In the thrilling sequel to The Fourth Monkey, a new serial killer stalks the streets of Chicago, while Detective Porter delves deeper into the dark past of the Four Monkey Killer.

Detective Porter and the team have been pulled from the hunt for Anson Bishop, the Four Monkey Killer, by the feds. When the body of a young girl is found beneath the frozen waters of Jackson Park Lagoon, she is quickly identified as Ella Reynolds, missing three weeks. But how did she get there? The lagoon froze months earlier. More baffling? She’s found wearing the clothes of another girl, missing less than two days.

While the detectives of Chicago Metro try to make sense of the quickly developing case, Porter secretly continues his pursuit of 4MK, knowing the best way to find Bishop is to track down his mother. When the captain finds out about Porter’s activities, he’s suspended, leaving his partners Clair and Nash to continue the search for the new killer alone.

Obsessed with catching Bishop, Porter follows a single grainy photograph from Chicago to the streets of New Orleans and stumbles into a world darker than he could have possibly imagined, where he quickly realizes that the only place more frightening than the mind of a serial killer is the mind of the mother from which he came.

Review:

Intricate, creepy, and dark!

The Fifth to Die is a brilliantly crafted, gritty, riveting thriller that takes you on a hunt for a kidnapper with a fondness for saltwater and continues the pursuit for a sadistic serial killer with a penchant for retribution and body parts.

The writing is precise, eerie, and seamless. The characterization is spot on with characters that are driven, reckless and flawed, including the tenacious and tough Detective Porter whose greatest struggles involve his grief, secrets, and obsessions. And the plot is a violent, twisty, tension-filled thrill ride that keeps you on the edge of your seat from start to finish and leaves you absolutely speechless and wanting more.

Overall, The Fifth to Die is an intelligent, gripping, exceptionally fast-paced police procedural that highlights Barker’s extraordinary imagination and talent as a spine-chilling storyteller. It’s the second novel in the 4MK Thriller series, and I have to recommend that if you haven’t already read The Fourth Monkey (4MK Thriller #1), you really have to.

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.