Her Final Breath

Suspenseful, with an admirable protagonist

I constantly have a mystery/crime book with me (either to read or listen to) and I am often disgusted by the poor writing and editing that is published.
Robert Dugoni is a noticable exception. His writing is crisp, the characters are believable with a mature, intelligent, sensible protagonist.The darkness people can choose to live in is spelled out but there is no doubt that it's not somewhere we want to go.
I look forward to reading more from this author.

14 of 14 people found this review helpful

Great psychlogical and police thriller!

Her Final Moments is Book 2 in Robert Dugoni's Tracy Crosswhite series. Book 1, My Sister's Grave, was outstanding and Her Final Moments is even better. I look forward to the release of Book 3 in May 2016.

Tracy Crosswhite is a Seattle police detective leading a task force hunting for a serial killer of young women who dance at strip clubs. A man has already been convicted of the first murder and is in prison. Crosswhite's boyfriend (Dan, her close friend when she was growing up and is now a successful lawyer) takes on the case of the innocent man imprisoned for the first of the serial murders.

Emily Sutton-Smith does a great job of narration.

I highly recommend this book but suggest that My Sister's Grave be read first.

24 of 25 people found this review helpful

I'm on the fence between 3 & 4 stars...

Would you listen to Her Final Breath again? Why?

Doubtful. This is the second book in the Tracy Crosswhite Series. Tracy, a detective and the main character is easy to like. Dan, the lawyer, childhood friend and new love is also a likeable character. The storyline is good for a police procedural/suspense story. It began to wear on my nerves the last couple of hours. The story is solved, the good guys, bad guys, and the pain in the behind characters have all defined their roles. It was time to bring in an editor willing to cut some of the material. This is why I debated between 3 and 4 stars.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Tracy Crosswhite. Strong female for the main character. If you read the first book, "My Sisters Grave", you know she has a vunerable side. She shows only a small amount of that side in this story, but she is an interesting woman with a lot of baggage. While I really did enjoy the book, some of it feels like a cookie cutter portrayal of the woman who can best the men.

Which character – as performed by Emily Sutton-Smith – was your favorite?

The narrator did well with all of the characters. I would still choose Tracy as my favorite.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I didn't really have an emotional reaction to the book.

Any additional comments?

Worth the credit and will probably look for the next book.

10 of 10 people found this review helpful

Engaging Storyline... Too Many Characters

If you could sum up Her Final Breath in three words, what would they be?

Engaging, Relatable, Over-saturated

If you’ve listened to books by Robert Dugoni before, how does this one compare?

The only other book I've listened too was My Sister's Grave: The Tracy Crosswhite Series, Book 1. I thought My Sister's Grave was excellent. This is a great book as well, but not as well scripted as the first in this series. I will continue with this series, the good parts of the book outweighs the bad by leaps and bounds.

What about Emily Sutton-Smith’s performance did you like?

She did great. I had no problem differentiating between the characters. The male character voices didn't seem forced either.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

SPOILER ALERT::SPOILER ALERT:: I really enjoyed the simplistic conversation that Tracy had with the Cowboy. I believe that particular point in the book gave more insight into the Cowboy than all the flashbacks did. It also humanized him.

Any additional comments?

I really liked this book. As I stated in my header, there were too many characters. They revealed the Cowboy's name and I really drew a blank to who that was. Being that it's a little difficult going back to a particular passage in an audiobook as opposed to searching for a name in an ebook, I'm taking an educated guess as to where we first met him.

Secondly, I loved the personality of the character who owned Dirty Ernie's. I would be interested into learning more about their past loves, businesses and antics, cause you know they had to have some.

7 of 7 people found this review helpful

Bravo Mr. Dugoni!

This s the second book of the Crosswhite series, but I read this one first. It is an outstanding police prodedural on the same level as the Bosch series by Michael Connelly. That is pretty high praise!

I have to brief, but here are a few things that make this a great read:
-The inner department politics and adversarial relationships between the detectives and their bosses is gripping ad edgy.
-The hunt for the killer is really fascinating.
-Tracy Crosswhite is a fantastic detective and a great character.

14 of 15 people found this review helpful

Her Final Breath

Book 2 in the Tracy Crosswhite Series written by Robert Dugoni, narrated by Emily Sutton-Smith, 11.5 hours of listening in unabridged audiobook format. Her Final Breath was released in September 2015 by Brilliance Audio.

Tracy Crosswhite, the main protagonist, is a Seattle homicide cop. Having successfully solved the 20-year-old murder of her sister in Book 1 of the series, Tracy is back on the job in Seattle. Insignificant references are made to the Book 1 story, ergo Her Final Breath stands alone. A police procedural. Several women, pole dancer/prostitutes, have been killed by self asphyxiation due to being hog-tied - a noose around their neck causes slow strangulation as their strength weakens. Grisly way to go.

Good cops, bad cops, a myriad of suspects traverse the pages as the author works toward solving the crimes. You’ll be convinced, many times, that you have figured out the story and nailed the psychopath - then Dugoni throws you a curve. Good plot twists!

Narration is fine, male and female voices alike. You’ll have no trouble discerning who is saying what to who.

No gratuitous sex, no bad language. Not great literature, not intended to be - just a good story worth the investment.

6 of 6 people found this review helpful

Yet another great Tracy Crosswhite Book!

What was one of the most memorable moments of Her Final Breath?

Unlike the previous book which was centered around Tracy's roots, this books gave perspective to her career and life now. It also give the reader vivid details of her coworkers, and their relationships with Tracy, and friendships that are only created from years of working together.

Which scene was your favorite?

The ending of the epilogue because it ties into previous moments in the story.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

It was one of those books that when you were not listening to, you were thinking about what could happen next. Like the first book, it keeps your interest from start to finish.

Any additional comments?

Please Robert Dugoni, write another Tracy Crosswhite book!

6 of 6 people found this review helpful

Very Good!

Two convoluted mysteries, interesting characters and a well written story keeps the reader on the edge.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Interesting Story and Characters

I enjoyed this book a lot and will likely read (listen) to the next in the series, but the first book of the series is the best so far. ~JTC~

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Suspense and concealment

Loved not figuring out in advance who the cowboy was, but find the trend of female officers ending up in mortal danger a little tiring. They don't have to be super heros, just not always targets.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful