Nocturne in Ashes (Riley Forte: Book 1) by Joslyn Chase

4 Stars

Publisher:

Date of publication: July 20th, 2017

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense

Series: Riley Forte

Nocturne in Ashes—Book 1

Where you can find Nocturne in Ashes: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | BookBub

Book synopsis:

Now she’s playing for her life!

With the death of her husband and son, concert pianist Riley Forte’s life and career shattered. Her comeback performance bombs, her sponsor pulls out, and she faces the tattered ruins of a once-happy life.

When Mt. Rainier erupts, isolating her in a small community stalked by a serial killer, it seems like the end of everything, but it brings a new chance for Riley.

If she can evade the clutches of a dedicated killer.

In a riveting action story filled with breathtaking suspense, Riley fights to hang on to the one thing she has left—her life, and the one thing she needs to turn it around—redemption.

---

First Line

The summer he turned thirteen, he took his first life.

Nocturne in Ashes by Joslyn Chase

---

My Review:

When I read the blurb for Nocturne in Ashes, my interest was caught. I haven’t read a lot of books that take place in Washington state. I also haven’t read a lot of books that deal with catastrophic eruptions of volcanoes. Add in that there is a serial killer loose in a community isolated by the eruptions and I had to read it. I am glad that I did because this book was a fantastic read.

Nocturne in Ashes starts with Riley Forte having a breakdown during her come back tour. Once a promising concert pianist, Riley’s world was torn apart when her husband and young son were killed. That concert was supposed to usher back into the spotlight. Instead, she is left with no sponsor and her career in shambles. She is at home when Mt. Rainier erupts. She discovers that there is a serial killer in the gated community. As the body count rises, suspicion is cast at everyone in the community. Will the killer be caught? Who will it be?

Nocturne in Ashes was one of those books that started with a bang and kept its momentum for the entire book. I couldn’t believe how fast-paced the book was. Usually, when a book is fast-paced, there is lag at some point in the book. There wasn’t any, and I loved it.

I felt awful for Riley during the book. She was struggling to overcome and understand why her husband and son had to die. She was struggling to get her career back on track. She had so much on her plate. Then to get involved in an investigation that involves a serial killer? Which is why I didn’t blame her for taking off when she did. Was it a stupid move? Yes, but she needed to do it. She would have never figured out who the killer was if she didn’t.

I did figure out who the serial killer was early in the book. But, there was a twist in that plotline that I didn’t see coming. It blindsided me. I had to put down my Kindle to process what I read. I was that shocked.

Nate’s investigation was another plotline that I loved. I liked that his investigation went on even though he was cut off from the rest of the state. I found it fascinating how he handled different situations.

I found Rick’s journey to get to Nate fascinating. He knew who the killer was and he wasn’t going to leave Nate stranded. He had some creative ways of getting to Nate. There were specific points in the book where I doubted if he would get there.

The end of Nocturne in Ashes was intense. Like I mentioned above, there was a twist in the plot that took me by surprise. What I liked the most is that the author didn’t end the book after the twist. She kept it going. She showed what happened to the characters afterward. Loved it!!

---

I would give Nocturne in Ashes an Adult rating. There is no sex. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread Nocturne in Ashes. I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**