BKMT READING GUIDES
Last Known Victim
by Erica Spindler
Hardcover : 448 pages
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1 member has read this book
Amid death and destruction, hurricane-savaged New Orleans has a new dark force to fear.
As the rescue efforts unfold, a grisly discovery is made at one of the massive refrigerator 'graveyards.' One of these metal hulks contains six human hands—all female, all right hands. The ...
Introduction
(August 2005.
Amid death and destruction, hurricane-savaged New Orleans has a new dark force to fear.
As the rescue efforts unfold, a grisly discovery is made at one of the massive refrigerator 'graveyards.' One of these metal hulks contains six human hands—all female, all right hands. The press has dubbed the unknown perpetrator 'The Handyman.' But with no way to trace the origin of this refrigerator, and with evidence lost to time and the elements, the case dead-ends.
Captain Patti O'shay is a straight-arrow, by-the-book cop who is assigned to the case. Her tough, unflinching character is fractured when her husband and fellow police captain is found murdered—surprised by looters taking advantage of the post-storm chaos.
August 2007Patti, still grieving and disillusioned, gets a call from homicide: skeletal remains have been unearthed in City Park. The unknown victim— a female—is missing her right hand. But for Patti, this grave holds something even more shocking. Found beside the victim's bones is her husband's police badge.
Casting aside the very 'rule book' by which she has lived her life, Patti is fearless—but so is the killer. As he stalks her she is forced to question all she believes in, to doubt the code she has lived by—because she knows that if she doesn't find The Handyman first, she will become his last known victim.
Discussion Questions
1) In LAST KNOWN VICTIM there are three strong female characters. Were they believable? Sympathetic? How about their relationship? Which character did you relate to most?2) Both Stacy and Patti are cops, though of different generations. Did their characters seem authentic? Did their ‘jobs’ come to life with the right amount of detail? Did anything jump out at you as being particularly interesting or unique?
3) What was most important to the story, character or plot? Was the action believable? Exciting? Is there a scene or two that stands out as particularly memorable? Did the way the story unfold enhance the plot? Or hinder it?
4) Compare LAST KNOWN VICTIM to other suspense novels the group has read. Is it similar to them? Did you like it more--or less--and why? What will be your most vivid memories of the novel a month from now? A year? What ‘feeling’ did the story leave you with?
5) The post-Katrina New Orleans setting was very important to this story. Were you left with a vivid sense of a city transformed by disaster? Do you feel the author seamlessly integrated setting, character and plot?
6) Were you satisfied with the ending? Surprised? Let down? Why? Are you glad you chose this book for your group? Would you recommend it to a friend? Would you choose to read this author again?
Notes From the Author to the Bookclub
LAST KNOWN VICTIM sprang out of my personal Hurricane Katrina experience. Like the majority of New Orleanians, I evacuated the city, leaving behind a fully stocked refrigerator and freezer. We all returned to those same refrigerators which had been without power for weeks--even months. Most folks strapped them shut and hauled them out to the curb. They were collected by the EPA and brought to places that came to be called ‘Refrigerator Graveyards.’ Those funky fridges became symbols for our devastated city--some serving as message boards to share our frustration and despair. As I read accounts in our local paper of graveyards hosting as many as 30,000 units, I wondered “What if a body, or body parts, was discovered in one? How would police even begin to investigate?” LAST KNOWN VICTIM was born. I loved writing this story. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to share my hurricane experience. I hope LAST KNOWN VICTIM keeps you on the edge of your seat--and offers a glimpse of a city and her people bowed, but not broken, by disaster.Book Club Recommendations
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