Death Angel

August 28, 2006
Powers's third thriller (after Sunflower
and Bleeding Heart
), a gripping mix of a smalltown police procedural with a snazzy woman-in-jeopardy plot, will remind many of early Mary Higgins Clark and Sandra Browne. Working mother Kate Warner's peaceful life in suburban Pickard, Ill., is shattered when her eight-year-old daughter, Jenny, gets off the school bus one afternoon and disappears just steps away from home. To make matters worse, Kate's husband and Jenny's devoted dad, Richard, becomes the prime suspect. Other suspects include Richard's sophisticated business associate, a local physician and the spooky anonymous caller who keeps taunting the Warners. Despite some predictable twists, this tight suspense novel with its credible characters will keep readers turning the pages. Author tour.

October 1, 2006
Falling somewhere between Mary Higgins Clark and Tami Hoag in terms of intensity, Powers ("Gazebo Rendezvous") presents a compelling tale in which protagonist Kate Warner is dealt a triple blow when her eight-year-old daughter, Jenny, is kidnapped in a matter of seconds and later found dead. Kates husband, Richard, becomes a prime suspect in the crime, until he disappears and is presumed dead. As Kate reemerges from her grief, her suspicions about her husbands innocence continue to gnaw at her, and she becomes obsessed with finding her daughters killer. "Death Angel" races toward a speedy and somewhat abrupt conclusion, and some details are ignored or hastily resolved, but the narrative is nonetheless gripping; a true page-turner. Powers writes well and does a good job of fleshing out the primary characters. Best suited for mystery/suspense/thriller and general fiction collections."Nicole A. Cooke, Montclair State Univ. Lib., NJ "

Copyright 2006 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.