Synopsis
Every instinct tells him to run. Every memory tells him he can’t.
Special Agent Daniel Stansfield is ready for a change. Burnt out and defeated by the job, it’s his last day with the FBI. But before he can turn in his badge, he’s summoned back to Denver, the city he ran from four years ago, with a chilling message: it’s happening again.
Seemingly innocent people are waking up on the side of the highway, with no memory of how they got there, wearing the skin of victims they’ve allegedly never met. And they each share one haunting detail: a strand of a stranger’s hair is tied around their tongue.
Now Daniel is pulled back into the gruesome cycle, and every clue leads him deeper into the shadows of his own past. He will have to confront the ghosts of his traumatic childhood and face what’s been hunting him all along― before he and the people he loves become the next victims.
Perfect for fans of The Shining and Longlegs, bestselling author CJ Leede’s Headlights is a pulse-pounding hunt across the frozen wilderness of Colorado.
Also by CJ Leede:
American Rapture
Maeve Fly
Review
A huge shoutout to Tor Nightfire for the physical ARC! While i did start this one a tad later than I originally intended, it did end up working out as I coincidentally just rewatched The Shining, Doctor Sleep, and Longlegs…look at that luck. The cover is another home run too, close to rivaling my love for American Rapture’s … I happened to love the insides too.
And just a friendly warning on this one: as it really hides a lot in its back blurb, there may be things I spoil here, even unintentionally.
Daniel has had enough. From a failed investigation, a failed marriage, the death of loved ones, it’s safe to say he’s a level or two past burnt out, defeated. But just as he’s about to take off, running once and for all, he’s pulled right back in. His old boss from the FBI, Jack, has appeared in the eleventh hour to tell him it’s happening again. There’s been another murder. Amnesiac kidnappers, skinned victims, a single hair tied around every tongue, and a few clues that lead back to people that just never connect enough to convict. This time, Danny is faced with tackling his trauma and the crimes, and time is dangerously close to running out.
So, like I touch upon above, this one has notes of The Shining, Longlegs, Silence of the Lambs, and even Weapons. Some of which are interwoven with the narrative itself, as DANNY’s mother says he shines, he’s just connected to things differently than others. And while The Shining is more on the nose, this does feel like a supernatural amalgamation of all of these things. Yet, the author does take it all and carve out something all her own. I was first drawn in by these things being mentioned, or things that seemed like nods, but then I was gripped by what’s woven on the page and good god it does not let up.
While this book is deeply imbedded with the supernatural, at its core, it’s still a family drama. And even if you’d argue that, it’s certainly about family trauma. Daniel’s past is blood splattered and speckled, he ran away before he could discuss his divorce, and he lost his adoptive parents too. And this is the kind of person that’s still processing the childhood stuff … memories abound, the past and present often sharing the page with little to differentiate what is and isn’t real. The author toys with readers that way.
And because of the way it all ends up tying together, I particularly liked how in the dark Daniel was. How often he’d question everything on the page. In that way he reminded me of my main detective, Williams, from Welcome to Cemetery. I feel like mysteries on the page sometimes have a way of falling into place … as us writers are literally plotting them out. But this one pauses for those beats to remind us that Daniel is more often than not bewildered but what’s happening.
The ending had notes that reminded me of Doctor Sleep mixed with wendigo-y vibes. I can see the finale working really well for others or rubbing them the wrong way. Personally, I would have liked to see more in the end of how the crime was wrapped up, especially legally, but I do understand that when it comes to the supernatural, “facts” rarely line up. I don’t think it’s so much as to be polarizing in people’s enjoyment, just that there is a hint of design here where not everything is perfect.
This is great for fans of King and The X-Files, fans of supernatural horrors, and readers looking for distinct author voices. Three novels in, Leede is letting fans know she’s writing exactly what she wants to.
Leave a Reply