Review: You Can Run

You Can Run by Rebecca Zanetti
My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Rebecca Zanetti takes a big step out of the romantic suspense genre with You Can Run. This is a murder mystery with strong psychological thriller elements - an element that may continue in future books. The case is solved at this start of a series book, but the interplay between main (and secondary) characters remains unresolved.

The book keeps the reader engaged with palpable suspense even as many red herrings are used - some, I suspect, as set up for the rest of the books in the series.

FBI Special Agent, Laurel Snow, hurries back home after a frantic call from her mother. Her uncle is the main suspect when a body dump is found in the wilderness. Laurel is a child prodigy but cannot read specific social cues. This dimension of Laurel's character is mentioned often but does not always play out in her interactions.

Fisheries and Wildlife Captain Huck Rivers is the stoic 'mountain man' reluctantly helping Laurel with the serial murder case. He is protective but prefers to keep himself distant from others. However, he and Laurel make a great team, and it would be interesting to see their evolving relationship. However, the dash of romance is not enough to satisfy fans of romantic suspense.

There is a good cast of secondary characters that are both interesting and, in some cases, more terrifying. The setting is beautifully rural, and the author uses the weather not only as context and backdrop but almost as another secondary character.

The book does seem to end rather abruptly, with the serial killer case mostly resolved. I am eagerly awaiting the next instalment.

Kensington Books - Zebra and Rebecca Zanetti provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. This is my honest review. The publication date is currently set for January 25, 2022.