I purposely didn't read the blurb before starting this so I knew nothing about it at all, I requested it because I had seen a top blogger recommend it. I started it late at night thinking I would read a few chapters, and found myself reading the whole thing. Absolutely loved it. Claire is a fantastic creation, and the premise was fresh, enthralling and in short, completely unputdownable. LOVED IT.

An intriguing cat-and-mouse thriller as penniless actress Claire is recruited to not merely honey-trap, but to become the soulmate of a sexual serial killer.

I found this far more original than the author's [book:The Girl Before|31300946], with a fast pace and interesting characterisation. It helps, too, that we have a single narrator and merely a few flashbacks but other than that a linear narrative.

Claire is an actress to her bones with a shifting and unstable sense of identity making this undercover assignment both possible and also uniquely risky for her. In Patrick, too, we have an interesting character: Columbia academic and Baudelaire expert by day, sexual killer by night. A man who is genuinely intelligent, literate, and charming -as well as ruthless, devious and twisted is a hard one to pull off but Delaney manages it.

So suspend your disbelief over Claire's recruitment and look out your copy of [book:Les Fleurs du Mal|1060828] ([book:The Flowers of Evil|3213640]) - a swift and engrossing page-turner.

Read this in one sitting this afternoon, very addictive, theatrics both of character and plot and one of those novels you just bang through, thoroughly engaged with the story and the potential outcome.

It wasn't perfect - the "staging" quotes did get a little irritating but that might be because I was reading the e-book version, it would probably work better in print - having said that I don't think they were required anyway. The main protagonist voice, Claire, an actress on many levels, set the scene perfectly, although I got the point (how she saw things in her head) the descriptive quality brought that without it having to be physically in there.

That aside though, the premise is intriguing - Claire set's honey traps for cheating husbands but can she set one for a killer? The author plays with perception cleverly, serving up several game changers that keeps you off kilter and unsure who is preying on who. The ending lived up to the promise and overall I enjoyed it very much.

An engaging and beautifully flowing story where you may work out what is going on but you'll never be quite sure until it's revealed.

To be reviewed properly near publication on Liz Loves Books.