Reviews for Evil at Heart (Gretchen Lowell Series #3)

The average rating for Evil at Heart (Gretchen Lowell Series #3) based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2017-01-12 00:00:00 James Puhr 4.5 stars! This is book Three in the Archie Sheridan and Gretchen Lowell Series. This is a very fantastic dark series. It is definitely not for the faint of heart since there is a lot of torture going on. I was up till 2am reading this book and when I fell asleep I actually had a nightmare. I recommend that you read these in order. Archie Sheridan was held captive and tortured by Gretchen Lowell, a beautiful and sexy serial killer who has haunted the citizens of Portland, OR for years. She brags that she's killed over 200 people, and she nearly killed Archie. He's voluntarily admitted himself into a psychiatric hospital in an attempt to get over his addiction of Vicoden, and Gretchen herself. Archie's not the only one who is infatuated with Gretchen. Her crimes have been sensationalized by the media; Hundreds of "Beauty Killer" fan sites have popped up on the internet. There's even a tour bus that drives tourists around to the spots where Gretchen's victims' bodies were found. When body parts are discovered in the bathroom of a local rest stop, along with the tell-tale "hearts" Gretchen was known to decorate her crime scenes (and victims!) with, everyone believes the serial killer is killing again. Archie's good friend, Detective Henry Sobol, new lead of the "Beauty Killer" task force, asks Archie to check himself out of the psych ward to once again join the hunt for Gretchen. Joining the hunt alongside Archie and Henry is Susan Ward, a reporter for the local newspaper, another near-victim of the Beauty Killer. Bodies begin showing up at the sites of Gretchen's killings. Something seems a little off to Archie. Gretchen's MO is to remove the spleens of her victims and to carve hearts on their bodies. These new victims don't quite fit the profile of Gretchen's handiwork. Once again, Archie puts his own life in danger in order to find the truth behind the killings. Chelsea Cain has once again done a stunning job! Her ability to portray such a vicious killer astounds and impresses me. As in the previous two books, Sweetheart and Heartsick, the relationship between Archie and Gretchen fascinates me! Archie's character has performed an astounding transformation. He literally went from a bumbling love-sick puppy in Gretchen's presence to a relatively strong character. There are quite a few scenes in Evil at Heart that are terrifying and gruesome, even more so than any of Cain's previous books. However, this wasn't just randomly inserted, I think it was done to realistically capture the pure evil that resides in the killer. I highly recommend this, and the other "Beauty Killer" books to anyone who enjoy a nice, terrifying read! Read it I dare you! Gretchen is just pure evil. I can't wait to read the fourth book and I am hoping I will be able to fit it in at the end of this month.

Review # 2 was written on 2018-06-03 00:00:00 Martin Andersson 4.5 Stars Evil At Heart may be the scariest book in the series in my humble opinion, because it's not about one deranged and charismatic serial killer. It's about a group(cult) of people who are obsessed with said serial killer and who maybe either helping her kill or committing copycat killings. I love True crime but I've never understood people who write letters to killers in prison or who want to own things that killers owned or created. I can understand why a person becomes a serial killer but serial killer groupies baffle me. Evil At Heart picks up roughly 2 months after the events of Sweetheart and we find our hero? Archie Sheridan drug-free but still struggling. I deduced 1/2 a star because there wasn't enough Gretchen Lowell and I found the bad guy to be a little boring. Chelsea Cain continues to write with savage grace and at this point I would read anything she writes. I tried to put this book down and read something else but this story would not let me. In the last 2 days I have finished the first3 books in this series and as I write this review book 4 is sitting right next to me. If you've read my reviews for Heartsick and Sweetheart than you know that these books are not for everyone but if you loved those books than you will love this one as well. Summer Reading Challenge: Read A Book That Scares The Beejesus Out Of You.