Virginia.

It’s the kind of case Jackson thrives on. At thirty-five, Metro Nashville’s youngest lieutenant is still an idealist, hell-bent on protecting the city she calls home. And she’s determined to avoid the broken, lonely path she’s seen other cops take. But while she and Baldwin share more than a working relationship, she’s not ready to go public.

With victims across multiple states, Jackson and Baldwin race to find a pattern before the killer strikes again. But then a shocking connection between the Strangler and a local reporter brings them closer to the truth behind the killer’s identity—one that could unveil a family’s darkest secrets.

J.T. Ellison's All the Pretty Girls is the first installment in the author's Taylor Jackson series. This is a revised edition of a book that was published in 2007. There are two main characters: Homicide Lieutenant Taylor Jackson and FBI Special Agent and Profiler John Baldwin. The story is a Nashville-set police procedural that mixes serial-killer hunt, media ambition, and romantic tension. It launched Ellison as a reliable writer of Southern crime fiction and still reads like a confident first outing—gritty, geographically specific, and built around a heroine who rejects the life she was born into. 

The premise is classic genre architecture. A young woman is found strangled and missing a hand just outside Nashville. The signature—previous victim’s severed hand left at the next scene, plus fragments of Romantic poetry (Wordsworth, Blake, Coleridge)—marks the work of the Southern Strangler, a killer operating across state lines from Louisiana to Virginia. Metro Nashville Homicide Lieutenant Taylor Jackson, 35 and the department’s youngest lieutenant, catches the local body. FBI profiler Dr. John Baldwin arrives because the case is already multi-jurisdictional. They are also lovers, though Taylor is not ready to make that public. 

Running alongside the Strangler investigation are a serial rapist known as the Rain Man, an ambitious local TV reporter named Whitney Connolly who thinks she has an exclusive that will get her out of Nashville, and Whitney’s twin sister Quinn, a Belle Meade socialite. The two cases and the Connolly family secrets eventually converge. Ellison has described the killer as initially “reluctant,” a figure whose original motives become warped—an attempt to give the villain more psychology than pure sadism. 

Taylor Jackson is the book’s strongest asset. Raised in wealthy Belle Meade, she walked away from debutante expectations to become a cop. She is idealistic, stubborn, still recovering from a serious neck injury that nearly killed her, and determined not to become the isolated, burned-out detective she has seen around her. Baldwin functions as both professional partner and romantic interest; their relationship is present but not the engine of the plot. Medical examiner Samantha Owens, Taylor’s childhood friend, appears as a supporting presence who would later get her own spin-off series.

Whitney Connolly is more vividly drawn than many reporter characters in this genre—hungry, reckless, and closer to the story than she realizes. Thematic concerns include hidden family lies, the collision of old Nashville money and working-class law enforcement, and the way private damage produces public violence. The poetry left at scenes is both a calling card and a window into the killer’s self-mythology. The title itself nods to the nursery rhyme and a Grimm tale Ellison has cited as early inspiration. 

All the Pretty Girls is a capable, atmospheric series starter rather than a reinvention of the serial-killer procedural. It does what it sets out to do: introduce a distinctive Nashville detective, establish her world and relationships, and deliver a grisly, multi-state chase with enough twists to keep most thriller readers turning pages. It is not the most original book in the genre, and the extra plot threads sometimes dilute the main hunt. For readers who want a strong female lead, Southern setting, and unapologetic darkness, it remains a worthwhile entry point.

Amazon | Audible | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

#Review - The Burn (Betty Rhyzyk #2) by Kathleen Kent #Mystery #Thriller

Series: Detective Betty (#2)
Format: Hardcover, 352 pages
Release Date: February 11, 2020
Publisher: Mulholland Books
Source: Library
Genre: Mystery / Thriller

Not much can make Detective Betty Rhyzyk flinch. But when forced into therapy, a desk assignment, and domestic bliss following a terrifying run-in with an apocalyptic cult, she’s having trouble readjusting to life as it once was. At home, she struggles to connect with her loving partner, Jackie. At work, someone has been assassinating confidential informants. To make matters worse, Betty’s partner seems to be increasingly dependent on the painkillers he was prescribed for injuries he sustained narrowly rescuing her.

Betty’s at the point of breaking when she decides to go rogue, on a chase that will lead her to the dark heart of a drug cartel terrorizing Dallas, and straight to the crooked cops who plan to profit from it all. 

The Burn is the second installment in author Kathleen Kent's Betty Rhyzyk series. If you read The Dime, or my review, you already know that Dallas Narcotic's Detective Betty Rhyzyk experienced a nightmare situation when she was kidnapped by a mentally unstable woman who tried to brain wash Betty into joining her family and taunted her with bible verses. As the result, Betty isn't exactly in a good place. She can't run which she's relied on to relieve stress because her leg is still healing. Her relationship with her life partner Jackie is on edge, and ready to walk away. 

She's angry all the time, and would love nothing more than to drink herself into oblivion. Adding to the stress, her work partner who people call Riot, Seth Dutton, is acting strange and keeping secrets, and may be into hard narcotics which honestly comes with the job for a lot of cops. She has a new boss, Marshall Maclin, that doesn't appreciate her work, and ends up putting her on suspension and desk duty. Drug dealers are being shot, and carved up, and bible verses are being left behind. One of the villains thought responsible is a man known as the Knife.  

To top things off, Betty hasn't been forgotten by one Evangeline Roy who disappeared after Jackie escaped captivity. Betty's temper is short and her tongue is sharp. Rage is simmering just beneath the surface ready to unload on the first person who messes with her. She has lost her happy, and then some. Even though she is forced into therapy, Betty's life is her job, and her job is her life, regardless of how much pain it might cause Jackie. Ordered mandatory therapy and desk duty aside, she’s going to have to get creative to solve the crime, and be suspicious of everyone, including her partner.

This book is super gritty--drug cartels, addiction, PTSD, homelessness, and more. I would say that this book is extremely slow in comparison to The Dime and hope the finale is much, much better. We do get a bit more background at what happened to Betty's brother who was also a Narcotics cop in New York. There's also the usual suspects like James Earle who ends up roped into some of Betty's plans.

Amazon | Audible | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

#Review - Desperate Creed by Alex Kava #Thriller #Mystery

Series: Ryder Creed K9 Mystery Series # 5
Format: E-Book, 332 pages
Release Date: August 8, 2019
Publisher: Prairie Wind Publishing
Source: Library
Genre: Thriller / Mystery 

Award-winning author, Alex Kava pulls readers into the middle of the storm and has them gasping for air even as they turn the next page. 

—A STORM IS COMING—

In Alabama: A deadly outbreak of tornadoes sends K9 handlers, Ryder Creed and Jason Seaver with their scent dogs, Grace and Scout to search for survivors. As storms intensify and Ryder and Jason race against time to save victims, they end up racing to save themselves.

—NOT EVERYONE’S STORM IS THE SAME—

In Chicago: Francine “Frankie” Russo is irritated when her young co-worker calls at 5:00 am for a video-chat and catches her in only a towel. She’s so annoyed with Tyler Gates that she’s barely paying attention when two men confront him on the street. In a matter of seconds, Frankie witnesses Tyler’s murder. Then the killers pick up the phone. And suddenly, they know what Frankie looks like, who she is, where she works and lives. She knows absolutely nothing about them. But one thing’s for certain—they’re coming for her next.

—WHEN THE STORM HITS—

Frankie calls the only people she knows can help: her childhood friend, Hannah Washington and Hannah’s business partner, Ryder Creed. Hannah tells her to “come on home,” and she arranges a meeting for Frankie to meet with FBI agent Maggie O’Dell.

Meanwhile in the Florida Panhandle: Creed’s sister, Brodie is dealing with her own storm. She’s realizing that after sixteen years of captivity, surviving was only the first step.

With the killers hot on her trail, Frankie races to meet Maggie. But she has no idea that she’s driving straight into the grasp of another killer—a monster storm system. She and Maggie will need Ryder and Jason’s help, but no one is safe from the devastation. And by the time the sky clears, none of them will ever be the same.

WHO WILL BE STRONG ENOUGH TO SURVIVE?

 

Desperate Creed is the Fifth installment in author Alex Kava's Ryder Creed series. The story picks up 5 months after Ryder found his sister Brodie alive after 16 years of missing and presumed dead. The story's key characters are:  

 

Ryder Creed is an ex-marine now running K9 Crimescents along with his partner Hannah Washington. They train mostly unwanted dogs such as sniffer dogs for anything from drugs to cadavers to sniffing out bird flu and life threatening ailments. Grace is a little Jack Russell terrier who often times steals the show.

Brodie Creed is the younger sister of Ryder. When she was 11, she was kidnapped and held captive by Iris Malone for 16 years. Brodie was kept chained like a dog. She was malnourished, drugged, dehydrated, and her mind and body was in survival mode. She suffers from PTSD and continues to have nightmares about her experiences, but seems to be settling in with Hannah's children and her cat. Ryder & Hannah have tried to make her feel as safe as possible by having Brodie move in with him. I also believe it's going to be a long time before Brodie forgives herself for what happened 16 years ago that lead to her disappearance and captivity.

 

Jason Seaver is a dog trainer and handler who Ryder took a chance on. Jason lost his arm in Afghanistan and was down and out and ready to give up to drugs and isolation until Ryder gave him a second chance and a wonderful dog named Scout to train. Jason has since been given an experimental arm thanks to DARPA. Hannah's kids are in love with Jason and Brodie seems to be happier when he's around.

FBI Special Agent Maggie O'Dell is a specialist in serial killers who has become a regular secondary character in this series. The FBI is creating a new special unit to assist local law enforcement in solving violent crimes, and who better to lead the unit than the woman who specializes in serial killers? Maggie and Ryder's relationship is frustrating. Maggie has the keys to making this relationship work, but she's not a commitment kind of woman. Maggie has to deal with lots of stuff in this story including being trapped underground while two raging tornado's are bearing down on her.

 

Frankie Russo is an advertising executive who ends up going on the run after her co-worker is murdered in cold blood while she's on the phone with him. At the start of this story, Frankie gets a call from her co-worker Tyler who claims he found devastating information on an ingredient known as Glyphosate. Glyphosate is a broad-spectrum systemic herbicide and crop desiccant but apparently a manufacturer has added it to certain food items. 

 

Frankie finds that she is being tracked where ever she goes by a villain named August Braxton. Frankie's only hope is to reach out to her friend Hannah who suggests that Frankie meet up with Maggie and trust that the FBI agent can prevent her from being another victim. Unfortunately, tornado's have reigned destruction in a large area referred to as Dixie Alley.

Also in Alabama, Ryder, Grace, Jason, & Scout are helping any way they can in searching for survivors, as well as the deceased after a tornado touched down near Montgomery. From finding a baby miles away from a crash scene, to dealing with hot weather which causes Grace's feet to burn, to being caught in a tornado, to finding out that Maggie and Frankie are trapped and someone is trying to make sure that there are no survivors to find, the action doesn't stop. 

 

One of the reasons why I continue to read this series is the research the author does on various subjects. She has indicated that she loves to feature different elements to her story including bird flu which ended up affecting Ryder and Maggie. This time she takes on Dixie Alley. Dixie Alley is a nickname sometimes given to areas of the southern United States (eastern Texas and Arkansas across Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, and far western Kentucky to upstate South Carolina and western North Carolina; the area reaches as far north as southeast Missouri) that are particularly vulnerable to strong or violent tornadoes. 

 

This is different from the better known Tornado Alley (Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Kansas, South Dakota, Iowa and Nebraska) which has a higher frequency of strong, long-track tornadoes that move at higher speeds. The descriptions of the tornadoes was amazing. If you've seen the movie Twister, put yourself in the scene where two characters are caught in a tornado. The destruction left afterwards can be heartbreaking. Living in Florida, we get our fair share of Hurricanes. More than our fair share. We also get the occasional Tornado.

 

Amazon | Audible | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository