Review – Gone to Ground

Award-winning author, Brandilyn Collins, delivers another intriguing cat-and-mouse mystery in “Gone to Ground,” this time set in the small town of Amaryllis, Mississippi, where three remarkable women are caught in a web of suspicion and fear.
This once sleepy, southern town is now tense with fear due to five unsolved murders over the past three years by an unknown, elusive serial killer. The victims, all women, span a wide age range. The killer is dubbed the “Closet Killer” because the women’s bodies are found stuffed inside closets of homes they’re murdered in.
Just when townspeople’s fears begin to diminish the killer strikes again, using the same methods and procedures except for one thing, this young woman was pregnant where the other victims were not. The killer had changed his victimology and no one could guess why.
The story begins with easygoing Cherrie Mae, a black cleaning woman who vacuums and dusts the living room of the mayor’s home. He demands perfection and she leaves the room spotless before she carries her “fold-up stool” into the mayor’s home office.
The mayor’s missus has gone to Piggly Wiggly for groceries, which leaves Cherri Mae alone to do what she does best—not just clean—explore. Some might call it snooping, however she reasoned it was okay because she always kept her “discoveries” to herself.
That is until today, when she opened the desk drawer filing cabinet and found a file labeled “Closet Killings” mixed in with “City council” business files. And graphic pictures of five murdered women spilled from the folder… How could she keep this to herself…?
Add a relentless reporter, a resident ghost, a missing ring and blood-stained cotton swabs sent mysteriously to the police. Then to add to the confusion, three women are certain they know who the killer is—each suspects a different man with good reason, which keeps the pages turning faster and faster…
Collins writes in first person, beginning each chapter in the voice Deena, Tully or Cherrie Mae. Deena is the town beautician and ex-wife of an Amaryllis police officer who suspects her brother because of what she’s seen and heard. Nineteen-year-old Tully, married to an abuser, is pregnant with her first child. She has proof her husband is the serial killer. Then there’s the delightful cleaning lady, Cherrie Mae who quotes from classic books who believes she’s caught the mayor red-handed because of photos she found in his files. Each woman suspects a different man and all have valid reasons for their suspicious.
Collin’s weaves subtle elements of faith throughout the suspense filled narrative which is why she is called “Queen of Seatbelt Suspense ©.” If readers aren’t already fans, they will be by the time they turn the last page.
Back Cover Copy:
Amaryllis, Mississippi is a scrappy little town of strong backbone and southern hospitality. A brick-paved Main Street, a park, and a legendary ghost in the local cemetery are all part of its heritage. Everybody knows everybody in Amaryllis, and gossip wafts on the breeze. Its people are friendly, its families tight. On the surface Amaryllis seems much like the flower for which it’s named—bright and fragrant. But the Amaryllis flower is poison.
In the past three years five unsolved murders have occurred within the town. All the victims were women, and all were killed in similar fashion in their own homes. And just two nights ago—a sixth murder.
Clearly a killer lives among the good citizens of Amaryllis. And now three terrified women are sure they know who he is—someone they love. None is aware of the others’ suspicions. And each must make the heartrending choice to bring the killer down. But each woman suspects a different man.