When I was a little girl, my mother taught me not to accept candy from strangers or to get into cars with people I didn't know. I didn't listen. Fortunately, I lived to pass that rule on to my children. Sadly, the victims in Jan Turner's book, Cedar Lane, were not so lucky.
Brian Middleton is a monster of the worst sort, preying on young girls, then raping and killing them, leaving no evidence behind. The police in Lancashire, England have no leads until psychic Harry O Neal (author's spelling) steps in. Working with eighteen-year-old Beth Cotton and her uncle, the handsome bridge between the living and the dead has little time to help the police close the case.
As a fan of stories involving serial killers and tales starring people with six or more senses, I thought this narrative would be a splendid word stew, and boy, did I savor its juices! From the aroma of the setup to the succulence of the scenes to the spiciness of the suspense, I was pretty well fed. I was especially pleased that the knowledge of the killer from the beginning didn't sour the entrée. In fact, his cockiness just made me hungrier for his downfall. Likewise, I found myself alternately sobbing for Beth or cheering her on, even as I was shaking my head at her bad choices. Her uncle, Edward Knightly, was a wonderful escort for her, and Harry brought plenty of gusto to the table.
Cedar Lane also includes a bit of the supernatural, aside from Harry's psychic abilities, and I thought the scenes were well integrated. I find that if they're not written well, supernatural entities can be too cliché or even cartoony, but this tale didn't suffer from any lame characterizations. Even the peripheral characters were well suited to their roles, adding extra seasoning to the meal.
As much as I'd love to give this tale a full rating, I am giving it 3 out of 4 stars, due to its one sour ingredient: the grammar. There were a number of punctuation errors, misspellings, and typos. In addition, I found several stumbles by way of inconsistencies (Edward was noted as the youngest of both seven siblings and eight siblings, for example) and one problem with continuity, wherein I thought a particular chapter would make more sense if placed earlier in the tome. Additionally, I was so curious about a classical song noted in the story that I looked it up and found that the author's description was strikingly similar to the description of the song on Wikipedia. Finally, one aspect of the ending left a bit of a salty aftertaste but not enough to ruin the feast.
Cedar Lane is full of violence and profanity as well as rape, so it's not for sensitive readers. Fans of crime stories, serial killer tales, and the supernatural should find it to be a delight though.
- Ted BundyYou learn what you need to kill and take care of the details.
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Cedar Lane
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