mariafleissig's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
weaselweader's review against another edition
4.0
A compelling blend of psychological and suspense thriller!
Madeleine Frank is a psychotherapist and we all know that a psychotherapist's role is to help clients deal with conflicts, inner issues, confusions, mental turmoil and personal inner demons and help them to chart a course to the comforting shores of mental stability. But when the psychotherapist's background is jammed to bursting with a chaotic, bewildering variety of personal psychological baggage, readers will justifiably wonder whether Madeleine Frank is capable of maintaining a solid Chinese wall between her personal and professional lives.
Life has not been easy for Madeleine Frank. She lost her loving husband to the anger of a savage hurricane in Key West Florida. Her mother, a former priestess of Santeria, a dark and mystic Afro-Cuban religion, hovers on the edge of madness in an asylum. Her father, living a Bohemian but wildly successful artist's life in Bath, England, with a younger woman, ignores both Madeleine and her mother. Madeleine's daughter, virtually hi-jacked away from her when Madeleine was only a teenager in a very questionable administrative procedure, was given up for adoption. The daughter has not been seen or heard from since.
As low and weak as it already is, that wall between Madeleine's personal and professional lives threatens to crumble to powder when Frank meets Rachel Locklear, a Russian immigrant telling a story of sexual slavery, prostitution, beatings, murder and threats on her life from her ruthless, controlling partner and his psychopathic brother. As Rachel's terrifying story unfolds in the course of therapy, Madeleine Frank recognizes some chilling coincidences and becomes convinced that Rachel is the long-lost daughter that she had never been able to reach.
Bloodprint is a wonderful blend of suspense thriller, psychological thriller and romance with more than a hint of the paranormal thrown in for good measure. The characters are flamboyant, powerful, complex and exceptionally well-crafted. Whether the story is unfolding in the quaint, Georgian countryside of Bath, England, or on the humid, sun-drenched, storm-tossed shores of Key West, Florida, locations are vividly brought to life with deliciously, descriptive prose.
Bloodprint is a chilling story with that proverbial ability to glue you to your seat and keep you turning pages until you reach the end. Other reviewers have suggested that Bloodprint is a weaker effort than Sewell's first novel, Ice Trap. If that's true, then I can hardly wait to get my hands on it!
Paul Weiss
Madeleine Frank is a psychotherapist and we all know that a psychotherapist's role is to help clients deal with conflicts, inner issues, confusions, mental turmoil and personal inner demons and help them to chart a course to the comforting shores of mental stability. But when the psychotherapist's background is jammed to bursting with a chaotic, bewildering variety of personal psychological baggage, readers will justifiably wonder whether Madeleine Frank is capable of maintaining a solid Chinese wall between her personal and professional lives.
Life has not been easy for Madeleine Frank. She lost her loving husband to the anger of a savage hurricane in Key West Florida. Her mother, a former priestess of Santeria, a dark and mystic Afro-Cuban religion, hovers on the edge of madness in an asylum. Her father, living a Bohemian but wildly successful artist's life in Bath, England, with a younger woman, ignores both Madeleine and her mother. Madeleine's daughter, virtually hi-jacked away from her when Madeleine was only a teenager in a very questionable administrative procedure, was given up for adoption. The daughter has not been seen or heard from since.
As low and weak as it already is, that wall between Madeleine's personal and professional lives threatens to crumble to powder when Frank meets Rachel Locklear, a Russian immigrant telling a story of sexual slavery, prostitution, beatings, murder and threats on her life from her ruthless, controlling partner and his psychopathic brother. As Rachel's terrifying story unfolds in the course of therapy, Madeleine Frank recognizes some chilling coincidences and becomes convinced that Rachel is the long-lost daughter that she had never been able to reach.
Bloodprint is a wonderful blend of suspense thriller, psychological thriller and romance with more than a hint of the paranormal thrown in for good measure. The characters are flamboyant, powerful, complex and exceptionally well-crafted. Whether the story is unfolding in the quaint, Georgian countryside of Bath, England, or on the humid, sun-drenched, storm-tossed shores of Key West, Florida, locations are vividly brought to life with deliciously, descriptive prose.
Bloodprint is a chilling story with that proverbial ability to glue you to your seat and keep you turning pages until you reach the end. Other reviewers have suggested that Bloodprint is a weaker effort than Sewell's first novel, Ice Trap. If that's true, then I can hardly wait to get my hands on it!
Paul Weiss
beckylej's review against another edition
4.0
Madeleine Frank has effectively put her past behind her, but that doesn’t mean that she’s forgotten or that she’s even gotten over it. The death of her husband in a Florida hurricane left her devastated. Madeleine picked herself up, however, and relocated to Bath where she now practices as a psychotherapist. Her mother, a priestess of Santeria, has been institutionalized but is doing well enough and her father, a famous artist, is still going strong. Then one day Madeleine is approached by a new patient: Rachel Locklear, a woman with a dark past who is trying to free herself from an evil and domineering lover. After so long, Madeleine believes that in Rachel she may have found the daughter that she gave up for adoption so many years ago. Is it true or is Madeleine making connections where in fact none exist? Regardless, it is clear that Rachel is in some serious trouble and Madeleine may be the only one who can help her. Kitty Sewell does it again. Her debut novel, Ice Trap, was absolutely amazing and Bloodprint is equally so. Sewell builds the suspense in this tale slowly, weaving Madeleine’s own tragic past throughout, and creating an intense psychological story that’s as rich and entrancing as its settings.
libos's review against another edition
4.0
I rarely like low rated books but damn, did I love reading it.
For some reason it stands out for me. Probably because I had just started with the thriller genre when I read it about 2/3 years ago. Thus I can't necessarily talk about the storyline, which I've practically forgotten by now but I can tell you the MC is a dum-dum who in the face of a literal hurricane thought that making out was a good idea. Need I say more?
For some reason it stands out for me. Probably because I had just started with the thriller genre when I read it about 2/3 years ago. Thus I can't necessarily talk about the storyline, which I've practically forgotten by now but I can tell you the MC is a dum-dum who in the face of a literal hurricane thought that making out was a good idea. Need I say more?
More...