Book Review The Last Move by Mary Burton

Title: The Last Move 

Author:  Mary Burton

Stars: 5 out of 5 

Review:
The Last Move is a nail biting suspense where the smartest FBI agent is working to find a serial killer that is from her past. 
Kate Hayden is a smart, strong female character that works hard for respect but works harder for the victims of the killers she puts behind bars. Mary Burton made Kate likable strong, and willing to face her fears even when it comes from her nightmares.  
The story is strong with twist and turns readers of mystery and thrillers will enjoy.  The author doesn't hide who the killer is but the motive starts to come together and readers will feel the rush of discovering the truth before Kate does. 

With many suspense write that have the female lead as an FBI agent they always write her as unlikable to all but the one male lead who finds her amazing.  This time is it was more in the protagonist head that she was unlikable, blunt, crass and the odd duck.  The author wrote her charming, endearing and likable.   

The Last Move is well paced. The romance /sex seemed a little oddly placed and I wouldn't call this a romantic suspense.  It felt thrown in there with no purpose other than to have a sex scene in the book and show readers Kate can connect with someone.
 The murders are graphic as well as the details of Kate's past.

This is a must read author for readers of thriller Mysteries. 

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher Montlake for the chance to review Mary Burton's latest novel

Synopsis: 
Catching monsters helps FBI agent Kate Hayden keep her nightmares at bay. Now an urgent call brings her back to San Antonio, the scene of her violent past. A brutal new murder shows hallmarks of a serial killer nicknamed the Samaritan. Tricky part is, Kate already caught him.

Either Kate made a deadly error, or she’s got a copycat on her hands. Paired with homicide detective Theo Mazur, she quickly realizes this murder is more twisted than it first appeared. Then a second body is found, the mode of death identical to a different case that Kate thought she’d put behind her.

Now Kate and Detective Mazur aren’t just working a homicide; the investigative pair is facing a formidable enemy who knows Kate intimately. While Mazur is personally trying to protect Kate, the closer they are drawn to the killer, the clearer it becomes that in this terrifying game, there is only one rule: don’t believe everything you see

Kindle Edition, 336 pages

Published September 19th 2017 by Montlake Romance

About The Author:

Mary Burton loves writing suspense, researching law enforcement and forensic procedures, baking, books, and tiny dachshunds. Not necessarily in that order.

She also enjoys hunting down serial killers, which she does in her New York Times and USA Today bestselling novels of suspense and romance. She’s tracked them down in stories set in her hometown of Richmond, Alexandria, Austin, Nashville and San Antonio that have been praised by readers and reviewers. Her work has been compared to that of James Patterson*, Lisa Gardner** and Lisa Jackson***. 

Research is a favorite part of Mary’s work day. She never tires of learning more about police procedures, and evidence collection and analysis and doesn’t hesitate to take a hands-on approach, whether it means interviews with those working in the field, forensic seminars or lessons at the firing range.

A Richmond native, Mary has lived there for most of her life. She is a graduate of Virginia’s Hollins University and worked in marketing before she began writing full time. Her first book was published in 2000 and she’s now the author of thirty-three published novels and five novellas, including her contemporary women’s fiction written as Mary Ellen Taylor.

Known for creating multiple stories connected by characters and settings, such as her recent The Forgotten Files novels, her new book, The Last Move, is her first “standalone” in eleven years. In it she takes readers to San Antonio, where FBI Agent Kate Hayden and Detective Theo Mazur confront resurrected serial killer “Samaritan”—and Kate’s past.

When not traveling for research or visiting with readers at bookstores, book festivals and conferences, Mary remains very much a homebody. She and her husband spend time alternately enjoying and lamenting their empty nest and spoiling their four legged babies Buddy, Bella and Tiki.