Laurie S. (LaurieS) reviewed on 8/17/2011 + 504 more book reviews

Heartsick has some interesting characters and any book about a female serial killer can always grab my attention.

Detective Archie Sheridan is a seriously haunted man. He was held captive and tortured by female serial killer Gretchen Lowell. She murdered and then resuscitated him and now resides in a prison cell. After his experience, he is unable to be the loving family man he once was and is divorced, addicted to pain killers and is on a mission to provide closure to the families of the victims that Gretchen murdered. In order to do this he continues his bizarre relationship with Gretchen and visits her in jail every Sunday.

When teenagers beginning turning up dead, raped and bleached (in that order) Archie is put back into service. He is being followed around by a pink haired reporter named Susan who is writing an expose on the investigation and Archie's life. During the investigation bits of Archie's time spent in Gretchen's basement are revealed and she turns out to be as darkly disturbed as any of the males usually in her position of power.

This book held my attention because the flashbacks with Archie and Gretchen were captivating and the cast of characters were complex, not always likable and seriously flawed. The resolution to the current murders was a huge disappoint though. It all seemed too coincidental for me to buy into which keeps this book from being memorable for me.

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