Right Behind You

A fantastic author who knows how to keep you on the edge of the seat whilst reading. Each twist and turn makes you reassess the ending. The character descriptions bring them to life and as I read this book I understood the emotions that they were traversing. Sharlah's brother was portrayed as such a cool calculating teenager whilst Sharlah was portrayed more as a child trying hard to come to terms with her life. I cannot recommend this book high enough it was a fantastic read.

This is the 7th boot in the 'Quincy & Rainie' series by author Lisa Gardner and can be read as a stand alone or as part of the series.I have read quite a few Lisa Gardner books but this is only the second one I have read in this 'Quincy & Rainie' series and found it very enjoyable.
The series is set around Pierce Quicy who is a former profiler and his wife former cop Rainie. The couple have a teenage girl, Sharlah living with them that they hope to adopt. Sharlah's older brother, Telly killed their abusive parents eight years ago and since the pair have been kept apart in various homes. Now eight years later two people are murdered in their local convenience store and Sharlah's brother is identified as the killer. While fingers point to Telly been the killer it seems that there is a lot more to this case than first thought.
This is a very well paced novel that made me want to read more of this series.
I would like to thank Net Galley and Headline for supplying a copy of this new novel in exchange for an honest review.

It's been a while since I have spend any time with Rainie and Quincy, the two Lisa Gardner characters I feel the most connected too as they were in the first of her books I read. Starting Right Behind You felt like meeting up with old friends. I had missed them and needed to know what they had been up to, which includes making a family with their soon to be adopted foster daughter, Sharlah.

Sharlah is a teenager and a difficult one at times. Not just because of her age but because of her past. Raised by parents who were alcoholics and drug addicts until she was four, she has been in the foster system ever since, moving from home to home. The same is true of her brother Telly, who she hasn't seen since they were taken into care. For him, life was probably more difficult still. He was five years older. And he had killed his dad after his dad had stabbed his mom. Or at least that is his and Sharlah's story and it's one they have both stuck to.

Things seemed to have been turning round for seventeen year old Telly though. He was living with a caring foster family who were determined to give him the skills to enter adulthood. So it seemed to make no sense when his foster parents turned up dead, as well as two other seemingly innocent people, all shot by Telly before he went on the run. What also didn't make sense was why he had photos of Sharlah and whether she was in danger.

It is left for Rainie, Quincy and the local sheriff to figure out because they may not know where Telly is or where he'll be ongoing next but they do know things don't seem to make sense. This becomes more obvious to the reader as Telly tells his story, staring with his early life and how he tried to keep his sister safe through to how he began to care for his foster parents. These chapters are interspersed with ones focusing on the search for him, including ones told by Sharlah.

Hearing from Telly and Sharlah is one of the things that sets this book apart. It humanises a potential killer and shines a light on just how hard life can be for kids that grow up in care, especially when their early life makes it hard for them to trust. It also show how love can make a real difference in the lives of such kids.  This might seem an odd thing to be saying in a review of a piece of crime fiction but it is an important part of the story and gives it a depth you don't find in a lot of books in this genre. It means you care for the characters, and want things to work out for them.

The other thing that makes this book great is the story itself. It's a complicated plot with lots of twists and turns. Yet it doesn't feel far fetched or unbelievable. Each secret revealed or mystery uncovered seems right, makes perfect sense, and helps develop your understanding of the characters and their behaviours or provides you with a vital piece of the puzzle  to just what is going on. It also builds the tension right through to the final scenes, meaning I couldn't stop turning the pages and I can't say more about this book other than I loved it - a highly recommended read.

This was my first book by Lisa Gardner and it did not disappoint: it appears she has written many books, indeed some containing the FBI profilers Quincy and Rainie who feature in this novel. It did not matter that I had not read the earlier books as this novel worked well as a stand alone.
It is a story told from the viewpoint of two siblings, Sharlah and Telly. Thirteen year old Sharlah has been fostered by Quincy and Rainie after witnissing her older brother murder their abusive parents in order to protect her. The children are then separated and grow up in various foster homes. Suddenly, eight years later, Telly goes on a rampage killing his foster parents and some random people in a garage shop. It looks like a spree killing and Quincy and Rainie are called in to help investigate. It soon becomes apparent that there is a connection to their foster daughter and things become complicated and move very quickly as they try to find him and keep their daugter safe.
As well as being an excellent thriller with several twists and turns, this is also a story about love and redemption. Neither Sharlah nor Telly can move on until they confront their past. What really happened on that night when their parents died?
Telly's foster mother Sandra also has dark secrets which haunt her and even Rainie has issues that prevent her sleeping at night. Sharlah can show love for her dog Luca and Telly continues to demonstrate that he loves his sister. Sandra tries to redeem herself by fostering Telly who seems to show love for her as the novel progresses. How does he end up killing her? This is difficult to understand.
I liked the way the story was told by Sharlah and Telly- I really enjoyed getting to know them, particularly Sharlah who seemed very brave and wise for a 13 year old.
The theme of family is also important in the book- what constitutes a real family? Do the people in a family have to be connected by blood or does family love grow over time? Foster families can really work as in Sharlah's situation.
The book kept me engrossed, right from the beginning and I thoroughly recommend it to all you thriller fans out there. I would like to thank Netgalley and the publishers for my advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Having never read any of this particular series before (Quincy Rainie) it is easily read as a stand alone as the author catches the reader up on the background. I've read many other Lisa Gardner books and they're always first class and this one doesn't disappoint either.
Set in a small town where Quincy an ex-FBI profiler has semi-retired to and begun the process of adopting a young girl. He is drawn into a fatal shooting by the local sheriff, which turns out to have been committed by the girls brother.
Fast paced, with many twists and turns. A truly un-put-downable read!

I've read all of Lisa Gardner's books and she never disappoints! This book takes you on a roller coaster ride of emotions, you think you've got one of the main characters sussed and feel a particular way towards him and then two pages later you feel an entirely different way! It's written from the view point of different characters and at various periods in time, and this is one of my favourites styles of writing. Great book, looking toward to her next!

Reading Lisa Gardner's "Right Behind You" felt like finally getting to meet friends or family members that I haven't seen for ages. It's been so long since the previous Quincy and Rainie novel!
Sometimes, it takes me a while to get to know the characters and get really deep into the story. But with "Right Behind You" it just felt right from the very first page. I'm so pleased to have read this amazing novel. But also a little disappointed... because now that I finished reading, it'll be hard for me to pick up another book and really get involved. I'm still in Rainie and Quincy's world.
I also enjoyed getting to know the new characters, like Sharlah and Telly. I really love those two!
I like it how detailed Lisa Gardner's novels are and this one is no exception. Without making the book sound boring, she gives us just the right amount of information and weaves it into the plot, so that it's all very natural.
I guess I could sum it all up in a very simple way: I love it! I love it! I love it!

This is the first full length Lisa Gardner novel that I have read. I loved it and found it a fantastic and addictive read. At aged 9, Telly Ray Nash killed his father with a baseball bat to protect his younger sister, Sharlah, from being stabbed to death. His father had already stabbed his mother. After such a traumatic childhood, Telly and Sharlah were separated and have experienced a number of problematic foster families prior to finding ones that eventually work for them. Telly is with Frank and Sandra, and Sharlah is on the cusp of being adopted by FBI profilers Quincy and Rainie.

Quincy finds himself joining a law enforcement team under Sheriff Shelly Atkins after a double shooting at a petrol station in which the killer is filmed shooting down a camera. The shooter is identified as Telly, and on visiting his foster home, Frank and Sandra are discovered dead in a gruesome shooting in their bedroom and there is a missing gun arsenal. It looks as though Telly has become a 'spree' killer who suffers from IED, Intermittent Explosive Disorder, where he can just completely lose it and not remember what he has done. Quincy and Rainie are horrified by their discovery that Telly is Sharlah's brother and that she appears to be in grave danger from him. A massive hunt is on to find Telly and a tracker team led by Cal sustain gunshot injuries when Telly shoots at them. In a terrific and tense story, it is clear that everything is not as it seems and that there are more malignant forces at play than first assumed.

Lisa Gardner knows how to write a compulsively readable tale that is full of suspense and tension. I did not want to stop reading until I reached the end. The perspectives of Sharlah and Telly are superbly deployed in the slow and considered reveal of what precisely what has been happening in their lives and the relationship and secrets between them. The characters are all well drawn and develop well throughout the book, particularly both Telly and Sharlah. The author is clearly an expert in this genre of writing and I will be reading more of her novels. Highly recommended. Many thanks to Headline for an ARC.