Once Taken (A Riley Paige Mystery--Book 2)

Blake Pierce

Feb 2016 · A Riley Paige Mystery Book 2 · Blake Pierce

About this ebook

“A masterpiece of thriller and mystery! The author did a magnificent job developing characters with a psychological side that is so well described that we feel inside their minds, follow their fears and cheer for their success. The plot is very intelligent and will keep you entertained throughout the book. Full of twists, this book will keep you awake until the turn of the last page.”

--Books and Movie Reviews, Roberto Mattos (re Once Gone)

Women are being murdered in upstate New York, their bodies found mysteriously hanging in chains. With the FBI called in, given the bizarre nature of the murders—and the lack of any clues—there is only one agent they can turn to: Special Agent Riley Paige.

Riley, reeling from her last case, is reluctant to take on a new one, since she is still convinced a former serial killer is out there, stalking her. She knows, though, that her ability to enter a serial killer’s mind and her obsessive nature is what will be needed to crack this case, and she just can’t refuse—even if it will push her over the edge.

Riley’s search takes her deep into a killer’s deluded mind as it leads her to orphanages, mental hospitals, prisons, all in an effort to understand the depth of his psychosis. Realizing she is up against a true psychopath, she knows time is short before he strikes again. But with her own job on the line and her own family a target, and with her fragile psyche collapsing, it may all be too much for her—and too late.

A dark psychological thriller with heart-pounding suspense, ONCE TAKEN is book #2 in a riveting new series—with a beloved new character—that will leave you turning pages late into the night.

Book #3 in the Riley Paige series is also now available!

Ratings and reviews

After having read the prequel and then book 1 of this series, I was so hoping I would not be disappointed .... and I wasn't. This is just as well written as the first with the same solid characters. FBI Agent Lucy Vargas is introduced as a new partner for Paige while her old partner has taken a step back. Paige is called to investigate the death of several women in New York. They have been found hanging in areas wrapped in chains and their throats cut. This is a serial killer that is different in every way. It's going to take Paige using her ability to step into a killer's mind to hunt down this killer. Meanwhile, Paige is convinced that the serial killer who abducted her a while back is not dead, as she's been told. She is reassured by all that the man was killed .... but when he abducts Paige's daughter, everyone must accept the truth and work to get her daughter back before she becomes his next victim. This is a dark psychological thriller with heart-pounding suspense, memorable characters, and killers that will have you double-checking the locks on the doors. Many thanks to the author for the digital copy of this psychological crime thriller. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

I loved the first book, "Once Gone", only liked this one. I've caught about a dozen grammatical errors between the two books. including "onto to", a missing period, "as" where it should of been was, etc. And there was a few points where I felt that Riley would have never said what you made her say. for example, a few unnecessary small talks. It's really disheartening for me. I'm not going to read the third one because your redundancy is outrageous. Maybe you do it on purpose but it turns me off as a reader.

Couple of things in this book really bothered me. One, is the fact that Reilly determines that her daughter will be safe, splashing in the pool, no less, while she goes off leaving her alone. This is after she was already taken by Peterson. I don't believe a child would bounce back so fast after an ordeal such as the one she went through. Two, the uncanny insights that the murderer in Sing, Sing had were not believable. For the imprisoned the outside world ceases to exist.

About the author

Blake Pierce is author of the bestselling RILEY PAGE mystery series, which include the mystery suspense thrillers ONCE GONE (book #1), ONCE TAKEN (book #2) and ONCE CRAVED (#3).

ONCE GONE (book #1), which has over 100 five star reviews, is available as a free download on Google Play!

An avid reader and lifelong fan of the mystery and thriller genres, Blake loves to hear from you, so please feel free to visit www.blakepierceauthor.com to learn more and stay in touch.