Unbeknownst to her, someone has been watching her every move. After nine years of searching, Roland Greer has finally tracked down Marissa. He begins his journey to a power plant in Maryland, determined that he will never again be forced to leave her side.
Author Melissa Foster spins a fast-paced tale as she unravels Roland’s troubled past and intertwines it with Kara’s present life. Foster captures Roland’s maniacal side, in addition to Kara’s confusion as she attempts to understand what is happening and how she fits into Roland’s life.
Foster’s narrative is filled with gritty details and her descriptions about the underbelly of the broken down, empty plant are presented with vivid eeriness that adds to the chilling atmosphere as the mystery and crime unfold. Short, tight chapters conveying different points of view also heighten the tension as the secondary characters come close to, but keep missing or delay in following the signs that Kara is in peril.
At times the pace of the novel is interrupted when the narrative belabors a point, for example, introducing Roland’s obsession with Marissa, or when the characters’ inner dialogue is over-sentimental or melodramatic: “She was no longer going to be the victim.” Also, though some of the plot elements are somewhat predictable, there are numerous twists throughout the novel and Foster does an excellent job of sustaining suspense through her characters’ development or their limited knowledge.
TRACES OF KARA is a tense and engrossing read.
Reviewed by Maya Fleischmann for IndieReader