Overall Rating: 4.85 // Action: 4.0 / Emotion: 4.7 / Romance: 4.5 / Sensuous: 3.0 / Suspense: 4.0 // Laughter: 1 // Tears: 6 / Teary: 1

The Kill: 4.85:
An un-put-down-able, re-read-able book because: {1} Allison Brennan is a favorite author; {2} Romantic Suspense is a favorite sub-genre; and {3} Brennan is a very talented storyteller who can quickly draw her readers into a romantic and suspenseful story and keep their interest all the way through the book.  Except that this story went on a bit too long after the exciting 'this should have been the big finale' scene.

Hero: 4.0:
Zack Thomas: A Seattle Homicide Detective who is sexy, protective, caring, confident, determined and every romance reader's dream come true:

. . . . . If there was one thing Zack Travis knew, it was women.  When to touch.  Where to touch.  How to touch.  (page 79) . . . . .

Heroine: 4.5:
Olivia St. Martin: The strong-willed, intelligent director of Trace Evidence and Materials Analysis at FBI's Virginia-based laboratory who hides her compassion, obsession, and determination behind a faade of ice.  It was easy to identify with Olivia and understand her emotional angst.

Story Line: 5.0:
What an exciting premise around which to revolve a story.  A little girl loses her big sister to a killer and from that moment on her life is never the same.  Through science, she is driven to find justice for all victims of crime.  When she finds out she helped incarcerate an innocent man for killing her sister, she stops at nothing to find the actual killer.  She poses as an FBI Agent to insert herself into the Seattle Police Department's investigation of a serial killer -- believing him to be the man who killed her sister.

Action: 4.0:
The story begins to soar as Zack and Olivia head up the investigation into The Seattle Slayer.  The action in this book, however, is more in the line of police procedural events than exciting adventurous scenes such as car chases and the like.

Emotion: 4.7:
Brennan is amazing as she weaves such deep emotion into a story about a monster.  The emotion in this story is rich for several reasons. {1} Who cannot help but hate a serial killer who rapes and kills little girls?  {2} Brennan richly details the devastation that the families of the slain girls experience -- concentrating on Olivia's crumbling steel walls of control.

Romance: 4.5:
The awareness that arched between Zack and Olivia was never left in doubt.  Zack was attracted to Olivia in spite of the "don't touch" signals she broadcast.  Olivia's walls of emotional protection began to collapse and a deep romantic connection built as she spent more time with Zack.

Sensuous: 3.0:
Brennan knows how to include spice, heat, passion and emotion in her love scenes.

Suspense: 4.0:
The suspense was constant and became more intense as the story progressed.  Brennan painted such a complex, controlled, astute picture of The Seattle Slayer and his ability to evade detection, that she had readers wondering how Zack, Olivia and their team were going to catch this slippery predator.

Secondary Characters: 4.5:
Brennan seems to really get into the heads of her supporting characters.  She did a phenomenal job of making both The Seattle Slayer (the true villain) and Brian Harrison Hall (the circumstantial villain) very multi-faceted.  Although not as well developed as these two men, the other supporting characters in the book came to life with concise descriptions and minimal appearances.  It was nice to get a picture of Quinn and Miranda Peterson's future when they were included in the story.

See Wolf Bear Does Books for a more in-depth, detailed review of *The Kill*.
Overall Rating: 4. 85 // Action: 4. 0 / Emotion: 4. 7 / Romance: 4. 5 / Sensuous: 3. 0 / Suspense: 4. 0 // Laughter: 1 // Tears: 6 / Teary: 1

The Kill: 4. 85:
An un-put-down-able, re-read-able book because: {1} Allison Brennan is a favorite author; {2} Romantic Suspense is a favorite sub-genre; and {3} Brennan is a very talented storyteller who can quickly draw her readers into a romantic and suspenseful story and keep their interest all the way through the book. Except that this story went on a bit too long after the exciting 'this should have been the big finale' scene. Hero: 4. 0:
Zack Thomas: A Seattle Homicide Detective who is sexy, protective, caring, confident, determined and every romance reader's dream come true:. . . . . If there was one thing Zack Travis knew, it was women. When to touch. Where to touch. How to touch. (page 79). . . . . Heroine: 4. 5:
Olivia St. Martin: The strong-willed, intelligent director of Trace Evidence and Materials Analysis at FBI's Virginia-based laboratory who hides her compassion, obsession, and determination behind a faade of ice. It was easy to identify with Olivia and understand her emotional angst. Story Line: 5. 0:
What an exciting premise around which to revolve a story. A little girl loses her big sister to a killer and from that moment on her life is never the same. Through science, she is driven to find justice for all victims of crime. When she finds out she helped incarcerate an innocent man for killing her sister, she stops at nothing to find the actual killer. She poses as an FBI Agent to insert herself into the Seattle Police Department's investigation of a serial killer -- believing him to be the man who killed her sister. Action: 4. 0:
The story begins to soar as Zack and Olivia head up the investigation into The Seattle Slayer. The action in this book, however, is more in the line of police procedural events than exciting adventurous scenes such as car chases and the like. Emotion: 4. 7:
Brennan is amazing as she weaves such deep emotion into a story about a monster. The emotion in this story is rich for several reasons. {1} Who cannot help but hate a serial killer who rapes and kills little girls? {2} Brennan richly details the devastation that the families of the slain girls experience -- concentrating on Olivia's crumbling steel walls of control. Romance: 4. 5:
The awareness that arched between Zack and Olivia was never left in doubt. Zack was attracted to Olivia in spite of the "don't touch" signals she broadcast. Olivia's walls of emotional protection began to collapse and a deep romantic connection built as she spent more time with Zack. Sensuous: 3. 0:
Brennan knows how to include spice, heat, passion and emotion in her love scenes. Suspense: 4. 0:
The suspense was constant and became more intense as the story progressed. Brennan painted such a complex, controlled, astute picture of The Seattle Slayer and his ability to evade detection, that she had readers wondering how Zack, Olivia and their team were going to catch this slippery predator. Secondary Characters: 4. 5:
Brennan seems to really get into the heads of her supporting characters. She did a phenomenal job of making both The Seattle Slayer (the true villain) and Brian Harrison Hall (the circumstantial villain) very multi-faceted. Although not as well developed as these two men, the other supporting characters in the book came to life with concise descriptions and minimal appearances. It was nice to get a picture of Quinn and Miranda Peterson's future when they were included in the story. See Wolf Bear Does Books for a more in-depth, detailed review of *The Kill*.