I loved the twist and turns this book took! I loved that the police seemed intelligent, and the kids were brave even if they were terrified.

4 stars !!! I loved the storyline and characters. Such a fast paced read that kept me on my toes. Can’t wait to read more from this author!

I did not finish this one, it was not for me, I couldn't relate to the characters, and just did not care for the story.

Actual Rating: 3.5

It’s been a while since I’ve enjoyed a crime/thriller novel but having just finished watching the American TV show Castle, I felt like I was in the perfect mood for something like this.

Cut to the Bone is the third of a series but it does work as a standalone mystery; I personally went into this one without reading any of the others yet — though I definitely will go back and read them now.

This book follows FBI agent Sayer Altair. When a full school bus suddenly goes missing and students start showing up dead in ritualistic murders, Sayer finds herself chasing after a serial killer. There’s also the mysterious Subject 037, the subject of a psychopathy study who is a little too invested in Sayer’s life. And to make matters worse, she runs straight into a government conspiracy that is way above her pay grade.

I sort of have mixed feelings about that last part; I love a good conspiracy thriller novel but I’m kind of torn between (1) liking that the book took the extra step to make its story more twisted and (2) thinking that it was just a little dramatic and over-the-top. Maybe it would’ve made more sense to me had I read the previous books and there had been hints, but as someone who went into this one blind, I found it difficult to suspend my disbelief there.

Other than that, I really liked the mystery itself, though I still didn’t necessarily find it mind-blowing. While I loved the Egyptian aspect and the plot itself, I still think that any mystery lover would be able to guess who the killer was once some suspect backstory was given.

The most intriguing part for me was undoubted Subject 037 and this would be the main reason I’d want to read the entire series. Nevertheless, I’d definitely recommend this book — but probably read in order.

When a bus full of high schoolers go missing and the first one turns up dead in a ritualistic killing, Agent Sayer from the FBI is called in to crack the case. Quickly the case becomes more and more complicated as they fight to find the other missing students before they too are killed. Sayer uses some unlikely advisors, including a psychopath from a research project, to help her figure out who the killer is and where they might strike again.

I liked the fast pace of this one. Sayer wasn't anything special compared to some of the crack detectives we've come to know and love; Lucas Davenport, Alex Delaware and Alex Cross I'm looking at you. That said this is the third book in a series where I didn't read the first two. The killer and their motives was really interesting, I enjoyed learning about the <redacted... that's a spoiler> methodolgy that drove the murders. There was also a pretty big twist in the middle in this one that I didn’t see coming which changes the whole story and a fun last page jaw dropped as well. Also, if you're a DC fan, there is a bit of a fun guessing game about where each new victim might end up.

Apologies to the author and Minotaur Books for how long this sat in my Netgalley queue, I'm desperately trying to get caught up on all my backlog. All opinions above are my own.

This was one of those keep you on the edge of your seat, must read another chapter before bed kind of thriller. I enjoyed this one immensely! All around a wonderful thriller and I will be picking up more books written by this author!

This is Book #3 in the Agent Sayer Altair series. I do wish that I would have started with Book #1 in the series: Caged. Despite this, the author provided enough backstory to avoid confusion.

The three books are highly rated on Goodreads, and I think we are due for Book #4 very soon!

I really loved this book and will definitely go back and read the whole series! I love a good series + police procedural, and the fact that I absolutely adored Sayer’s character will keep me coming back for more!

Additionally, there were many other main characters that were quite interesting and loveable! They were also quite diverse which was nice to see in a book! I also really enjoyed the inclusion of multiple work dogs as the main characters! There was a therapy and a search and rescue dog.

As far as death and violence go, this one isn’t super gory or descriptive. I’ve read far worst violent and dark thrillers. If you like murder/mysteries, you will definitely enjoy this book.

If you are looking for a gripping novel, this one is for you! Highly recommend!

I absolutely LOVED this book. It was a fast-paced thriller that I simply could not get enough of. If you're in need of a book that you can't bear to put down, this is definitely it.

This book was creepy, atmospheric, and everything I love in a thriller! I will definitely be reading more from this author in the future!

Thank you netgalley and publisher for opportunity to read and provide an honest review for this arc.

Fantastic book and can’t wait to read more. Talk about thrilling and well researched as well as well written, well done! (That’s a lot of wells). Nonetheless this can be read as a stand-alone but was excited to see its part of a series so I can devour more!

Won't post much of a review as this book is part.of a series. I want to scream about how good all of these books are! I feel like they are being slept on. Another amazing book from Ellison Cooper. I am definitely a forever fan and cannot.wait to devour more! Such a fantastic Author who's talent is visible across the Pages of these books..

I loved this book! You could tell that the author has a background in the plot explored through this story. Her writing helped me feel like I was right there along with the characters. I loved Sayer Altair, the strong female lead in this story who is a FBI neuroscientist. This is the third book in a series, and while I haven't read the other two books yet, I hope to be able to do so! There was so much tension and mystery in this book, and it alternated points of view between Sayer and the detectives and the missing students on the bus. A lot of what is in this book is also really timely for events that happen in our society today. I really enjoyed this story!

Everyone said that this book keeps you interested he edge of your seat, and they are totally right about that. I like that this is a series, but the book also feels like it can stand on its own.

This was such a great thriller that constantly kept giving me more suspense and held my attention all the way through. I also enjoyed the characters which allowed me to feel even more connected to the story. I will definitely continue to read more by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur books for this ARC.

Cut to the Bone can definitely be read as a standalone. This was a very intriguing book and kept me reading. Ellison Cooper did an amazing job with detailing procedures and investigating (I almost felt as if I were a part of this too). Great read!

Ellison Cooper is getting better and better at producing quality thriller stories with each new novel. Cut to the Bone is non-stop action from the very first chapter, and while some moments got a little too extra for me – things I won’t mention because of spoilers – overall this was an intelligent and intricately plotted novel that should be on every thriller fan’s TBR. I would, however, definitely suggest reading the whole series from the beginning because I feel Cooper’s strongest attribute as a writer are character arcs which evolve with each new novel. She really knows how to keep a long-game plot rolling.

There are added elements of government conspiracy and special ops/military vibes which gave the plot a different layer to the typical linear murder case, but I’m also not a fan of military/conspiracy storylines in crime novels, so this is reflected in my rating. I found these plot additions to be too over-the-top, messing up the pure murder thriller tone of the first two-thirds of the novel. I much prefer dark realism over thrillers that throw in sensational plot twists for the drama.

As always, I found Sayer to be pretty cardboard. I think she’s getting better? It’s hard to tell. She just doesn’t jump off the page, and that’s a shame because there’s so much good to work with. I wish Cooper could find a way to inject Sayer with a tangible personality that felt natural, instead of forced or borderline corny, which is how it mostly comes across to me. Her sense of humour is basically non-existent and when she tries, it’s like an alien trying to imitate human behaviour as best it can.

So, despite the weird addition of government conspiracy BS which had a negative effect on the last few chapters of the novel, and changed the tone to one I wasn’t totally on board with, the majority of the novel was a fast-paced thriller and the cliff-hanger ending was a perfect choice. If we could just knock Sayer up a notch and focus less on the conspiracy drama, my rating might be higher.

PS. We demand more Subject 37!

This series is one of my absolute favorites! It's also the 3rd book in the series so it is definitely going to be a bit difficult to talk about without sharing spoilers. I had been looking forward to this book for months and it was completely worth the wait! The things about all of the books in this series is that they are just so hard to put down! The premise of this one had me hooked from the very beginning. Twenty-four missing high school students that were supposed to be on a school trip - it was a suspenseful setup. But what I didn't expect (but loved) was how much this book tied in elements from her two previous books. I won't say any more because I don't want to spoil anything but WOW. Does this author know how to pull the rug from under you or what? And then the way this book ended....PLEASE tell me that we will be getting a 4th book in the new year because I NEED it! Need it. I flew through the pages of this book just as I have done with the previous two books. My favorite of the series so far still remains as Caged but all three of these books were standout reads for me. If you haven't checked this series out yet, then what are you waiting for?!? It's SO good - you won't regret reading these. I do suggest reading them in order because there are things that happen in each book that carry over into the other books.

Overall, I cannot say enough good things about this series or really even this book! We got a lot more than I expected with this one which I really enjoyed. I'm itching to get my hands on book four - it's going to be a long wait for that one but I will be first in line to read it. If you enjoy police procedurals (this is FBI so not quite the same) and darker mysteries, I definitely would say to give this series a try. This author is on my must read list where I will read anything/everything that she writes. Highly recommended!

Bottom Line: Another really great addition to one of my very favorite mystery series!

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book thanks to the publisher and Netgalley. I ended up reading a copy courtesy of my local library. Honest thoughts are my own.

CW: Violence, Harm to teenagers, kidnapping, child's death.

This is the third book in the Agent Sayer Altair series, which is one of my all-time favorite mystery / thriller series!

FBI neuroscientist, Sayer Altair, has been having a seriously rough time of things. She’s grieving the death of her fiancé, she almost lost her job, and it seems like the powers that be have it out for her. But she’s trying to rebuild her life, find some happiness and routine, and is continuing her research into the minds of psychopaths. But her life is once-again thrown upside down, when she’s called to investigate a girl’s body that’s been left inside a circle of animal figurines, along with a strange message written in blood.

The more Agent Altair digs into the case the darker it becomes and the more she realizes is at stake. Can she beat the clock to solve the mystery before the bodies start piling up?

I love how real and raw Sayer is, while also being fiercely loyal, and determined to do the right thing. There is also a cast of wonderful support characters in this book (many of whom were featured in previous books too). And if you also love history and symbology, then I have no doubt you’ll adore how it is woven into this story.

I can’t say too much without giving away some of the twists and turns in the book, so I’ll just encourage you to go read this book RIGHT NOW!

I love me a good book with a serial killer in it and this one was EXTRA cool because it had some really neat aspects to that I'd share, but I don't want to ruin the surprise! It checked a lot of boxes for me. 1) Strong female lead 2) Events that were believeable 3) Lots of red herrings 4) Fun characters and did I mention a serial killer? **The one thing that always makes me a little cautious about a serial killer book is how graphic it will be. I want to be scared, but I don't want to be so scared I can't sleep. This book plays it just right.

3.5 stars

I knew Cut to the Bone was the third book in a series when I accepted the ARC but the synopsis really appealed to me and I’d seen other reviewers note that it could be read as a standalone. I will say, for anyone wondering, that I agree with this completely. I think the author did a fantastic job filling the reader in on background information for the main characters without overwhelming you to the point that you're pulled out of the current story.

Cut to the Bone follows FBI agent and neuroscientist Sayer Altair as she investigates a horrific double murder and a missing bus full of high school students. The murder and missing students are linked, as one of the two victims in the double murder was one of the female students from the bus and Altair is determined to find the person responsible before any other teens lose their lives.

The story begins with intensity and barely stops to take a breath. There is so much going on in this book! It is well-written and packed full of interesting information, although it never comes across as an info dump.

I absolutely love psychology and neuroscience so my nerd brain found so much of the scientific material presented in this novel to be fascinating. I think anyone who enjoys studying psychopathy will find themselves quite immersed in this one!

As I previously mentioned, there is a lot going on in, which certainly guaranteed that I was never bored. Some of the drama felt a bit over-the-top to me, especially toward the end, as it began to feel more like a soap opera. I didn’t love this aspect but found the narrative to be entertaining, nonetheless.

I would be interested in reading the first two books in this series at some point and I am now eager for book four, as the author left me hungry for more with her oh-so-intriguing ending. I can’t wait to see what she has in store for Sayer Altair!

Thank you to the publisher for my review copy. All opinions are my own. Cut to the Bone is available now for purchase!