Detective Ellie Reeves heads into the wilds of the Appalachian Mountains when she wants to get lost––to forget the whispers chasing her and the past that keeps her up at night. She’s sick of having to prove herself to her small town. One night, as dusk falls, a gust of wind blows some petals on to Ellie’s path. Following the trail, she finds a golden-haired young woman dead on a bed of daffodils, with a note: Monday’s child is fair of face. When Ellie emerges from the forest, there is a message on her phone. Someone has sent her a picture of her colleague, Officer Shondra Eastwood, with the words: Can you find her, Detective Reeves? Ellie is racked with guilt––while she was busy hiding from life a killer was on the loose, and he has taken her beloved friend.  It soon becomes clear when another dead woman, Tuesday’s Child, is found. Ellie is up against a serial killer who will claim a victim for every day of the week, and in the next twenty-four hours there will be another body. 
This is the second book in the series & could easily be read on its own. However this story does follow on from the revelations in the first book. Another well written engrossing read. The characters are complex & well portrayed. Derrick Fox is again part of the action & helps Ellie with the case. There are twists, turns & red herrings that kept me guessing & also kept me captivated.
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

Wildflower Graves picks up right where Ms Herron left Ellie - tormented by her parents' decision and trying to deal with the ramifications. Then, women begin to go missing... and Cord and Special Agent Fox are both back in her life. The case becomes even more personal when her friend, Deputy Shondra Eastwood, is also missing, and Ellie believes the killer has taken her, as well. As Ellie sorts through her feelings, she dives head first into these murders and disappearances. With so many twists and turns, you will NOT be able to put this book down for long. It's incredible - and then, the ending... I cannot wait to see what Ellie decides. A Fantastic Series that will get you hooked from Book 1.

I have always loved Rita Herron's books and this series is so far is just what I expected from her...thrills , suspense, mystery and a great female lead character! Ellie is a character that you can't help but not want to read more about and follow her to her next case. I have no negative comments about this book I thought it was the perfect thriller/mystery. I hope there is more books to come with Ellie. I recommend reading this series you won't be able to put it down!!! If your looking for a suspenseful quick read then you need to read this book! Loved!

The second book in the Ellie Reeves series, although this can also be read as a standalone.
The Crooked Creek Police Department is stretched once again by a serial killer and detective Ellie Reeves finds herself in the centre of the investigation. 
Ellie is chasing the 'Weekday Killer' whilst also being haunted by her family problems and the aftermath of her latest case where her own brother murdered little girls in pursuit of her. 
To begin with I felt this was a slightly clichéd although once I started to read I became really engrossed in the plot and backstories surrounding the characters.
I lived that I didn't guess who the killer was and there were so many twists and turns, I really was kept totally invested throughout. 
The fast pace and the sheer amount of goings on meant this was another book I struggled to put down, as when you thought it was starting to come together all the theories were blown apart again.
The backstop is also cleverly explained and adds to the current relationships and plot, whilst leaving plenty of room for a sequel.
Thankyou to Netgalley, Bookouture and Rita Herron for this pre release copy. I look forward to the next in the series to catch up with all the characters.

Book 2 in the Ellie Reeves series. I would recommend reading book 1 before this as this plot carries on from that. 

I was hooked from the first page and I absolutely flew through the chapters.

The plot is full of twists and turns that keep you guessing til the end. 

Ellie is an intriguing character who I'm loving getting to know.

I'm already looking forward to book 3.

Detective Ellie Reeves heads into the wilds of the Appalachian Mountains when she wants to get lost and forget all the whispers chasing her and the past that keeps her up at night. She’s sick of having to prove herself to her small town.

But hiking in the endless miles of woods isn’t the escape she was hoping for. A gust of wind blows some petals on to Ellie’s path. Following the trail, she finds a golden-haired young woman dead on a bed of daffodils, with a note: ‘Monday’s child is fair of face.’

When Ellie emerges from the forest, she receives a message on her phone. Someone has sent her a picture of her colleague, Officer Shondra Eastwood with a challenge to find and save her before it’s too late.

Ellie is up against a serial killer who will claim a victim for every day of the week. Ellie needs to figure out who the killer is and save Shondra before he gets to her first.

I was so glad to read this one! I really loved the first book in this series and this was equally good as well!

It continues from where the first book ended but that’s just to give a slight background. The main characters are well written, Ellie is definitely one of my favourites . Also, there are so many twists throughout the plot that it keeps you guessing right till the end.

I tried to guess who the killer was but I just got it wrong. There were so many victims (one for each day of the week), I just wanted to know more about them and why were they chosen. The end was definitely an exceptional twist that I didn’t see coming.

Overall an excellent read. And I also loved the way the end was left hanging with a hint of what to expect next, that makes me even more eager to read the next book in the series. The secrets just keep getting better.

Thank You NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC!

At 4.5 stars rounded up, Wildflower Graves is the second book in the Detective Ellie Reeves series and is just as action packed and an edge of your seat thriller as the first. A lot of background will be lost if you do not read the first in this series. Ellie is still reeling from the betrayal of her parents and surviving the trauma that came at the hands of a madman who turned in book one of the series. Everyone seems to look at her with suspicion but Ellie is just trying to do her job as a detective when another serial killer hits the Appalachian Trail. Having to work with hostile coworkers, Ellie pursues a killer in a case that once again becomes way too personal for her own good. Twisted and full of surprises, Ellie even be suspects her friends before the case comes to a pulse pounding ending that the reader will never see coming. My voluntary, unbiased review is based upon a review copy from Netgalley.

Murder & revenge on the Appalachian Trail: gripping👍👍

What a fascinating, macabre and well-executed whodunit!  Oodles of action and suspense, a female lead character who is practically fearless and plenty of questionable characters to keep up the tension and mystery of the motive and identity of the killer going right up to the stormy climax.  I cannot think of a single element in this page-turner to call out for criticism.

I really love this series about Police Detective Ellie Reeves.  This second book in the series was just as gripping as the first.  Ellie's broken personal life is inextricably woven with the crimes she's investigating and she never backs down or bows out.  The disappearance of her fellow female officer and best friend gave that extra tweak of desperation to Ellie's driven search for a killer targeting seemingly random women on the southern end of the Appalachian Trail. 

Totally looking forward to the next in the series!😊

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

Ellie Reeves goes into the Appalachian Trail for some space and hiking. The exposure of her parents' secret, potentially harboring a serial killer of young girls, brought Ellie under the scrutiny of the town - assumptions she is as guilty as her parents, questioning her ability to be a police officer. 
While hiking the trail, Ellie stumbles upon a recently murdered young woman - posed, with a nursery rhyme. 
Ellie is pulled into the investigation, along with Special Agent Derrick Fox. Will they be able to stop the killer before there is a victim for each seven days? 
I did not read the first book in the series - the author did a great job summarizing past events to provide context as well as reminders for those who had. 
I just didn't feel this book - I skimmed until about 80% through. The author did a great job withholding the identity of the killer. There were few clues until the end of the book to lead to the culprit.

Detective Ellie Reeves heads into the wilds of the Appalachian Mountains when she wants to get lost––to forget the whispers chasing her and the past that keeps her up at night. She’s sick of having to prove herself to her small town.

I read Rita's first book to the Ellie series and it was amazing! 
But the second book was just as amazing! I love Ellie's character she is a badass Detective and I love her.

I really enjoyed the second book in the Ellie Reeves series, which can be read as a stand alone. Ellie is a likeable character who is strong and determined to catch a killer. The plot is interesting and cracks on at a good pace. There are some gruesome descriptive passages, which are well written, with plenty unexpected twists to keep the reader interested. I failed to guess the killer and I would recommend this series of books to lovers of crime thrillers. A very engrossing read. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

Ohhhh what an excellent book, I loved it.  This sucked me in and I read it in one sitting, it was really good.  It was tense and thrilling and it had me hanging on to every word.  Thoroughly enjoyed it and I can’t wait for the next in the series.

From first page to last this book will keep readers needing answers just as much as Ellie Reeves.  From the characters to the story this book will keep readers hooked wondering if they even know who the killer is even when reader see it though the killers eye.

The story uses a pome that is recited over and over though the story realizing that 7 women will die if the killer isn't stopped. 

Characters authors enjoyed from the last book will come back. Readers will learn more about their past as well as the heart ache Ellie deals with every day.  Readers are caught up so they won't have to start with book one unless they want to.  Believe me you will want to read book 1 because it is just as great of a story that will keep readers excited for the next in Rita Herron Detective Ellie Reeves series.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of Rita Herron Wildflowers Graves.

Wow. This is fast becoming a brilliant series. I was at the edge of my seat throughout most of this book. I just couldn’t put it down. The plot and the the characters are so good I was hooked from the start. I just want to keep learning more about the characters. The plot and the backstory feel refreshingly different from any other series I am reading at the minute. 

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

Ellie Reeves is a law enforcement official in a rural area of the Appalachian mountains.  All she's ever wanted to be is a police woman, but she finds her current life stressful and confusing.  Having just closed a major case, she is taking a few days off in hopes that the peace of the mountains will help her heal.  As she travels a well known hiking trail, she discovers a young woman's body posed in death as the first line of the children's rhyme Monday's child.....As part of the investigative team, Ellie will discover this killer not only enjoys killing, he enjoys taunting Ellie with the murders so much that he has taken a policewoman and is holding her as one of his victims to come.  

When Rita Heron launched the Ellie Reeve's series, she gave us a creditable character with a back story that will be explored through several books and set the stories in one of the most beautiful areas of the United States.  But the wild, untouched areas are also excellent for killers to leave their victims with little chance of discovery and capture.  The first two books have been excellent, it's going to be hard waiting to see what Ellie does next.

Wow, I think I’ve found a new favourite detective series! 

Another gripping instalment from Detective Ellie Reeves - I just couldn’t put this one down. It had me guessing right until the end.

I’m looking forward to picking up the next one!

This is book two of the Detective Ellie Graves stories and I really enjoyed it.  Det Reeves is still working in the Appalachian mountains and another serial killer is at large.   As she begins to investigate her friend and colleague Shondra Eastwood disappears.   Someone is stalking Ellie and Agent Fox returns to help her solve the case.
I think you do need to have read book one first as there are a lot of references to it in this story.
Can’t wait for book three.
Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.5⭐

The last time, I read a book by Rita Herron was a few years ago, so, I jumped at the chance to read an early copy of Wildflower Graves, even though I haven't read the first book in the series. And I'm so happy that I did, as Wildflower Graves was an utterly compelling story. That caught my attention from the very first page, and I never once felt lost or confused having not read The Sleeping Dolls. But honestly, I'll definitely be going back and reading it, as this was a brilliant mystery. That was not only full of twists and turns, but it genuinely kept me guessing and with so many intriguing characters, including Detective Ellie Reeves, I was completely enthralled throughout.

Would happily recommend, especially if you're a fan of authors such as Kendra Elliott and Melinda Leigh.

We are back with Detective Ellie Reeves of Bluff County, still not getting along with Sheriff Bryce Waters, and paired up with FBI agent Derrick Fox again to hunt down yet another serial killer leaving bodies on the Applachian Trail, gruesomely laid out on beds of daffodils.
The book is remarkably similar to The Silent Dolls and in some cases this would have put me off. Yet there is something about Reeves and Fox and the way Herron writes that I just cannot resist. I was pulled into Wildflower Graves very quickly and just wanted to read on and on.
Why? Well, at times the detail is a little gruesome for my palate and I did feel quite uncomfortable reading about the cages and the depraved brutality of The Weekday Killer, but it does add to the sense of menace and need to catch him quickly.
The serial killer is following the tradional days of the week rhyme which starts with 'Monday's child is fair of face...'in the most macabre way. This means a new woman is killed on each day of the week and there really is no shortage of possible candidates or victims.
Hiram is incarcerared so it can't be him. Hiram features in book 1 of this series but there is sufficient recapping in places to make it possible to read this book without having read the first. There are lots of similarities though with The Ghost case and what is happening just several weeks later!
Are the team going to work together or is one of them the killer or helping the killer? Cord McClain, the ranger who patrols the Appalachian Trail either has the knowledge to assist or the background to be a suspect. Even the sheriff could be involved.
I loved the way there were plenty of suspects, with some actually being found guilty, just not of the Weekday murders. The reader is therefore kept guessing and trying to figure out who the killer is.
I also enjoy learning more about each character and in Wildflower Graves we learn a lot about Cord's dreadful childhood.
Ellie Reeves is always targeted and there is a strong personal element running through the investigation where her adopted parents are reviled by the local community for Hiram's sadistic behaviour (see book 1). Ellie hasn't been in touch with Randall and Vera since the explosive revelations and yet it isn't that simple letting go of the past.
I always know that Ellie will succeed but there is always a long and tough journey first. The Trail leaves me feeling intimidated and at the mercy of the elements. In book 1 there was an encroaching snow storm, and in this sequel there is a tornado!
Another suspense filled race against the clock to spare any more young women losing their lives at the hands of a madman, this is a book full of twists and shocks. Even at the close when you think order is restored, Herron treats you to another revelation.
I definitely think Wildflower Graves is a fitting sequel to The Silent Dolls and I happily devoured the book as quickly as I could. Trouble is, how long have I got to wait until book 3?
Having said that, I probably need the time to recover from the intensity of the chase and I am sure Ellie Reeves needs time to heal from the dreadful physical injuries inflicted upon her in her quest for justice!

Detective Ellie Reeves has a lot of healing to do, not to mention forgiveness. It's a long road she has barley begun to set her feet on when the unthinkable happens. Another killer is hunting in her home town and with no idea who she can trust it seems impossible to solve. Especially when her friend Shondra seems to be one of the victims. A thrilling read you won't be able to put down!