Cherry Bomb (annotation)

Author:  J. A. Konrath
Title:  Cherry Bomb
Publication Information:  New York : Hyperion, 2009
Number of Pages:  290
Geographical Setting:  Chicago, Illinois and other Midwestern locations
Time Period:  Contemporary
Series:  6th book in the Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels Mystery series
Subject Headings:  Policewomen Illinois Chicago Fiction; Fiancées Crimes against Fiction; Daniels, Jacqueline (Fictitious character) Fiction; Chicago (Ill.) Fiction; Chick lit; Mystery fiction.
Appeal:  This book offers a lot of suspense and graphic violence wrapped up in dark humor.  The characters aren’t terribly deep, but still have enough personality to keep the reader wondering what might happen next. The action takes its fair share of twists and turns, but nothing too outlandish and nothing so simple that the reader becomes bored.  This being a book about a cop hunting a serial killer, there are several episodes of violence and the author pulls no punches in his descriptions of gruesome events.  Readers who appreciate dark humor intertwined with a fast-paced game of cat and mouse will likely enjoy this book  
Plot Summary:  Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels and Alexandra “Alex” Kork both have revenge on their minds. For Jack, a lieutenant in the Chicago Police Department, revenge means tracking down and finally getting rid of serial killer Alex; for good this time.  Locking her up didn’t go so well and resulted in the murder of Jack’s fiancé, Latham, upon Alex’s escape.  At Latham’s funeral, Alex calls and informs Jack that her revenge has only just begun.  There are more people on Alex’s list that she’s planning to kill and, just to make it interesting, she’s added more than a few distractions along the way.  The first distraction is to save a man that Alex has tied up somewhere.  The problem is, though, that Jack doesn’t know who he is or where he is and she only has twelve hours to find him.  Adding to her difficulties is the fact that she has been taken off the Alex Kork case because she’s personally involved.  But that doesn’t stop her and her friends from trying.  Joining her for the chase is her partner, Herb; her private-investigating ex-partner (who may actually be her half-brother) Harry and his Crimebago; her cancer-stricken, yet still desirable bank-robber friend, Phin, and a monkey with no sense of modesty.  Though they don’t all get along, they manage to keep their misfit crime-fighting team working as they trail Alex all over the Midwest, searching for clues to her next victim.  
Similar Authors and Works:  Reichs, Kathy, 206 Bones (female investigator, fast-paced, suspenseful); Paretsky, Sara, Body Work (Chicago, female investigator, gritty, violent); Castillo, Linda, Sworn to Silence (violent, suspenseful, fast-paced)
Relevant NonFiction Works and Authors:  
Phelps, M. William, Perfect Poison: A Female Serial Killer's Deadly Medicine; King, Jeanne, Signed in Blood: The True Story of Two Women, a Sinister Plot, and Cold-blooded Murder; Buss, David M., The Murderer Next Door: Why the Mind is Designed to Kill.