Title: Still See You Everywhere
Author: Lisa Gardner
Publication: March 12, 2024
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense
Pages: 409
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Goodreads | Author Website
SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)
Frankie Elkin is an expert at finding the missing persons that the rest of the world has forgotten, but even she couldn’t have anticipated this latest request—to locate the long-lost sister of a female serial killer facing execution in three weeks’ time.
She has called herself “death,” but people called her the devil.
The case was sensational. Kaylee Pierson had confessed from the very beginning, waived all appeals. Despite the media’s chronicling of her tragic circumstances—the childhood spent with a violent father—no one could find sympathy for “the Beautiful Butcher” who had led eighteen men home from bars before viciously slitting their throats.
Now, with only twenty-one days left to live, Pierson has finally received a lead on the whereabouts of the sister who was kidnapped over a decade ago, and she needs Frankie’s help to find her. The Beautiful Butcher’s offer:
When was the last time your search ended with finding the living?
Unable to resist the chance for a rescue, Frankie takes on Pierson’s request. Twelve years ago, five-year-old Leilani went missing in Hawaii. The main suspect? Pierson’s tech mogul ex-boyfriend, Sanders MacManus. Now, on a remote island in the middle of the Pacific—the site of MacManus’s latest vanity project—fresh evidence has appeared. In order to learn the truth and possibly save a young woman’s life, Frankie must go undercover at the isolated base camp. Her challenge: A dozen strangers. Countless dangerous secrets. Zero means of calling for help. And then the storm rolls in…
REVIEW:
**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**
As a huge fan of Lisa Gardner, you knew I was going to cover her newest novel, Still See You Everywhere. After a year hiatus from a new release, a book about a serial killer psychopath hiring our favorite non-cop, one-woman search party Frankie Elkins was going to be a hit and Gardner did not disappoint.
The first thing I love about this book is its originality. On par with Gardner’s other books, she goes above and beyond to create unique and interesting cases and scenarios that you really don’t get in other books. In this case, Gardner visited an atoll off Hawaii that prompted the scenery we get this time. Take a highly tumultuous setting and add an array of characters from all walks of life that you cannot be sure you can trust and top it with a serial killer and you have yourself a next-level novel. The handful of characters we are introduced to in this book are some of my favorites. Frankie Elkin is at the top of that list and I love how her character hasn’t changed, but we have learned so much more about her throughout the novels Gardner has released. Her backstory is what makes her and her constant struggles that we witness, whether that be with alcohol, trusting people, or second-guessing her life choices, keep us wanting to peel back the layers of her life and hopefully see her be happy one day. Each of the other characters in this book bring something to the table and while you really, really love some of them, you cannot help but wonder if you can trust any of them. Gardner sows doubt throughout the entire book.
The details that have gone into this story are so important to the outcome. Every detail down to the crabs plays a huge role in the story surprisingly. The layout of the island, the facilities available, and the personality of each character come together to create a masterful work of art by Gardner. I feel like there was more foreshadowing or even hints as to what the outcome was going to be, but I had no idea how we were going to get there and if everyone would make it out alive. The suspense in Still See You Everywhere is really what put me on the edge of my seat the entire time.
The greatest thing about all Lisa Gardner’s books is you can read them stand-alone even if you hadn’t yet read the ones before. This book is no different. I would 100% recommend you go read Frankie Elkin’s first and second stories by Gardner before this one, but you could easily read this and not have to know the two before. If thrillers and high suspense are your type of book, pick this up immediately. Gardner has earned her title as the Queen of Thrillers yet again with another jaw-dropping, suspense-driven novel with characters you can’t help but be drawn to.
