Crickets is a true nail-biter that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
With a fresh pair of eyes and a rare female perspective, Detective Sam Ellis is new to the team in Paige, Ohio. Trying to get a feel for her fellow officers and the small town, Sam begins nosing around in a decade-old unsolved rape case that seems to have been swept under the rug. The victim, Kara Peterson, never thought she’d be in Paige again, facing her rapist. But her father’s unexpected death forces Kara back home to relive the memories and recurring nightmare that years of therapy haven’t been able to mitigate. Fortunately, Kara has her oldest friend to rely on in addition to the recently hired detective who doesn’t simply assume Kara is lying or mentally unstable. Kara and detective Ellis have their own ideas about why the crime has been minimized, but the real cover-up is one neither woman could predict.
Crickets is a finely crafted mystery with a healthy dose of psychological thriller added to keep you on your toes. Kara is definitely the underdog of the story, not just because of the rape, but because of an unsympathetic small town with a powerful family pulling all the strings. When everybody knows everybody’s business, it’s difficult to find the truth. Chappel’s writing style is immersive, pulling readers in from the start with sharp, contrasting point-of-view voices. The plot is perfectly paced, with scraps and snippets of clues revealed at just the right moment. Some of the bluffs and feints are obvious, but others will leave you wondering who the villain really is. Wait to have your manicures done, because Crickets is a true nail-biter that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
