Close Your Eyes

Clinical psychologist Joe O'Loughlin reluctantly steps up to the plate when police ask for his help profiling a killer who left a mother savagely mutilated while leaving her teenage daughter dead, but posed like a sleeping child. Joe is still struggling with his Parkinson's, but gets a welcome surprise when his estranged wife asks him to move back in with her and their two daughters for the summer. As Joe struggles to connect a series of attacks that leave victims with the letter A carved into their foreheads with the mother/daughter homicide, he discovers that his wife has an ulterior motive for having him move back in. Robotham is simply one of the best writers being published today. His characters are so lifelike that they have become like family to me; that's why this story, while one of his best, was one of the hardest for me to read

Thank you Net Gallery for the opportunity to read Close Your Eyes by Michael Robotham. I have read some of Robotham's books - Some I really liked and some others not as much. Close Your Eyes is a "hit". Joe O'Loughlin returns to assist his friend Veronica Cray to solve the murder of a mother and daughter found in their home. As Joe investigates this crime, he discovers similar murders - are they related or not. There is a cast of suspects to choose from - these characters are complex, ordinary, and have a motive of their own to decipher. You are on this ride to solve these crimes and that's what makes this book really good. You feel part of the investigation.
Robotham allows you to feel the killer's thoughts and it is eerie. This ending had me guessing "who done it". This is one of his best novels and O'Loughlin is a sympathetic protaganist - he is real, flawed, and suffers from Parkinson's. Fans won't be able to put this book down - it's suspenseful while weaving in O'Loughlin's closest friends and family.
RECOMMEND..

Joe O’Loughlin seems ready to embrace s slower pace of life. The uncanny psychologist is ready to cut back on his crime solving and spend time with his daughters. Julianne, his ex-wife, has even invited him to move back, so they can be somewhat of a family if only for the summer. But pressure on Joe mounts as he learns that his simple summer vacation at home is also harboring issues that could jeopardize his family.

Meanwhile, in a neighboring town a bloody crime, the death of a mother and daughter, has the police baffled. A former student of Joe’s has jumped onto the case with wild pronouncements and uses Joe’s name to add to his own credibility to try to solve this case. So when Joe is called again, he once again tries to learn about the dead so he can discover who is now threatening the living. There are many people harboring secrets that make them suspects on Joe’s list. Each has a story to tell which Joe discovers through observation, logic and his psychological insights. For series fans, Vincent Ruiz returns to help Joe with the case and tries to help him keep his family safe, as Joe gets closer to the identity of the murderer.

Robotham gives Joe greater depth as a husband, father and a man reviewing his life as he heads towards middle age. Joe has always been better in analyzing strangers than himself. Even though Joe is ready to accept his past and his ongoing struggle with his illness, (Mr. Parkinson), Robotham throws curves at him that neither Joe nor the reader anticipates. Highly recommended.

I love this series and am always eager to read more of it. This latest installment is quite possibly one of the best of the series. It may be one of the best but it is also the one that I'll need the most time to recover from (but seriously, that ending). I will continue to love this series and want to read more but I am unsure as to where it will go from here.

Just when Julianne invites Joe to spend the summer at the cottage he finds himself drawn into a double homicide investigation. He must try to find out what happened in order to salvage the investigation after a former student of his leaks sensitive information about the murders.

I really loved that Joe was once again close to his family. I didn't even care that Julianne had an ulterior motive for inviting Joe to stay for the summer. The one thing that I don't like is how Joe's family always gets dragged into the investigation and danger.

I was happy that I wasn't able until very late in the book to figure out who the murderer was. I was definitely satisfied with who it was and why they did it. I also really liked getting to read certain parts from that person's point of view.

I was devastated by the end of this book. I did not see that coming and it broke my heart. I am not sure where this series will go next but I will definitely be along for the ride.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the galley.

Michael Robotham does it again! I couldn't put this book down. I devoured it. I can't wait to get this book on the shelves. His characters come to life, and leave me hoping for more.

Wow-- this book kept me guessing from start to finish. Every time I thought I knew something, another event would happen to throw me off track! Looking forward to recommending this to anyone looking for an amazing psychological thriller!