Last Breath

November 5, 2001
Prescott (The Shadow Hunter) effortlessly intertwines three independent yet equally significant narrative threads in this taut psychological thriller. Tormented since the age of ten by memories of a stalker who escaped after nearly killing her, LAPD officer Caitlin Jean Osborn hides her insecurities behind a facade of fearlessness. Her bravado has even earned her the nickname "Killer" as well as the admiration of the SWAT team's raffish Rick Tanner. The everyday perils that C.J. faces on the job are trivial, however, compared to the danger she faces when she is re-targeted by her childhood stalker and hounded by her adulterous, emotionally disturbed ex-husband. Meanwhile, FBI computer experts race to locate a webmaster who manages a site that illegally broadcasts the private lives of a select number of women over the Internet; unbeknownst to the agents, C.J. is one of those unsuspecting victims. When she is abducted, detectives are unsure whether she's been nabbed by her disgruntled ex or by a chameleon serial killer who uses the Net to spy on his quarry. Without sprinkling his narrative with gratuitous gore, Prescott has managed to delve into the depths of the most twisted minds to produce a chilling, character-driven tale that will revitalize readers on a sleepy, snowbound night.