Faceless

A Whitley and Keal Mystery, Book 2

By: Dawn Kopman Whidden

Narrated by: Amy Deuchler

Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

Fallsburg, New York, has a killer on the loose - one who's leaving their sadistic, telltale marks on innocent victims.

A pretty teenage girl is found dead in the woods, her face horribly mutilated. A few days later, a second girl, also strikingly beautiful, is attacked in a similar fashion. Who would do such a brutal thing - and why? Is there some sort of psychopathic monster lurking out there, preying upon vulnerable females? Or are the victims being targeted by someone they know?

It's up to two of Fallsburg's finest - Detective Jean Whitley and her new partner, Marty Keal - to find out who's responsible for the grisly crimes. When she starts digging up clues, Jean is startled to learn that the crime has hit uncomfortably close to home. The victims - and many of the potential suspects - are classmates of Jean's 14-year-old daughter, Bethany. To make matters worse, Bethany's behavior has drastically changed. Jean's sweet, loving child has become a sullen, secretive stranger. How much does Bethany really know about the victims - and the crimes that are taking place? Does Bethany's hunky new heartthrob have anything to do with the crimes? And why does the mounting evidence keep pointing to a popular parish priest?

Suddenly deprived of her longtime police detective mentor and friend, Jean is forced to take the lead in this latest investigation, while breaking in a new partner. As they dig deeper into the case, Jean encounters threats to her career, her family relationships...and quite possibly her own daughter's life. Through it all, Jean and Marty must unravel a multi-layered mystery and put a face on the unseen villain, before anyone else ends up dead...and faceless.

©2016 Dawn Kopman Whidden (P)2017 Dawn Kopman Whidden

Gripping!

Twists and turns throughout kept me riveted to the end with the biggest surprise at the reveal! Can't wait until Dawn Kopman Whidden's next book comes out.

Amy Deuchler did an excellent job narrating. She brought the characters to life.

I was given a free review copy of this audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Who did it?

4 young girls go wandering in the woods. One gets separated from the other 3. When the 3 find the one that got lost the find a murdered girl. Police are called and the mystery is on. Who would do such a horrid crime? Did the 3 do it to their friend?

The narrator, Amy Deuchler, did a great job performaning all the characters in this novel.


This book
was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

If you read "A child Is Torn" you must get this

I already read the book but wanted to hear how it would be as a audiobook,I was very happy,Amy Deucher did a very good job.

Cringe worthy thriller

Faceless in truth scared the hell out of me I kept thinking about my own kids as I was listening to it. This book almost feels like a book of fact and not fiction. The writing is descriptive and we'll written. The characters are relatable. The twist threw me for a loop though. I truly recommend this book to anyone who loves suspenseful thrillers. I received this audio book at my request. I am voluntarily leaving an honest review this book is a true must read/ listen.

this book was given to me at my request for review

loved this book couldn't stop listening to it. gruesome murders with a surprising ending. who would have guessed it was a mother.

Great Thriller

I recently finished Dawn Whidden’s Faceless. I really like her main character, Detective Jean Whitley. This story progresses at a good pace, moving back and forth between the home front drama of dealing with a teenage daughter turned surly and the race to find a killer who literally defaces his victims. The tenuous balance Jean has previously maintained between home and work is unraveling and distracting her from the investigation. This is so realistically portrayed that I felt I was inside her living room as she tried to talk to her daughter as well as inside her car with her as she raced to the next crime scene. Kudos to Ms. Whidden for an excellent page-turner.
I was provided this book free of charge for an honest and unbiased review

Amy Deuchler was amazing with the delivery of the story

a great great story

the book is fantastic! I loved it! loved it! loved it! so very much.. it manage to surprise me with the twist.. definitely will wait to the second book

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review."

it was great,

I totally didn't expect that ending. I love the writing and conflict in the book. the narration was fabulous. I have already recommended it to friends.

Good Book. Narration a little stiff.

Overall, I liked this book. It is a solid murder mystery story with a good cast of characters who have lives beyond what's happening in the main storyline. This helped me to be able to connect more with them and enjoy the book including subtleties not related to the murder case. I requested this book and agreed to review it when done. The narration was fine, however, it felt a bit stiff and forced at times. I felt that sometimes the narrator was reading to me; not acting.

An Original Story 4.5 - I’m reading the next one!

A killer’s on the loose and your teen begins her first acts of rebellion that could put her in danger. The fact that you are the police officer working the murders of her peers is a small touch of the problem facing Detective Jean Whitley. This is a good mystery. I was surprised at the twists that were taken to get to the conclusion. The police procedurals, the character development and family/community building resonates with me as cop’s daughter, mother and woman with many medical professionals in my family.

I don’t think I’ve ever said this before but the narrator really detracted from this story. I cringed every time a male character had to speak. It was so jarring it took me out of the story no matter how hard I tried to ignore it. The emotional range was poor almost flat—so much so that any anger, fear, frustration (which would be par for the course in a thriller/murder mystery) came off as “whiney” at best.

So I do recommend that you READ the book. I plan on getting the hard copies of the next volumes as I really am invested in the characters.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in return for an honest review.

EDIT: I’ve begun reading another book in series on Kindle without narration and have to say the writing is excellent. Without the distraction, I have been able to really “hear” the voices of the characters with more clarity and depth. I highly recommend this book and the series.