Get shaken

Three different timelines with three different scary scenarios comprise Shaken, a recent entertaining entry in J.A. Konrath's Jack Daniels thriller series, which began several years ago with Whiskey Sour. 

Jumping between 1) an early serial killer case of Jack’s occurring more than twenty years ago, 2) the hunt for another killer set in the recent past, and 3) a grisly confrontation with that killer set in the present day, Shaken sends readers all over the map with the usual Konrath scares and laughs. 

For longtime fans of the series, it was also fun to see history in the making, as we see (in the earliest timeline) how Jack met her future detective partner Herb Benedict, and other notable “firsts”.  The unusual story construction this time out does sacrifice some of Konrath’s trademark fast pacing, but things never get confusing and the jumping around thing was ultimately fun. 

It was kind of weird, though, that dumb luck, not so much Jack’s bravery and skill, plays a big role in her final fate in this one. But I guess I can’t complain too much, as dumb luck often plays a part in our lives, doesn’t it?  Anyway, fun novel, and one that is sending me right to Stirred, its follow-up.

Shaken is available for $3.99 on Kindle, or is free to borrow on that device if you're an Amazon Prime member.  A good deal either way!