Echoes of the Dead by Spencer Kope

First Line: Dreams are like runaway trains, and we, their passengers.

 

Magnus "Steps" Craig is one member of an elite three-person tracking unit that works for the FBI. Steps is known as one of the best trackers in the world, capable of following a trail no matter the terrain, no matter how old, no matter the weather. How he does it remains a tightly-held secret that only a very few know about. Since childhood, he's had a sort of synesthesia that allows him to see a person's essence as a sort of color or pattern that he calls "shine." 

Now Steps and his partner Jimmy Donovan have left information specialist Diane Parker in Bellingham, Washington, to go to Bakersfield, California, to help police with an investigation that has them stumped. Four friends-- a congressman, a district attorney, a CEO, and the co-founder of a hedge fund-- have disappeared while on their annual fly-fishing trip. It rapidly becomes obvious that time is running out for the men, and Steps and Jimmy work feverishly to save whoever they can. One thing that's crystal clear is that this is no simple missing persons case. It has very sinister motivations that none of them have seen before.

~

It's almost as if Spencer Kope read my mind. I've often wondered about killers who had someone in their childhoods treat them horribly... why couldn't they kill the persons who abused them instead of annihilating so many innocent people? In Echoes of the Dead, he takes this thought of mine, turns it on its head a bit, and runs with it.

Due to his synesthesia, Steps Craig is an old soul in a young man's body, and this fourth book in the Special Tracking Unit series finally shows readers that his personal life is taking some very important, and very beneficial, strides forward. I always enjoy reading how he and partner Jimmy Donovan (one of the few who know his secret) work together, and in this book, they get some first-rate help from a member of local law enforcement.

The violence in Echoes of the Dead seems to have been raised a notch or two, which will make it very uncomfortable for those readers who have a low tolerance for such things, but although I had a moment or two of unease, I am the type of reader who only becomes more determined to catch the killer when this happens. I also noticed something that will please readers who shun anything that has the slightest appearance of the paranormal. In this book, "shine"-- the colorful essence of the killer-- is no longer the primary way to identify the killer. Now "shine" is more of a "stamp of approval" that their leads have brought them to the right person. For me, "shine" works either way because I also like watching Jimmy and Steps try to find legal ways to prove what it's been telling them all along.

Was catching this killer satisfying? You betcha. Now I'm looking forward to the next book, especially because of the cliffhanger this one ended on. Bring it on!

Echoes of the Dead by Spencer Kope

eISBN: 9781250179449

Minotaur Books © 2021

eBook, 336 pages

 

Police Procedural, #4 FBI Special Tracking Unit mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Net Galley

Shadows of the Dead by Spencer Kope

 

First Line: Six months ago... Music would've been nice.

When an abducted woman is pulled from the trunk of a car after a high-speed chase, she's rushed to the hospital. When she regains consciousness in the ICU, she gives the FBI's Special Tracking Unit two vital clues: the man who kidnapped her isn't the same man who left her in the woods, and she's not the first victim.

When the kidnapper is caught after being tracked through a dense forest, he laughs maniacally and babbles about souls and someone who's going to be mad at him. Magnus "Steps" Craig and his partner Jimmy aren't after one bad guy, they're after two, and it's going to take everything they've got to catch the mastermind behind seven women's deaths.

Spencer Kope's Special Tracking Unit series has become a favorite of mine. I enjoy young Steps Craig's world-weary voice and (sometimes unintentional) humor. He's been "blessed" by a sort of synesthesia after a childhood trauma; he can see a person's "essence" on everything they've touched. This is what makes him an exceptional tracker, but it's made this young man old before his time. His blessing is also one that must be hidden at all cost.

Shadows of the Dead isn't the strongest book in this series, but it's still good. Cliffhanger haters, beware: this book ends on a doozy, so gird your loins. As much as I did enjoy this book, I have to admit that I was irked a few times. Have you ever found yourself reading a book that, when an important clue was slipped into the story, it seemed to be announced with a blazing neon sign? Well, that happened a few times in this book, and-- of course-- the experts were too dumb to pick up on them. Perhaps writers purposely do this from time to time to make readers feel like Sherlock Holmes. I don't know. I do know that it irritates me. But I digress.

Shadows of the Dead is a solid entry in Spencer Kope's Special Tracking Unit series, and after reading that cliffhanger, I'm certainly looking forward to the next book!

Shadows of the Dead by Spencer Kope

eISBN: 9781250178350

Minotaur Books © 2020

eBook, 336 pages

 

Police Procedural, #3 Special Tracking Unit

Rating: B

Source: Net Galley

Whispers of the Dead by Spencer Kope

First Line: Darkness-- nearly complete.

It's difficult to identify a dead body from just the feet-- at least that's what Magnus "Steps" Craig of the FBI's Special Tracking Unit learns when he walks into the house of a Federal judge in El Paso, Texas. There are no clues as to the identity of the killer, the victim, or the reason behind having the feet inside a cheap styrofoam cooler; the only thing the authorities feel safe in saying is that this isn't the killer's first victim, and probably not his last.

Part of an elite team, Steps is the best tracker in the world, but only three people know that his talent lies in a kind of synesthesia that allows him to see whatever each particular person has touched in a unique color.

With the team still trying to come to grips with the case in El Paso, they discover an earlier victim with the same feet-in-a-cooler presentation-- and somehow they know that the "Ice Box Killer" has just begun.

In 2016, Spencer Kope wowed me with his first Special Tracking Unit mystery, Collecting the Dead, and I'm thrilled to say that he hasn't taken his foot off the gas for Whispers of the Dead. There's a razor-sharp investigation here, as well as a fast pace, and a group of characters who are more like family than mere work colleagues.

The way Kope puts the clues and the investigation together is completely absorbing, partly due to Steps' special gift of synesthesia. An FBI tracker can't go to the police and say, "Here's your killer. I know he did it because he left a dark olive and lime green 'shine' on the body and the murder weapon, and his tracks led right back to his apartment." No, that would be a sure way to get a ride to the psych ward at the local hospital. Steps not only has to interpret the shine-- the unique colors individuals leave on everything they touch-- he has to find the evidence that will hold up in a court of law. It's not always easy, but he and his partner Jimmy Donovan are professionals.

Whispers of the Dead isn't just about the investigation; it's got a very human element. Kope shows the damage a life in this sort of business can cause to a marriage and a thing or two that can be done to make sure this doesn't happen. In addition, he has a way of making you think differently about some of the characters than you think you should. Steps is also coming to realize that he should've told a couple more people about his gift a long time ago. Now it's going to be awkward when he finally does.

Not all readers like continuing storylines in the books they read, and there is one here. The Ice Box Killer investigation is successfully concluded, but there's another killer-- one even more intelligent and dangerous-- who's been taunting Steps for quite some time. Steps calls this killer "Leonardo," and I'm really looking forward to the book when Steps can concentrate on bringing him to justice. I've gone from thinking Spencer Kope's first book is brilliant to knowing that he's creating a fantastic series. Hopefully, you'll join us on the journey (if you haven't already).
 

Whispers of the Dead by Spencer Kope

eISBN: 9781466884847

Minotaur Books © 2018

eBook, 320 pages

Law Enforcement, #2 Special Tracking Unit mystery

Rating: A

Source: Net Galley


 

Collecting the Dead by Spencer Kope

First Line: She had small feet.

The elite Special Tracking Unit of the FBI has only three members. Diane, who works in the office, is brilliant at uncovering information. She's also the glue that holds the unit together. Special Agent Jimmy Donovan and Magnus "Steps" Craig find themselves spending a lot of time at crime scenes. Steps is known as "the Human Bloodhound," and there's a secret to his success that only three people know. He has a kind of synesthesia that allows him to see the essence of a person (what he calls "shine") on everything they've touched. Every person's shine is unique in color and texture.

When the remains of a woman are found, Steps recognizes the shine left by the murderer from another crime scene he worked. By piecing things together, he and Donovan find themselves on the trail of a serial killer-- one who's not afraid to come after the Special Tracking Unit in order to keep his secrets hidden.

From almost the first page, I was blown away by Collecting the Dead. Steps Craig has the world-weary voice of a man who's in his late forties or fifties, so I was shocked when I put two and two together and discovered this character is only twenty-seven. I suppose that's what happens when you refer to yourself as "just the undertaker's front man."  

This is a tale marvelously told, from its well-paced, engrossing plot, to its lyrical descriptions and multi-faceted cast. Spencer Kope has written a barn
burner of a book that can have readers laughing one second and trying not to cry the next. And... like Diane is the glue that holds the Special Tracking Unit together, the entire cast holds Collecting the Dead together. 

For the most part (but not always), the various police jurisdictions work together well with the FBI. These are professionals whose main aim is to save innocent lives, and this dedication adds a sense of urgency and tension to the book. Some of the more interesting scenes come when Steps and Jimmy Donovan try to find acceptable ways to divulge their "shine" findings to the police. But this "shine" often takes a backseat to the grunt work of checking and rechecking facts, reports, photos, interviews-- the very things that often break cases wide open. Kope walks a fine line between Steps' synesthesia and the more "mundane" police work extremely well.

Throughout Collecting the Dead, we watch Steps collecting information about a serial killer he calls Leonardo. It's his aim to catch Leonardo, and I sincerely hope readers get to watch him do so in a second book. I was buried so deeply in this story that my husband had to clap and shout at me to get my attention. I want to have that happen again. I want more Steps Craig-- and I'm certain you will, too!
   

Collecting the Dead by Spencer Kope

ISBN: 9781250072870

Minotaur Books © 2016

Hardcover, 320 pages

Law Enforcement, #1 Special Tracking Unit

Rating: A+

Source: Amazon Vine