This is the 2nd  book in the Nikki Hunt series by Stacy Green and what can I say! Simply fantastic and can I have the next one soon?  I had to read it in one sitting. 

I absolutely love Nikki!  I have read the first book and I found her work ethic and personality admirable. She is such a strong and determined character and so easy to relate with! Needless to say I feel all the characters are simply great and I can never get bored of reading. 

The plot is fast paced with lots of twists and the atmospheric setting definitely gives the reading that extra something that makes it more special. This book has quite sensitive subjects and they are handled in a very sensitive and respectful manner. 

I simply cannot wait to read more and have to say that Stacy Green is definitely on my list of favourite authors!
I would like to thank Bookouture and NetGalley for an advanced digital copy of this great book in exchange for an honest review.

ONE PERFECT GRAVE is the second book in the Nikki Hunt series, a gripping crime thriller set in Stillwater, Minnesota by best-selling author Stacy Green.

The books in the Nikki Hunt Series include:
The Girls in The Snow (Book 1)
One Perfect Grave (Book 2)

This second instalment takes place a few weeks after the end of the first book. While this book can be read as a standalone, as the author does a great job in supplying background information, I would recommend you read the series in order to get a better appreciation of the growth of the characters. It is such a great series, so sit back and enjoy!

FBI Special Agent and criminal profiler Nikki Hunt has been chosen to head up a new Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) that deals with crimes in the jurisdictions of Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.

When a car skids off the road the driver discovers two dead bodies of a woman and child.

The remains of two bodies are found in an open grave along a desolate highway in Stillwater, Minnesota, Special Agent Nikki Hunt knows exactly who they are. The bright blue jacket lying on the frozen earth belongs to Kellan Rhodes, the missing boy she’s desperately been trying to find for the last two days. The other body is his mother Dana, who had been Nikki’s lead suspect.

An amber alert had announced that Kellan had been abducted by his biological mother, Dana Rhodes, who had lost custody of Kellan, three years ago because of drug use. Six-year-old Kellan had gone to live with his aunt and uncle, Maggie and Joe Anderson, who fought to adopt him.

The wounds on Dana’s body suggest she murdered her son and took her own life, but Nikki finds evidence that suggests she was a victim too…boot prints at the scene that belong to someone else.

Caitlin Newport, a local reporter, comes to Nikki to tell her about another twelve-year-old child that is reported missing, and claims the cases are linked: Zach Reeves was taken away from his own mother in a custody battle, just like Kellan was. But can Nikki trust Caitlin?

One Perfect Grave is a fast-paced crime thriller with a strong protagonist and engaging characters. Lots of twists and turns with a shocking conclusion. Great series that will appeal to a wide audience. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to the author, Bookouture and NetGalley, for my digital copy.

Agent Nikki Hunt is back for book two in the series. I like the fast pace of this book and the character development. There is plenty of action in this well written tale but it was the last part before I became really engrossed in the plot, which skilfully merges the past with the present. I look forward to book three in the series and I would recommend this series. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

❄Minnesota winter deaths turn up the heat in pursuit of a killer😧

4.5🌟 stars
This story is complex, as it starts from the discovery of two frozen bodies near a rural Minnesota bridge and morphs into a wider murder and kidnapping investigation, all led by intrepid divorced mom and FBI agent Nikki Hunt. She's still suffering the guilt and traumatic aftereffects from discovering the truth about her own parents' murders when she was a teen (covered in the first book in the series) and the new case develops in the same rural landscapes where her parents died.

I liked the balance between Nikki's private and professional life. The growing pains of her new romance and her exes' reaction come into play but are not allowed to derail her criminal investigation.

This series highlights the investigative process, detailing forensic methods but emphasizing the constant legwork and interviewing process that bring the evidence together. And while there is tragedy there's also the satisfaction of a killer finally brought to task and the chain of evil broken in a high action climax race against time.

In the early stages of the book I found it hard to follow all the threads to the team's enquiries, but I suppose that's realistic as the investigators had to sort through so many questions and evidence gaps to find direction for their search. As the story progressed, although the crime field expanded the way to the truth became clearer and I found myself more invested in the plot and the outcome.

This is a well-written series that I intend to stay with as it develops further.

Thanks to publishers Bookouture and NetGalley for providing a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest review.

Happy Publication Week! “One Perfect Grave” is going to be out this Thursday, February 25th!
TW: Pedophilia; Drug abuse; Gaslighting
This is a sequel to “The Girls in the Snow”, which I haven’t read but now have every intention to! Some spoilers are included in this book, but I don’t have a problem with that.
Special Agent Nikki Hunt has a troubled personal life and is working in a missing child case that comes to a sad conclusion when the child and his mother are found dead. It looks like a murder followed by suicide, but was it really? Meanwhile, another investigation gets caught in the middle, are they linked or just coincidences?

Plot: ★★★★
It’s not a shocking innovative plot but classics are classics for a reason, we get a little bit of personal drama with a lot of investigation and suspicion. I definitely missed a little bit of character development and relationships by not reading the first book, but I liked to get to know Nikki Hunt and her tangled personal life. There are a few revelations and twists but it’s not a plot twist kind of ending. I found the story very well executed and with no lose ends, but maybe a little bit simple.

Structure: ★★★★★
The pace is addictive, keeps you guessing a bunch of times without stalling too much. The adjacent plots are extremely well balanced. At 80% you pretty much know what happened but there are still some clarifications and great action scenes, so it doesn’t lose its pace.

Characters: ★★★
Okay so maybe it’s a little unfair because I haven’t read the first of the series, but I feel like some characters were just thrown around at the story and it took me some time placing them when their names were mentioned. However, that did happen with characters that were previously featured and “new” characters; basically that was an issue for me. The main characters are well built and developed but the other roles are neglected.

4.0 ★

My expectations were high due to all the good reviews and I wasn’t let down! This works even if you haven’t read the first of the series and is a very good investigation thriller. I already can’t wait for the next book.

Thank you NetGalley for this Advance Review Copy in exchange for my honest review!

As this is the second book in the series, it is a good idea to read the first book, however, this book can easily be read as a standalone as well.

Nikki has been desperately trying to find Kellan Rhodes and his mother Dana. It seems she took him, killed him and then killed herself, case closed. Not so fast! There is a lot more going on, naturally enough, and the twists and turns in this book are cleverly done and kept my interest very high throughout.

Maggie seems like a very unlikeable character indeed and I like how the author has introduced the family dynamic between Maggie and Dana as having an impact on this case.

When another child goes missing and the local police aren't taking it seriously enough, Caitlin the annoying somewhat aggressive reporter, gets involved. It is personal for her and Nikki, despite her reservations, tries to help out.

So much going on in this book but the author very skilfully weaves all the strands together.

4.5 stars from me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture.

I enjoyed the first book in the Nikki Hunt series The Girls in the Snow. I was not disappointed with One Perfect Grave. What a plot!
So full of twists and turns with lots of intrigue thrown in!
Never saw that ending coming!
Highly recommend this series for any fans of crime thrillers. Do read the first book in the series as there is important back story that will help you understand Nikki Hunt.
Many thanks to NetGalley, Bookouture and author, Stacy Green, for the opportunity to read this book for my honest opinion. All opinions expressed are my own.

I crave a book that makes you think and put the pieces together, or at least attempt it. Green provides us with a mystery with lots of moving parts among the lies and deceit. A mother and her son are found deceased, another case forces Nikki to help and attempting to have a love life are concerns weighing heavily on Nikki’s shoulders. Any mother, working or not, will tell you life gets hectic but imagine working as an FBI agent. Nikki is a superhero in my mind. This is a series that allows you to get lost in the words and forget everything else, a cryptic whodunit with a powerful ending. Anxious to find out what’s next for Nikki. Netgalley provided my early copy but I wrote my review voluntarily.

One Perfect Grave is a compelling book that kept me gripped. I loved Nikki's character - being a strong willed woman who had found minor fame as an FBI agent but she is also a mummy and there when her daughter needs her. Caitlin is also a fabulous character - her determination to get the authorities, mainly Nikki and the FBI involved in another case which she thinks has links to the murder Nikki is investigating. Secrets are uncovered and the jigsaw starts to fall into place. Brilliant book.

Another clever and suspenseful mystery full of interesting characters; some you'll loathe,  some you'll pity and others you'll root for. I really like that we get to see how Nikki tries to balance her difficult job with a complicated personal life.
This can be read without reading The Girls in the Snow first as enough of the backstory is supplied, though I believe it's best to start at the beginning to get a better feel for the characters.  I'm definitely looking forward to the next book.

This book was provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This is the 2nd installment in the Nikki Hunt series. When FBI agent Nikki Hunt is called to the scene of a crime she is told it is the missing little boy, Kellan that she and the whole town have been looking for all weekend. Believed to have been abducted by his mother Dana, she too is found along with Kellan in a possible suicide. Upon further investigation, it is a murder staged to look like suicide. While Nikki and her team are search for clues that lead to the killer, Caitlin, the local news reporter is hounding her about the disappearance of another young boy. Nikki gets involved in a jurisdictional showdown between two sheriffs and steps on a few toes. This is pretty action packed and I liked it even better than the first novel. Thank you NetGalley, Stacy Green and Bookouture.

The underlying theme of missing and exploited children is heartbreaking and I applaud the team who work to bring them home. The story is quite slow to start with, going on and on about the suspicions and the thoughts of the detective. This maybe due to the paucity of characters. The pace picks towards the final one third by when we could guess the suspense. 3.5 stars

Special Agent Nikki Hunt is back in Stillwater, Minnesota. This time she is trying to discover why two bodies were found frozen in an open grave. One of the victims was a young boy, and the other victim is his mother. Nikki has her suspicions, but she finds some evidence that dispels her original theory. Then another child is reported missing. Nikki most definitely feels the cases are connected.

When a reporter contacts Nikki and begs her to look deeper into the murders and to the disappearance of the other child, the pressure is immense. Child custody seems to be a factor as to both cases. As the mother of a young child, a child who spends quite a bit of time with Nikki's ex due to the level of Nikki's work, makes this even more sensitive to her. Meanwhile, Nikki is drawing closer to her new boyfriend, all while worrying about how his family would feel about their relationship.

Because I had just read the first book in the series, The Girls in the Snow, just prior to reading this book, I had started to get to know Nikki. I love her personality, her work ethic, and how she feels about her daughter. I also love watching her develop a relationship, despite the challenges that would entail. Even so, this book, One Perfect Grave, could do well as a standalone. Stacy Green is an excellent writer, and excels when it comes to character development.

In addition to that, the cases, although quite sensitive in nature, are handled well, and the story has enough twists and turns that kept me turning pages late into the night. In fact, I could not stop reading this book until I finished it, pretty much in one sitting. The story has excellent pacing and led to an exciting conclusion. I can't wait to see how Nikki handles her next case, as well as to where her relationship goes.

Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

𝕆𝕟𝕖 ℙ𝕖𝕣𝕗𝕖𝕔𝕥 𝔾𝕣𝕒𝕧𝕖 (ℕ𝕚𝕜𝕜𝕚 ℍ𝕦𝕟𝕥 #𝟚) 𝕓𝕪 𝕊𝕥𝕒𝕔𝕪 𝔾𝕣𝕖𝕖𝕟
When a car skids on a ice covered road, it stumbles upon a shallow grave of the mother and son, FBI agent Nikki Hunt has been searching for. Another child in a different county is reported missing. There seems to be no actual link and both cases have been considered different until Nikki finds proof of the link. 
This is the second book in a series however can be read as a standalone also. after reading the girls in the snow, I really loved the main character Nikki Hunt and was ready to know more about her. This book didn't disappoint me! i loved how even after getting into a relationship, She held onto her true self. How she struggled with different emotions about her work and relationship has been portrayed realistically. The suspense is maintained till the end to reveal the killer.
The romance had some development and I want to see where it goes next. I actually wanted to read more on the budding relationship in this book. Overall, I really loved this and I can't wait to get my hands on the next book

I got the opportunity to read this book thanks to Netgalley.
I like thrillers and I already read a lot of them. I really liked the main character and think she has a lot of potential. But the book had to work hard to grab my attention. It only started getting thrilling in the last 50 pages or so and then I wanted to read in one go the pages before that I kind of had to force myself to keep on reading. I found the side storyline with Zach even more thrilling. The story of Dana and Kellan just seemed like a police investigation that was going nowhere and wasn’t very exciting. I give this a three for Nikki because I really liked her.

When the two bodies were discovered in the snow and ice, one with arms wrapped around the other, Special Agent Nikki Hunt was shocked and saddened. Nikki and other law enforcement had been searching the area surrounding Stillwater, Minnesota for young Kellan Rhodes for some time. Now in the arms of his mother, Dana, Nikki wondered if it was a murder suicide. But evidence would prove the two were murdered. Dana had been getting her life on track to regain custody of her son. Nikki wondered what had gone wrong – but she was determined to find out.

The same day Kellan disappeared, another young boy vanished – did the disappearance of Zach Reeves have anything to do with Kellan? As Nikki’s team and other teams across the county set the logistics in motion, the investigation was anything but simple. The deeper they dug, the more horrors they uncovered. Who killed Kellan and his mother? And was Zach still alive?

One Perfect Grave is the 2nd in the Nikki Hunt series by Stacy Green and it was riveting! Fast paced, clues, tips, twists – my suspicions changed back and forth. Nikki is a strong character whose past has a lot of bearing on who she is today – her determination to find answers no matter the cost stems from that. I’m already looking forward to #3 in the series – bring it on! Highly recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

I received an ARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This second novel in the series didn’t disappoint. This book focuses on the murder of a young boy and his mother. Nikki tries to unravel a family mystery while at the same time, dealing with her own emotional baggage. We continue to be exposed to more and more of Nikki’s personal life and her trying to juggle her past, her present and her future. Nikki also somehow finds herself thrown into the middle of the case of a young boy outside her jurisdiction.

Another good mystery that kept me guessing until almost the end. Definitely looking forward to the next one.

Nikki Hunt is back and is investigating the case of two frozen bodies found along a desolate highway in Stillwater, Minnesota. The bodies belong to Kellan Rhodes and his mother Dana. Kellen had been reported missing and his mother Dana was suspected of kidnapping him. At first glance, it appears as if Dana killed her son and then herself, but the wounds suggest that Dana was murdered. If Dana is not the killer, then who is responsible for their deaths? Who would want to kill a mother and her child?

While investigating, Dana and Kellan's murder, Nikki receives a call from Caitlin Newport, a local journalist who believes that another missing child may be linked in some way to Nikki's investigation. Caitlin is desperate for Nikki to investigate this case as well.

Oh, what a tangled web we weave! Two investigations that may or may not be linked! What is the connection? One thing is clear, finding the killer will not be easy. During the investigation, Nikki learns more about Dana, her relationship with her sister, and her attempts to win back custody of her son. Green really knows how to make you feel for the victims.

This was a great follow up to The Girls in the Snow and continues Nikki's storyline from when she learned the truth about her parent's murders. It was refreshing to see the character development in this book and if you have not read the first book in this promising new series, I highly recommend it. I also appreciated how Green had Nikki balancing her job as an FBI agent while spending time with her daughter. Not only do we see Nikki and her daughter, but we also see Nikki interacting with her ex-husband, her boyfriend and her coworkers and other investigators to solve the cases. We also see her be tough as nails as an agent and be more vulnerable in her private life.

This book has some twists and turns and several revelations. This book had the right amount of tension and suspense. There are many layers to this story and with two cases to solve, Nikki is exhausted yet determined. I really enjoyed how the story unfolded as we learn some truths and the big reveal. Although the reveal might not give you whiplash because it does not come out of left field, it does have shock value and gives a nice aha moment. I found this to be a captivating book with a well-executed plot.

Tense, suspenseful and captivating! I look forward to the next book in this series.

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

I really loved the first book in this series I wasn't sure if the second one would be as good. I ended up really enjoying it. This is a great FBI thriller series with lots of twists and turns. I love all the different characters and how they appear in each of the books in the series.

Nikki is asked to investigate the murders of Kellan Rhodes and his mother Dana. Dana was a former drug addict who failed a recent drug test, therefore loosing custody over Kellan. There are twists and turns all the way till the end. Did Dana murder Kellan? were they kidnapped? suicide and more...

Looking forward to book #3!!
Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Stacy Green has woven a fantastic tale that keeps the reader intrigued and questioning everything. If you haven't read the first one, there are parts of this that might be confusing in reference, but I think you could start reading here if you are so inclined. A great mystery with twists that you might or might not see coming...