Fear Nothing: Detective D. D. Warren Series #7 by Lisa Gardner

Fear Nothing: Detective D. D. Warren Series #7.  Lisa Gardner. Penguin Group (USA). January 2014. 400 pp. hbk. ISBN #: 9780525953081.

Detective D. D. Warren is called to work on a horrendous crime scene with a signature rose left at the scene but a killing technique that is a shocker!  Having to visualize such a scene is bad enough but soon D.D. returns to the scene where she herself is viciously attacked and shot off her gun three times.  Although she is physically recovering from the event, in excruciating pain beyond description, she pursues two directions.  One is fulfilling the orders of her superiors to see a psychiatrist, Dr. Adeline Glen; and the other is meeting with her peers to continue to solve the initial crime that has now occurred a second time.

Dr. Adeline has her own problems, the first being an inability to feel any physical pain whatsoever. While that might seem terrific, in reality it’s a huge risk because she has to monitor against infection or the breaking of any body parts several times a day.  Feeling is a protective device against any external or internal threat to the body.  What would it be like to be lacking such an essential part of one’s internal defense system? 

Add to Dr. Adeline’s dilemma the fact she has a psychopathic sister, Shana, who is serving a life prison sentence.  She’s the emotional opposite of her Adeline.  Shana seethes with unbridled hate against her sister.  Adeline has no idea why she committed vicious murders both outside and inside prison.  Their father, by the way, was the famous Harry Day, who killed woman and buried them under the floor boards of their home, that is until the day he was killed by another family member.

With all of this mayhem continuing and now connecting all of these characters and two other critical people, detectives and D. D. are attempting to discovery the identity of the Rose Killer.  Ironically, one begins to believe it may be one of our main characters who is doing the killing, logically thinking.  But logic is a liar over and over in this hair-raising tale.  One feels the tension building by leaps and bounds as the story continues and ends with several solutions that the reader is in no way prepared for – phenomenal!

Lisa Gardner writes a novel that is thriller, crime fiction, paranormal tale, and mystery that clearly marks her as a professional in her trade and one to follow avidly.  Stunning, mind-boggling, amazing novel, Ms. Gardner!