Breakneck

Written by Erica Spindler

Narrated by Lorelei King

Breakneck marks the return of Detectives Mary Catherine (MC) Riggio and Kitt Lundgren, partners in the police department's Violent Crimes Bureau in industrial, blue-collar Rockford, Illinois. The two detectives are faced with tracking down a monster unlike any they have encountered before. The clean, seemingly emotionless kills leave MC and Kitt little but the growing string of victims to follow--all young adults, clean cut, kid-next-door types who've never taken a step outside the law. And this time around, it's personal for MC: The first victim is her cousin Tommy Mariano, oldest son of her favorite aunt. As MC and Kitt hunt a faceless killer, they are led deep into the cyberuniverse, where no one is who they seem and you never know who's watching. At the heart of this fast-paced thriller is the relationship between the two headstrong women, their struggle to balance their dual roles, to learn to trust, and to walk the fine line between upholding the law--and taking it into their own hands as they race to find a murderer.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Audio
• Release date: Jan 20, 2009
• ISBN: 9781427205001

Erica Spindler

No matter how innocent the story being relayed to me is, I can twist it into something pretty damn frightening. I've learned the real trick is not sharing these versions with those relaying the story. It tends to make people avoid me.” ~ Erica Spindler A New York Times and International bestselling author, Erica Spindler's skill for crafting engrossing plots and compelling characters has earned both critical praise and legions of fans. Published in 25 countries, her stories have been lauded as “thrill-packed page turners, white- knuckle rides and edge-of-your-seat whodunits.” Raised in Rockford, Illinois, Erica had planned on being an artist, earning a BFA from Delta State University and an MFA from the University of New Orleans in the visual arts. In June of 1982, in bed with a cold, she picked up a romance novel for relief from daytime television. She was immediately hooked, and soon decided to try to write one herself. She leaped from romance to suspense in 1996 with her novel Forbidden Fruit, and found her true calling. Her novel Bone Cold won the prestigious Daphne du Maurier Award for excellence. A Romance Writers of America Honor Roll member, she received a Kiss of Death Award for her novels Forbidden Fruit and Dead Run and was a three-time RITA® Award finalist.  Publishers Weekly awarded the audio version of her novel Shocking Pink a Listen Up Award, naming it one of the best audio mystery books of 1998. Erica lives just outside New Orleans, Louisiana, with her husband and two sons and is busy at work on her next thriller.  

Reviews for Breakneck

[tina1969_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

From fantastic fiction..Detective MC Riggio can't wait to get married. She is desperately in love with her fiance Dan, and is counting down the days until the wedding. Best of all, her big Italian family have welcomed Dan with open arms, her mother ecstatic at the thought of more grandchildren. But MC never does marry Dan or have his children. A few weeks before the wedding day he is shot dead ? and MC's world crumbles into pieces. Detective Kitt Lundgren is there to support her colleague. She knows grief only too well ? her only daughter has recently died ? and she knows that MC's only concern now will be to find out who killed her fiance. So the two women work day and night to discover what happened to Dan. But there is a ruthless killer on the loose, a killer who knows no fear. And Kitt and MC have put themselves right in the firing line...A nice easy thriller which unlike some books is not complex and straight to the point. M C and Kitt are back in their second book and I feel there will probably be more to follow with these characters. I always enjoy Erica Spindler books but what this one does lack is a romance between a lead female character and one of the lead males. When ES does include a romance she does it very well and it is not too sugary. The ‘baddie’ as always kept me guessing until the end of the story when really all the clues where there. My only other gripe is that I thought M C’s relation Sam for is age was really a bit dim, unless he was meant to be like he was because he was involved. A nice easy book to read and always enjoyable.

[katcoviello · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

a page turner

[heatherlinc · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was an enjoyable, fast-paced crime thriller with lots of twists and turns. I really liked MC and Kit, and as the body count climbed to eight I was struggling to decide who the killer was. This was the first book I've read by Erica Spindler, but I will certainly be looking for other books written by her. Extremely entertaining.

[triciadm_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book, the plot was good and suspenceful, and surprising. A must read for those needing a thrilling suspense novel!

[abcarroll_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It seems like M.C. (Mary Catherine) finally has it all. A job she loves, a great partner and a boyfriend. All that changes in an instant and her world is suddenly turned upside down and those close to her are in danger. M.C. must solve this crime before anyone else gets hurt. Great book!

[conkie_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

First book I've read by this author, whom I had not heard of until I won it through LT's Early Reviewer program. At that point I was primarily reading historicals, but during the last year I've moved toward contemporary "romantic suspense" and "chic lit." I ran into the audio version at the Library and decided to give it a "read," which I often do if I'm uncertain about content or author.The story was a little slow and uninteresting at the beginning, but once beyond the "Dan" plot turn, it became intriguing. I'd decided who "Breakneck" was several times, but other than considering the actual person once, because I was running out of possibilities, I really didn't guess it was that person. The story was interesting and the content was current. If not for the slow beginning and a saturated use of the words "pard'ner" and "M.C.", this book would be a 4 - 4.5 story for me.I'll be looking at other titles written by Ms. Spindler.Thanks for the Review Copy! While I didn't read it when received, seeing it on my bookshelf definitely led me to (eventually) discover a new author, and a new list of books to read.

[scoshie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Erica Spndlr does a decent job of keeping your attention with this bok.

[frogprof_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Pretty good -- I got through it in a hurry because I needed to know how it ended! I wasn't surprised, actually, but I enjoyed the ride.

[neilandlisa · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another enjoyable thriller from Erica Spindler, just in time for beach reading and summer relaxing. This one features a female cop partnership and cyber crime. Fans of her earlier work will enjoy this for sure and she may attract new readers by breaking out of her more traditional serial killer format.

[lallybroch_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Mysteries are the hardest genre for me to review. Unless there is a crazy twist, or characters I love, they tend to run together for me. Most mysteries contain such similar elements that it takes something special to set it apart from the pack. Breakneck didn't have that.Breakneck is enjoyable, and it's a fast read with short, exciting chapters, but there wasn't anything amazing about it. Maybe if I was more invested in the characters, as the are part of a series, I would have liked it better. Some of the victims are close to one of the detectives and this helped me get a better feel for her as you see her emotional response to the killings. But, overall it was a pretty standard mystery.

[intplibrarian_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Fun, quick read. No real shocking moments and more than a few times when I had to say "Really? You didn't think to...?" But, still, it was enjoyable. Let's say, I probably wouldn't go and put my name on the waiting list (I get most of my fiction from the library) for a NEW book out with these characters, but would pick it up to read eventually.

[rgaryrasmussen · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this book a lot, even though as a guy I am probably not in the center of its target audience. Its author is female, as are its two protagonists. The plot is interesting and compelling, but occasionally the dialogue seemed slightly off mark. This is the first book by Erica Spindler that I've read, and I'm looking forward to reading more of her work.

[pacey1927 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was a really good thriller. The cyber-theft ring was interesting and at least in my reading world, it hasn't been overdone. The killer was interesting and perfectly cold-hearted. Although some people were turned off by the short chapters, I thought it was different and worked ok. I like M.C. best of the two main characters and I think Kitt is okay. I felt horrible watching as the murder victims start to fall, and M.C. knows some of them. I agree with what other reviewers have said about police procedure. I am NOT involved in any aspect of law enforcement but I knew that there was no way some of that would have unfolded that way...but I can see that Spindler had to do things the way she did or her story wouldn't work. I thought this book was very entertaining and I only realized who the killer was a few moments before they did. However much I praise this book, I do acknowledge that this book wasn't nearly as good as Spindler's earlier works. "Forbidden Fruit", "Shocking Pink", "Cause For Alarm" and "Fortune" were just amazing. Those are the books I most recommend that you go and grab.

[cats57_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Breakneck by Erica Spindler Never having read anything by this author, but being one who loves suspense novels, I was delighted by this book. And even though I am no computer "geek"; the lingo, explanations and plot were easily followed and understood by one as computer illiterate as I am. It may be a bit annoying to "alpha geeks" but there you have it! This is my first meeting with, Detectives M.C. Riggio and Kitt Lundgren and it won't be my last. Breakneck opens with the seemingly senseless murder of a young computer "geek" and quickly moves to happier events. An engagement, an engagement party and then a very surprising death close to Riggio's heart, followed quickly by more deaths of young computer geeks. Each murder striking closer to home for Riggio. Information and clues pile up at a nearly impossible to keep up with pace, but are quickly sorted, and lead us on a journey to the inevitable. I have to admit that the red herrings were so clever that I didn't figure this one out until nearly the same time as the author had M. C. figure it out. Excellent writing, suspenseful, highly emotional with tightly written characters and a very true look at very old Italian families. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and look forward to reading Erica Spindler's back list

[cherylk_44 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Matt Martin was a part time college student and major computer hacker. He didn’t really have any friends and he rarely left the house, so why was he murdered? Detective Mary Catherine”M.C.” Riggio and her partner, Detective Kitt Lundgren are back again. It seems in their latest case that someone is making it personal for M.C. First M.C’s fiancé, Daniel Gallo, is found shot in the head and then her cousin, Tommy is found also shot in the head in his home. Who would want to kill Daniel and Tommy? At first the circumstance seems like Daniel was a victim of the wrong place, wrong time scenario but upon further investigation it seems that M.C. didn’t really have a clue about who the real Daniel was. Before M.C. has a chance to wrap her mind about her fiancé, more college students have been murdered. M.C. and Kitt discover that all of the victims were key players in a mass cyber ring. M.C. and Kitt are joined by Jonathan Smith with the FBI. Soon all three of them find themselves caught in a deadly game of cat and mouse with a killer known as Breakneck.M.C and Kitt are two of my favorite detectives. So glad to visit with them again. I thought M.C. brought a good range of depth to her character with all the different emotions, she experienced from joy, sorrow, anger, and revenge. Kitt is the best partner anyone could every have. She always has M.C.’s back. Author, Erica Spindler serves up one hot, steamy plate of suspense, intrigue, and a heart-pounding good time in her latest novel, Breakneck. I read this whole book in one sitting. I was glued to my sit till the very end. The ending I might add was great. It was a surprise ending for me. I did not expect the curve-ball that got thrown to me.