Blood Echo

The Burning Girl, Book 2

By: Christopher Rice

Narrated by: Lauren Ezzo

Length: 10 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

A conspiracy that promises bloodshed and the only woman who can stop it collide in the pause-resisting thriller by Christopher Rice, Amazon Charts bestselling author of Bone Music.

Kidnapped and raised by serial killers, Charlotte Rowe suffered an ordeal that made her infamous. Everyone in the world knew who she was. But no one in the world has any idea what she’s become…

Charlotte is an experiment. And a weapon. Enabled by a superpower drug, she’s partnered with a shadowy pharmaceutical company to hunt down and eliminate society’s most depraved human predators. But her latest mission goes off the rails in a horrifying way. Unsettled by her own capacity for violence, Charlotte wants some time to retreat so she can work on her new relationship with Luke, a sheriff’s deputy in the isolated Central California town she now calls home.

If only the threats hadn’t followed Charlotte there.

Something sinister is evolving in Altamira, California - a massive network of domestic terrorists with ties to Charlotte’s influential and corrupt employers. As a vast and explosive criminal conspiracy grows, the fate of Charlotte’s hometown hangs in the balance. With everyone she cares about in danger, Charlotte has no choice but to bring her powers home.

Charlotte Rowe has been triggered, and now she’ll have to take matters into her own powerful hands.

©2019 Christopher Rice (P)2018 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved

Critic reviews

“Rice has something to say about the devastating effects of childhood trauma and what makes a monster…” (Kirkus Reviews)

“Strong sequel…Rice combines bloody violence, complex characters, and high tech in a dark tale that will leave readers wanting to see more of [Charlotte Rowe].” (Publishers Weekly)

Another excellent story

As usual, Lauren's narration is fantastic. She has a keen understanding of pitch, tempo, and inflection and she is one of very few women who can pull off a convincing male voice!

I haven't read any of Christopher Rice's other work, but so far with this series he never fails to impress.

Now, in fairness, the quality of the prose is not amazing. He uses a lot of passive voice and clunky constructions.

The way the POV switches from first to third person and back can be a little jarring, but as with the previous book, this is a masterclass on how to write in the present tense without it feeling like a gimmick.

And with that being said, I love Charlotte and Cole as characters. Both are very deep, complex, real-feeling characters. I especially love that while Charlotte is generally a good, moral person who wants to help people, she has a dark streak that tends to get people hurt, especially when someone she cares about is in danger.

This book goes into some more depth about her capabilities and limitations and stayed interesting and compelling even through the slower parts.

I definitely recommend this series to anyone, so long as you aren't too squeamish.

A Sequel that equals the 1st!

Love the character development and fast pace. I hope there are future books in this series. This was an entertaining ride that left me wanting more.

great pace

I really enjoyed the first book in this series and the second was just as good. Awful bad guys, conflicted good guys and frustrated geniuses make for a fun romp.

A+ read

Just as good as the first book, Bone Music. Really enjoyed the evolution of the characters. Cannot wait to read the next chapter of Burning Girl story.

Excellent 2nd in series

Waited awhile for this one. Rice wrote a spectacular follow up to first book in this series. Had me having to finish it in one sitting.

Thoroughly Enjoyed!

Fabulous story and narrator did a superb job reading! Can't wait to read last installment in this series!! Thank you!!

Fantastic series!

It's rare that I fall in love with a storyline and characters so quickly, but here I am. I'm actually a little bummed that there's only 3 books in this series as of now. Thank you for a great book...one with an original plot and complex characters. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time! Ready for book #3!

Strong story and even stronger reading.

Mr. Rice has a way with with the English language that Picasso had with the spectrum of color. Doo. Creative and imaginative. Our narrator captured the the imagery wonderfully for my ears and mind. Thank you to all invovled. Very enjoyable and memorable.

Awesome

Great book love the store and the performance was great. Can’t wait to get another book of Christopher Rice’s, awesome.

Better than my own voice

I’ve only listed to three audio books and I admit that with this series it was the better option. As I read the story I felt my anxiety rise with each word. Listening to the book gave me some mental distance. Hearing the calm tenor of the performer allowed me to see a slightly different scene in my head than the much more morbid version my inner voice had created. It made the story much less cerebral and more like a stage play reading.
It was definitely a gripping story without my added mental gymnastics and just the novel characterizations laid out before me.