Review | Long Gone by Joanna Schaffhausen
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Long Gone by Joanna Schaffhausen
Series: Detective Annalisa Vega | Book 2
2022 Publication Date: August 9
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐
T.I.M.E. BOOK REVIEW
Joanna Schaffhausen's first book in the Annalisa Vega series, Gone For Good, swept me off my feet as one of the best thriller books I have ever read. Absolutely heart-pounding and heart-stopping thriller! With an ending that left me both satisfied and addicted for more...
So, you can imagine how excited I was to move on to Book 2!
Long Gone hooked me from the beginning and — in true Schaffhausen form — made it difficult for me to stay focused on my work schedule or anything else in favor of reading from morning to night.
Book 2 delivers more humor as well... The banter between Annalisa and her cop partner, Nick (also her ex-husband... yep, I am not kidding!) sparkles with a Katherine Hepburn / Spencer Tracy vibe.
Oh my goodness, am I aging myself too much here?! Even if I am, if you are too young to know who I am talking about, treat yourself to a Hepburn/Tracy movie marathon to experience some of the snappiest dialogue and "on again / off again" chemistry you will ever see on the screen.
OK... Back to the book...
In Book 1... We experience a deep dive into the complexities of first love wrestling with family loyalty via a past/present/future lens.
In Book 2... We keep that recipe and add in the pitfalls of obsessive love. Yes... This is more than your average thriller, folks.
As a final note to my "boys"... Nick, I love you... And you have definitely evolved into a good egg (at least for now)... But I can't help myself. I am Team Colin all the way.
Keep the magic coming, Joanna... I can't wait for Book 3!
Perfect for readers who enjoy the Endeavor (PBS Masterpiece Series)... Including that delicious element of an ongoing "will they / won't they" Joan Thursday / Endeavor Morse storyline...
While I was waiting for Book 2 in this series... Thank goodness the author also released another book in the interim, Last Seen Alive from her Ellery Hathaway Mystery Series | Book 5. Yes... Another T.I.M.E. Favorite Book To Read!.. And another Joanna Schaffhausen series to fill in my TBR Stack too!... ✨😎✨
Pages: 304
Genre: Thriller
Sub-Genre: Detective Thriller
Time Period: Present Day
Location: Chicago, Illinois
IF YOU LIKE THIS BOOK THEN TRY…
Book: Gone For Good by Joanna Schaffhausen (Detective Annalisa Vega | Book 1)
T.I.M.E. TIP: I recommend reading this series in order for the best reading experience... ✨😎✨
MORE T.I.M.E. TOP BOOK PICKS from…
MORE T.I.M.E. BOOK REVIEWS for the Detective Annalisa Vega Series
Gone for Good | Book 1 (Detective Annalisa Vega Series)
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
One of my favorite detective mystery books of the year from 2021!...
And an extra "thrill factor"? This is Book 1 of the new Detective Annalisa Vega Series... So, there is more to come!
Fabulous story that kept me guessing all the way to the end... With great subplot themes of family, first loves and finding yourself... ✨😎✨
Pages: 297
Genre: Thriller
Sub-Genre: Detective Thriller
Time Period: Present Day
Location: Chicago, Illinois
♡ Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I voluntarily chose to review it and the opinions contained within are my own.
PUBLISHER BOOK SYNOPSIS | BOOK 1
Gone For Good is the first in a new mystery series from award-winning author Joanna Schaffhausen, featuring Detective Annalisa Vega, in which a cold case heats up.
The Lovelorn Killer murdered seven women, ritually binding them and leaving them for dead before penning them gruesome love letters in the local papers. Then he disappeared, and after twenty years with no trace of him, many believe that he’s gone for good.
Not Grace Harper. A grocery store manager by day, at night Grace uses her snooping skills as part of an amateur sleuth group. She believes the Lovelorn Killer is still living in the same neighborhoods that he hunted in, and if she can figure out how he selected his victims, she will have the key to his identity.
Detective Annalisa Vega lost someone she loved to the killer. Now she’s at a murder scene with the worst kind of déjà vu: Grace Harper lies bound and dead on the floor, surrounded by clues to the biggest murder case that Chicago homicide never solved. Annalisa has the chance to make it right and to heal her family, but first, she has to figure out what Grace knew—how to see a killer who may be standing right in front of you. This means tracing his steps back to her childhood, peering into dark corners she hadn’t acknowledged before, and learning that despite everything the killer took, she has still so much more to lose.
BOOK SYNOPSIS | BOOK 2
Detective Annalisa Vega is still reeling from the fallout of turning in her father, a now ex-cop, when she's assigned to investigate the murder of another officer, Leo Hammond, who has been killed in a bizarre ritualistic murder.
Annalisa soon discovers that he was hiding secrets. And they are piling up in both his professional and his personal life.
Annalisa focuses on someone who had good reason to want Hammond dead, Moe Bocks. Someone who had already potentially gotten away with murder once and the number one suspect in her mind as to prevent Hammond from taking another crack at him.
With time running out, Annalisa must catch the killer before he strikes again. But as she gets closer to the truth, she discovers that this case is more personal than she ever could have imagined. And she may be the next target.
Long Gone is a suspenseful thriller that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. With twists and turns at every turn, Joanna Schaffhausen has crafted a page-turner that is sure to keep readers up all night.
BOOK CLUB DISCUSSION:
The importance of family, both blood and chosen.
The dangers of obsession, both in love and work.
The power of secrets, both in the past and present.
BOOK QUOTE:
"The small evils vaccinate you against the big ones." - Long Gone by Joanna Schaffhausen
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