Good Morning Darkness
Ruth Francisco
(Reviewer - Rebecca Brown)
2004 Mysterious Press
ISBN: 0892968079

Everyone loves Laura & when she disappears, those nearest to her worry.

Especially the Mexican fisherman who admires her through her kitchen window as he walks in the predawn darkness to the ocean; her boyfriend Scott, a successful real estate agent who asks her to marry him ... & won't take no for an answer; the detective who instructs her in martial arts; & her lascivious boss.

Never had a dream so frightened her, nor felt so real. She could still smell the stench of fish & seaweed on a red tide at dawn. Even awake she still sees signs of danger, in particular that coldness in Scott's eyes ... yet there he is, nuzzling the pillow beside her, sweet as a toddler.

Then one day Laura vanishes. There's no evidence of foul play: apparently she had quit her job, claiming she was going to visit relatives on the East Coast. Until one night, as he's wandering the beach, the fisherman finds a woman's arm. When another one turns up, he believes they must be Laura's. LAPD Detective Sergeant Reggie Brooks is also wondering if Laura is alive or dead. Yet without a missing person's report or any evidence to suggest that the body parts belong to Laura, he cannot officially investigate.

Unofficially Reggie Brooks can't stop thinking about what might have happened to the beautiful woman who took his martial arts classes, & now haunts his dreams. He risks his job & his marriage as his obsession leads him to a dark, terrifying place of unthinkable acts, irrational behavior, & premeditated murder...

What a hair-raising murder mystery! Be prepared to have your guesses turned upside-down & your sense of fair play tweaked to the fullest.

Could not put it down, I so wanted to find out “who dunnit!”

More from Ruth Francisco: Confessions of a Deathmaiden
(08/29/04)

Rebecca