Hunger Moon (Huntress/FBI Thrillers #5) Series) by Alexandra Sokoloff

Thomas & Mercer, 2017

ISBN-13: 978-1503942721

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition, audiobook, MP3 CD

Alexandra Sokoloff has never strayed away from the controversial in her work, either in her Stoker-nominated horror titles or in her Huntress series. Hunger Moon is the fifth book in the series, and plenty has been written about it already: it will be easy for the reader to figure out why, once the final page is turned.

The concept of a female serial killer was a unique one when the Huntress series began. The first book, Huntress Moon,  is a stellar novel that introduced something new to the field of crime fiction that left an impact close to the one chewed out by Hannibal Lecter.

Cara Lingstrom is the killer readers crave in stories. Nothing about her is simple, nothing is easy, and her motivations dive deeper than the typical sociopath/family issues/revenge stories. Sokoloff draws her in deft strokes, creating a character both brutal and sympathetic, surgical in mission yet human beneath the murders.

In Hunger Moon,  Cara has disappeared from FBI Special Agent Matthew Roarke’s radar. Something evil is happening on college campuses nationwide. Rapes are increasing everywhere, and rapists are being targeted by a mysterious killer who leaves Santa Muerte symbols behind. When the country’s leaders prove to be no different that the rapists targeted by the killer, a fury erupts, dividing the nation. It’s a situation that, unfortunately, too many readers will find familiar. Cara is in hiding, planning something that will shake up the novel, and Roarke, hot on the heels of the men she is chasing, knows she is just a step away.

Hunger Moon is a white-knuckle ride by a talented thriller author, tackling a subject that needs to be addressed more, both in fiction and in real life. Reading the others in the series is not necessary at all but highly recommended. A thriller series this strong doesn’t come around often.