Close Enough to Kill

There is a serial killer on the loose in Adams County, Alabama. Sheriff Bernie Granger already has her hands full with a new arrival in her police force, Memphis police detective Jim Norton. His arrival, however, becomes a blessing in disguise since Jim already has plenty of experience dealing with serial killer cases. The serial killer has already established a clear pattern when he picks his victims. He sends them letters, and then gifts, and then a phone call, before he snatches them. Many days later, the bodies are found in some isolated place. As bodies start to pile up, the serial killer gets even bolder since the police have no clues to point to a suspect. He selects Bernie's sister as his next victim! Bernie and Jim do what they can to protect her but can they really succeed? Against a ruthless killer who has, so far, eluded them? This was a really, really great read. I was guessing until almost the very end.

This is my first Barton book and it won't be my last. I loved this book.The story was fast paced and had great characters.Jim is a ex-football star, ex-Memphis cop who comes to a small town in Alabama to be closer to his son. Just after he arrives girls start ending up dead. All recieving unusual gifts before their death and disapearance. Bernie is the sheriff in town. These two seem to develop a great friendship in the begining. She's attracted to him from the get go but Jim seems to not feel a thing besides friendship. But the real story here is the suspense and boy was it great. I kept going back and forth about who I thought it was. I liked the small town and all its interseting characters. I thought it took a little to long for Bernie and Jim to get together but overall this book was a At for me.

Sheriff Bernie Granger is orienting her new chief deputy, Jim Norton, while working on a missing person's case. Newlywed Stephanie Preston has vanished. Bernie could never guess that Stephanie is imprisoned in a basement --- and praying her captor will finally kill her. He rapes and torments her to the point that she can no longer bear to live. Death would be a welcome relief; she cannot remember any other life than the hell she is now in. Jim Norton is divorced. His ex-wife, who despises him, remarried and relocated, taking along Jim's son, 12-year-old Kevin. Jim has taken the new job in order to move closer to his boy so he can have a relationship with him. On his first day as chief deputy, Stephanie Preston's nude body is found, her throat slashed. Since Jim is lead investigator, he swings into action, notifying the proper agencies and announcing his certainty that the murderer will kill again. As Jim contemplates the steps of his investigation, he gets unexpected news. His ex-wife has cancer; Kevin will stay with Jim during her surgery and recovery. Jim's emotions are jumbled: fear for his ex-wife, joy over spending several weeks with his son, and concern over handling his role as a full-time dad while starting a demanding new job. Bernie's flirtatious and gorgeous younger sister Robyn comes on strong when she meets Jim. He finds her attractive, too --- which makes it difficult for Bernie, who can't help wishing that he was as interested in her as she is in him. But although Jim lusts for Robyn, he forgets her entirely when he joins Bernie at her home for a late-night snack. It's not romance he feels for his new boss, but comfort. He feels completely at peace in her house. Meanwhile, Stephanie's murderer has his eyes on his next victim, college teacher Thomasina Hardy. When Thomasina begins to receive gifts and love notes, she believes she knows who is wooing her so romantically, and she is thrilled. But her pleasure turns to terror as the nature of the gifts change, becoming dark and disturbing --- so horrifying that she goes to the police, directly before she walks right into a trap. Bernie and Jim breathlessly rush to save Thomasina, fearing the worst, but they are unable to locate her. Sharing their frustration over their lack of progress in their case and their fear for the women of Adams County, the two become close friends. The tension ratchets up even further as the Secret Admirer serial killer chooses yet another victim --- and she's someone very close to home. The small-town Southern setting is an arresting backdrop to a sometimes harrowing tale. The two main characters are sympathetic; they enjoy rich, complicated inner lives, which makes them authentic. In addition, tall, sturdily built Sheriff Bernie Granger is refreshingly unglamorous with her pony-tailed brown hair and wide hips. Author Beverly Barton balances romance and mystery nicely, and her timing is impeccable. Both the crime suspense and the attraction betwee

Former college football hero and Memphis homicide detective Jim Norton takes a pay cut to move to Adam's Landing, Alabama to be closer to his pre-teen son. Now the Chief of detectives, he finds himself embroiled in a homicide investigation that quickly has become a serial crime encompassing several states. Working with Sheriff Bernie Granger, he finds that his initial attraction to her much rowdier sister is nothing compared to his growing feelings for his boss, who is nurturing a school girl crush on him too. But will their past romantic mishaps and divorces ruin the romance before it has even begun? As they investigate the first two known victims, and enter the data into VICAP, they discover that the body count is much higher, and more victims from their hamlet keep disappearing one by one. The MO of the killer is to send love notes, then presents, then explicit drawings, until the victim is kidnapped and brutally raped, until he decides to "break up" with her when he has found new prey. Barton has hit a home run with this tense and psychological drama. Norton's character previously appeared in "Killing Her Softly," and was such a compelling character, that he warranted his own story - make no mistake, this one is a complete stand alone, and better than its predecessor. The reason for the perp's crime spree was far more interesting than most I have read, and she did a great job of keeping his identity unknown until the end.

Many authors can give you a great ride up the mountain, pushing you higher and higher until you reach the summit. But alot of them push you off the top and leave you empty after you have invested several hours and much emotion in their characters. Fortunately, Beverly Barton does all that and gives us closure. She eases me over the last bumpy seas and gives me a glimpse of the smooth sailing ahead. Thank you, Beverly, for your epilogues. Bernie Granger is Sheriff of Adams County, Ala. her father was sheriff before her. Now at 32 after a bad marriage and a few years as sheriff she has a serial killer on her hands. Does she go with her instincts or depend on her father's. Bernie must find her own way and ultimately try to save the life of someone in her own family. Detective Jim Norton is the new chief of Investigations in her small dept. Jim has taken this job and moved to Adams Co. because he wants to stay close to his 13 yr old son. At 40 and alone he finds more than a boss in Bernie. Her family has what he wants a safe, secure harbor. From the first abduction and murder it is apparent to Jim that this is not an isolated incident. As the first leads come in they realize this killer maskerades as a secret admirer, leaving notes and small gifts before kidnapping his target. Later the woman is left with her throat slit on the side of the road. As I said before Beverly knows how to take us up the mountain a step at a time, and always gives a party at the summit, but I do love the closure. Don't miss this one. She just gets better and better.