Great and unique series - addictive and twisty! Solid characters with a lot of history and layers of secrets. A solid take on the brilliant and manipulative psychopath which echos throughout and keeps you guessing until the end. The whole forensic linguist paired with profiler is a winning combination.

By the Time You Read This by B. Labuskes, published by Thomas & Mercer is book 3 in the Raisa Susanto Series. Every book can be read as a stand alone, for best reading experience I recommend to read the books in order. The previous books are The Liues You Wrote and The Truth You Told.
I just wanted to take a peek at this book, but now, hours later I just read the last page in this masterpiece that left me breathless. A raw and gritty read, suspenseful from start till finish.
I recommend the book and the series, 5 stars.
Blurb: FBI forensic linguist Raisa Susanto thinks she’s through with the past now that her sister, Isabel, is locked away forever. Then Raisa receives a letter from Isabel. It’s just a single message: By the time you read this, I’ll be dead.
Soon after, Isabel is discovered dead in her cell, forcing Raisa back into her depraved orbit—one that includes a band of true-crime worshippers obsessed with Isabel, her killing spree, and those who survived it.
When a new victim is found dead in the same manner that made Isabel notorious, Raisa and FBI forensic psychologist Callum Kilkenny aren’t just tasked with finding out who killed Isabel and why. They’re hunting for a protégé following in Isabel’s footsteps. Raisa must uncover the truth—whether or not she’s ready for it—before someone else dies.

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer for the ARC via NetGalley.

Every book I’ve read by Brianna Labuskes is well-written, tightly plotted, and full of twists and turns that never fail to surprise me.

<b>By the Time You Read This </b> is the third book in the Raisa Susanto series. It is not necessary to have read the first two, as the author does an excellent job of filling in the gaps, but I suggest you read them, so you don’t miss out on the enjoyment of them.

In this third book, Raisa, a forensic linguist for the FBI, receives a message from her oldest sister Isabel which reads, “By the time you read this, I’ll be dead.” Isabel, a prolific serial killer, is incarcerated in Washington State. Or, rather, had been incarcerated. Just moments after reading the note, Raisa gets a call from her partner, Callum Kilkenny. Isabel has been found dead in her cell, seemingly of natural causes. Although Raisa doesn’t mourn her sister’s death, she feels obligated to look into it. At the same time, a third sister, Delaney, has received messages of her own from Isabel, and sets off on a course that will make her question just how much like Isabel she is.

The pacing never drags. From the moment Raisa gets the letter to the very last sentence, I was hooked. Some readers might not like the layout of the book. The POV alternates between Raisa and Delaney, and, although the plot moves linearly through each POV, Raisa’s sections start after Delaney, but the move past . It took me over half the book to realize this, even though the relative times are clearly marked at the beginning of each chapter. It didn’t matter, because it was easy to follow the separate storylines. Throughout the book, there are also articles, interviews, notes, etc. that give more background or underscore and explain the character’s actions. It’s all really well done. This is my fourth book by Labuskes and she has become one of my favorite thriller authors.

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were well-developed and the story kept me engaged from start to finish. I read the first two books in this detective’s series as well. If you’re a fan of this author, you will definitely enjoy this book. I absolutely recommend this book to others!