REVIEW: Dead Shot by Annie Solomon

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Warner Forever (March 2007)
• Purchase Dead Shot from Amazon.
• Source: My TBR
• My Rating: 4 stars

Summary:

Critics call them provocative. Protesters call them obscene. But photographer Gillian Gray aims her macabre self-portraits at an audience of one--the faceless brute who murdered her supermodel mother. Their meaning is clear: "Come and get me."

And someone's getting the message. Dead bodies start turning up in Nashville, posed to mimic Gillian's photos. Against her will, Gillian is guarded by tough ex-cop Ray Pearce, a man whose commitment to the job is as strong as his belief that Gillian is in real danger. Yet his protection may not be enough to stop a vicious madman from creating his next masterpiece: a portrait of the artist as a young corpse.

My Thoughts:

In a word: gripping. This one had me from page one all the way to the end. Read it in almost one sitting. Only took a break long enough to sleep for a few hours!

Like my first Solomon book, there's a cop in this one. Though I don't think Ray is quite the hunk that One Deadly Sin used to keep us turning the pages, Gillian was a gal to watch. She was strong, yet vulnerable-- stubborn, yet yielding when necessary. She had a past that she thumbed her nose at rather than hiding from, and in an interesting way: photography.

I loved the plot. It's got enough differences in it that it didn't seem ordinary. I actually expected more from the Ray/Gillian relationship to happen during the story, but this really focused on finding Gillian's boogeyman. She was definitely the prime character in this one and I though very well developed. That is on of Solomon's strong capabilities. She does a fantastic job making them real.

Overall, another good one! Headed to PBS to find another Solomon book. Can't wait to read them all!