Review – Clean Slate by Brianna Labuskes
Synopsis
Death pays well for Olive Hunt, a crime scene cleaner who channels her childhood traumas into erasing the suffering of others. After nearly ten years, she’s seen it all. Nothing rattles her anymore. Until now.
Two back-to-back suicides. A seedy motel. An upscale Atlanta hotel. No connection―except that Olive discovers the same strange item at each scene. Then a third body drops. Olive knows what the police refuse to see: These aren’t suicides. They’re murders staged to perfection.
Then the roses arrive. A vase of bloodred blooms on her doorstep. An anonymous note: Thank you.
She’s found him. A serial killer who’s been leaving breadcrumbs only she can see. A killer who’s been cleaning up his work―knowing she’ll clean up after him. A killer who wants her to follow. And follow she must. No matter how terrifying the trail becomes.
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Review
This is such an intriguing premise for the main character. She is a crime scene cleaner, a job I wouldn’t want.
This is told from three points of view, and also shifts from the past to the present. It is important to see how the past ties into the present, and the different murders.
The mystery was intriguing, and I enjoyed watching the story unfold blending the past with the present, and how it impacted the various characters. I will admit that I had no idea who was doing what, but once it was revealed, it made more sense. I was afraid it was going to be someone else, so I’m glad I was wrong in that aspect.
Olive is a meticulous cleaner, but at a cost. Her mother was OCD and instilled some of that into Olive. This can be a good or a bad thing. It did help her uncover clues at the crime scenes that the police missed. But to be honest, these were not in places most people would think to search. But it was also the killer’s way of bringing her into the crime. At least Olive kept the police informed on what she found and anything else that arose to help keep her safe.
This looks like it will be a series, so I am interested to see what happens next for Olive and her business, and if she how many more crimes she will solve.
We give this book 4 paws up.
About the Author
Brianna Labuskes is the USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and Amazon Charts bestselling author of The Lies You Wrote, The Truth You Told, and By the Time You Read This in the Raisa Susanto series; See It End, What Can’t Be Seen, and A Familiar Sight in the Dr. Gretchen White series; and Her Beautiful Life, Her Final Words, Black Rock Bay, Girls of Glass, and It Ends with Her. She lives in Pennsylvania with her puppy, Jinx.
