Blood Memory
A Novel
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4.3 • 811 Ratings
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
“One of America’s greatest storytellers” (Stephen King) and the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Southern Man and the Natchez Burning trilogy returns to his roots in this breathtaking novel of murder and redemption set in New Orleans and Natchez, Mississippi.
Some memories live deep in the soul, indelible and dangerous, waiting to be resurrected…
Forensic expert “Cat” Ferry is suspended from an FBI task force when she is inexplicably stricken with panic attacks and blackouts while investigating a chain of brutal murders. Returning to her Mississippi hometown, Cat finds herself battling with alcohol, plagued by nightmares, and entangled with a married detective. Then, in her childhood bedroom, some spilled chemicals reveal two bloody footprints…and the trauma of her father’s murder years earlier comes flooding back. Facing the secrets of her past, Cat races to connect them to a killer’s present-day violence. But what emerges is the frightening possibility that Cat herself has blood on her hands…
“As Southern Gothic as it gets” (Kirkus Reviews), Greg Iles’s Blood Memory “will have readers turning pages at a breakneck pace” (New Orleans Times-Picayune).
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Iles's previous thriller, 2003's provocative The Footprints of God, featured an omnipotent supercomputer and an on-the-run duo racing around the globe from North Carolina to Jerusalem. This time, Iles returns to more familiar ground: Natchez, Miss.; New Orleans; and the Mississippi delta, where a serial predator has been killing middle-aged men. Forensic odontologist Cat Ferry, an expert on teeth and the damage they can inflict, is called in by the New Orleans PD to explain the bite marks found on the bodies. Cat, the alcoholic granddaughter of Dr. William Kirkland, owner of the sprawling Malmaison estate and the richest, most powerful man in Natchez, has solved previous murders with her married detective lover, Sean Regan. This time, though, she's pregnant with Sean's baby, and this plus the discovery of old bloody footprints hidden in the carpet fibers of her Malmaison childhood bedroom threaten to plummet her into the depression that's plagued her since she was 15. She thinks one footprint might be hers, made on the night her father died of an ill-explained gunshot wound. Iles weaves in dark strains of child sexual abuse and the resulting repressed memories as Cat searches for the serial killer and for answers about her father's death. This overlong novel lacks the scintillating originality that made Iles's last outing so memorable, but he ties up all the loose ends in an exciting climax.
Customer Reviews
Blood Memory
Very Enjoyable. Lots of good & bad characters. Abuse themes really disturbing, as were extremely graphic murder scenes & sex details. (Greg Iles books seem to be completely filled these themes).
Finally suspected the outcome, but was totally blown away by the ending.
Having grown up in Natchez, I like the author’s depiction of Natchez and surrounding area. As with all his novels (especially ones about Penn Cage), it was fun trying to identify mansions and characters who might represent actual Natchez residents.
If readers can tolerate this type of novel, by all means read Greg Iles’s books. Otherwise ……… !!
Blood money
Great reading
Blood Memory
Chilling. Left me shaking and queasy, but I could not put it down. The reality of this book is almost too much to bear.