Stain Of Guilt (Hidden Faces)

Rating:
Summary: A fast-paced romantic thriller
Review: A double murder comes back to haunt forensic artist Annie Kingston in STAIN OF GUILT, the stand-alone follow-up to BRINK OF DEATH in Brandilyn Collins's "Hidden Faces" series.

Divorcee Annie Kingston's career as a forensic artist is about to accelerate when the television drama "American Fugitive" hires her to research and draw an updated portrait of the accused at-large perpetrator of a heinous crime that took place two decades ago. She has given a description of Bill Bland, a humorless control freak, intricate planner, and lover of mystery novels. The cold, arrogant Bland is accused of embezzling money from Emily Tarell's husband's business, and Emily, whose husband was one of the two men killed at the murder scene, wants justice.

Emily's son Edwin, who witnessed both murders, is more hesitant, cautioning Annie to refuse the assignment unless she can complete it successfully. Yet Annie's fear is less of doing a poor job portraying an aged Bland than her horror of descending into the mind of the murderer --- something she must do if she is to complete her task of drawing him successfully. "My mind ran its own movie projector on a daily basis, envisioning in screaming color any stray thought that ventured its way. I could only imagine the insanity it would wreak upon me if I embarked on this assignment," Annie realizes. "The deeper I dug into understanding Bill Bland and his murderous brain, the more I would `see' every picture in my head."

The over-stressed Annie's personal life is also in a tangle. She has her hands full bringing up her two children alone, with her rebellious teenage son Stephen's proclivity for the wrong friends and smoking pot, and her adolescent daughter Kelly's newfound love for church, something Annie hasn't yet fully embraced for herself. Yet, ever since her neighbor Lisa Willit was killed ten months previous (in BRINK OF DEATH), Annie has committed to God to seek him. Throughout the book, she continues her soul-searching.

As Annie begins her research on Bland, strange things start to happen. Someone delivers a dozen dead roses to her door. And is someone watching her house --- and her children? Threats are made. Could Bland have become aware of her assignment? If not, then who doesn't want Annie to complete her task? What evil force is at work? "People want to think evil looks monstrous, Ms. Kingston," Sergeant Justin Delft tells her. "It doesn't. Evil is the guy next door."

Underlying the story is Annie's own wrestling with her "stain of guilt" from which the novel takes its name --- her failed marriage, her troubled son, the tragedy that had befallen her neighbors less than a year ago. It's only when Annie gives her guilt to God in a detailed conversion scene that she finally discovers peace for her circumstances. And she'll need it --- more mayhem is right around the corner.

Collins handles changes in point of view adeptly, switching back and forth from Annie in first person to the point of view of the anonymous killer. She also handles flashbacks creatively, allowing the reader to place themselves in earlier scenes involving Bland. However, readers may find Collins sometimes overdoes her descriptions (chills "traced spindly fingers" between shoulder blades or a chill "coiled itself around the length of my spine and hung there, flicking its tongue," or "a sudden shiver clutched at my spine" or shivers "snaked down my spine") and has a few strange word choices ("The question fisted around my heart," "Immediate fear spritzed down my nerves."). By page 50, some readers will have figured out what will be the surprising twist to the story, as this reviewer did. But even if the ending is not a surprise, Collins makes the fast-paced novel still worth the read.

Those who like a little romance with their suspense will enjoy the developing relationships between Annie and Detective Ralph Chetterling, and Annie and her strong Christian widowed neighbor Dave Willit. Although readers looking for romantic resolution will be disappointed, Collins does a good job leaving them hanging for the third installment in the series, which should be eagerly anticipated by Collins's fans.

--- Reviewed by Cindy Crosby ([e-mail])

Rating:
Summary: Brandilyn Collins Did it Again
Review: Book Two of the Hidden Faces Series is every bit as nail-biting, shivering scary as the first one was. Forensic artist Annie Kingston once more finds herself in the mind of a killer. As she delves deeper into the personality and traits of the person she has agreed to draw, her own safety is threatened as well as that of her children. Should she give it up and run for the hills, or stick it out and put this monster behind bars where he belongs?
Buy the book and find out. And if you haven't read the first book in the series, Brink of Death,get it too and you'll be in for a thrill.

Rating:
Summary: Stain of Guilt is a thrilling ride...
Review: Brandilyn has done it again. This story is wonderfully written to draw you into the world of Annie Kingston and her struggle with family, faith, and faces of death. I have enjoyed all of Brandilyn's books, but this series is my favorite by far. When's the next one coming? It can't be too soon!

Rating:
Summary: Are you SURE your doors are locked?
Review: Do you scare easily? I wouldn't recommend reading this book at night if you are a scaredy cat. Brandilyn Collins has done it again. Thrilling from the start. How will Annie keep herself safe from this killer who has been on the loose for 20 years? How will she keep her son from self-destruction? How will she keep her life from going haywire? She can't. Or can she?

Rating:
Summary: Oh, boy!
Review: Forensic artist Annie Kingston faces another challenge - make a drawing of a person who committed a double murder twenty years before. Popular television show American Fugitive had chosen this case for an upcoming program. The elusive fugitive is Bill Bland.

Caught in embezzlement, Bland, an accountant, had been summoned to the home of business owner Don Terell for a confrontation. Also in attendance were Don's son, Edwin, and Peter Dessinger, employee. But their plans went horribly wrong, leaving two men dead and Bland on the run.

Now, Edwin Terell and his mother, Emily, approach Annie to do an aging drawing of how Bland would look now. Their hope is that the American Fugitive TV show, along with Annie's drawing, would flush out Bland so he could be put behind bars for the twenty-year-old crime, and their long nightmare would come to an end.

In order to do the updated face of Bland, Annie needs to learn all she can about the man. She needs to get inside his skin - his mind. What makes him tick? How would certain mannerisms affect how he would appear today? She needs to almost become Bill Bland. As she works, tension mounts.

Annie can't shake memories of the consequences after the drawing she did for the killer of her neighbor Lisa Willit a year ago. Her entire family had been placed in jeopardy, living in terror. Would history repeat itself if she worked on this new face? Wasn't it enough that she, a single mom, had to deal with a rebellious teen son hell-bent on self-destruction?

When Annie feels ready to start her composite, things begin to happen. Threats. Phone calls. Her neighbor Dave Willit, and local police detective Ralph Chetterling promise help and protection. But how can they? The nightmare begins again. Annie and her family are once more placed in harm's way.

Annie Kingston is in an internal struggle with - or against - God. She resists the pull she feels, convinced she can survive on her own. When caught in desperate situations beyond her control, she bargains with God: "Help me now and I'll seek you later." Can she finally admit that she needs God? That she cannot do this alone?

In STAIN OF GUILT, Brandilyn Collins has once again woven a sinister, complicated, tense story with twists and turns that will keep you on the edge of your seat. This book, the sequel to BRINK OF DEATH, in the HIDDEN FACES SERIES, is a masterpiece that supports Brandilyn's "brand" - Don't forget to B R E A T H E. If you like suspense thrillers, this is a book for you. If you're a bit timid - don't read it after dark - and sleep with a light on!


Rating:
Summary: couldn't put it down
Review: I don't say this lightly but this is most likely the best written and most riveting novel I've read in a very long time. I had to tear myself away from reading only if I had to. I wanted to spend every moment reading it. It kept me in its grip the whole time. Brandilyn just keeps getting better and better as a novelist. I loved the first book in the series, and didn't know if she could out-do herself but she did. This is spellbinding.

Rating:
Summary: Another one I couldn't put down
Review: Incredibly exciting reading. As in "Brink of Death," the novel opens like the gentle prelude to a symphony, then screeches off like a tire-burning corvette disappearing down the street. I started reading it Sunday afternoon and couldn't stop until I finished that night.

Annie Kingston's character was complex, and I could relate to her inner fears, spiritual questions and maternal ferocity. She was not a superwoman performing feats of courage or displaying acute intellectual insight. She was a real woman like me or anyone else, caught in a dire situation. Her questions about God echoed what I asked when I was seeking Him, and the minor characters answered with gentleness, honesty, and empathy.

The villain Bland was drawn with such vivid description that I could envision his face, hear his voice. He character had immense depth and richness. Annie literally crawled into his head and dragged the reader with her as she discovered who he was under the surface, what made up the mind of this ruthless man.

Even the minor characters--Annie's children, her sister, etc.--had that aura of realism that made them colorful and varied. I could name someone I knew who reminded me of each character. This aspect drew me into the story quickly because I felt like I knew these people, they were familiar to me.

There was a doozy of a plot twist near the end, and Brandilyn did a very good job leading up to it. However, I think I've read too much Agatha Christie, because I guessed the plot twist in the first quarter of the book. But that being said, it didn't make the ending any less heart-pounding, nail-biting, or satisfying.

You don't really need to read the first book to enjoy this sequel, but "Brink of Death" does add to the backstory and introduces character relationships that, in this novel, are subtly shifting and growing. While "Brink of Death" was more plot-driven, "Stain of Guilt" is definitely more character-driven. It's primarily the cast of this play that keeps the reader's attention, with the story action as background movement.

In all, I highly recommend this title. A very engrossing read.

Rating:
Summary: Facing Another Killer
Review: Six months after the events of BRINK OF DEATH, protagonist Annie Kingston returns in Book #2 of the Hidden Faces series. In the throes of her sixteen-year-old son's rebellion, Annie agrees to draw her most ambitious composite sketch yet - a fugitive update. Requiring every ounce of her skill, can she complete the drawing for the television show American Fugitive before the killer can get to her?

I picked up STAIN OF GUILT unsure if Brandilyn could keep from re-hashing the plot of Book #1. I wasn't disappointed. Although starting a bit slower than BRINK OF DEATH, after a few chapters I was immersed in Annie Kingston's world. Spiritually, Brandilyn once again gently leads readers toward God (without preachiness) as we follow Annie's believable spiritual journey.

The Hidden Faces series is a wonderful addition to Christian suspense fiction. With it's first person narration and thrilling storyline it has the feel of many secular crime novels, but without the swearing, excessive gore, and sex. I've already recommended it to a Sue Grafton fan. I am thoroughly hooked and eagerly anticipating #3, DEAD OF NIGHT available this spring.

Rating:
Summary: Great Drama, Compelling Characters
Review: Stain of Guilt by author Brandilyn Collins continues the story of Annie Kingston's journey of faith - and fear. In this second of Collins' Hidden Faces Series, Annie is faced with the very real fear that a man she is helping to capture for murder is still a threat to society - and to her. In the process of sketching an updated likeness of the killer, Annie is dealing with the ongoing drama of her teenage son's rebellion. Where is God in all of this? Will Annie's search for answers lead her to a truth she can accept? Brandilyn Collins has created believable characters amidst fast-moving suspense. You will come to care about Annie, her sister, and her kids, so rich are the traits that Collins' weaves into these characters. Come along and join Annie on her journey. But don't forget to breathe along the way...

Rating:
Summary: Another great novel by Collins
Review: Stain of Guilt, book 2 in Collins' series sets it's lead character, Annie Kingston off on another great adventure. Twists and turns abound, with action and nail-biting suspense 'till the very last page. Journey into the mind of a killer and what it takes to draw composite sketches of hardened criminals. Lovers of suspense and Christian fiction will not be disappointed!