Hide Away

Jason Pinter's latest book is the first in a new series.  I am not sure what type of mysteries the Rachel Marin Series will be. It is hard to tell from Hide Away. Rachel is not in law enforcement so I am assuming that she is an amateur sleuth. However, in Hide Away Rachel did not do an investigation of the crime. She was present at a number of events but did not go out and look for evidence or interview witnesses. 

The publisher's summary of the book:

"On the surface, Rachel Marin is an ordinary single mother; on the inside, she’s a fierce, brilliant vigilante. After an unspeakable crime shatters her life, she changes her identity and moves to a small town in Illinois, hoping to spare her children from further trauma…or worse. But crime follows her everywhere. 

When the former mayor winds up dead, Rachel can’t help but get involved. Where local detectives see suicide, she sees murder. They resent her for butting in—especially since she’s always one step ahead. But her investigative genius may be her undoing: the deeper she digs, the harder it is to keep her own secrets buried. 

Her persistence makes her the target of both the cops and a killer. Meanwhile, the terrifying truth about her past threatens to come to light, and Rachel learns the hard way that she can’t trust anyone. Surrounded by danger, she must keep her steely resolve, protect her family, and stay one step ahead, or else she may become the next victim."

I think the book has a few failures.  Rachel does not have a defined role.  Being a vigilante, as the publisher summary states, is not enough.  She needs to be involved in the investigation of a crime and the author has not shown if she will be an amateur sleuth.  If she is not a sleuth then who is she?  Also, I did not think that she was a likable character.  She bored me.  Other characters stated that she was crazy but the author did not give her any attributes of a crazy or eccentric person.  How can a series have a heroine that is undefined in the first book? The reader does not know what to expect in future novels. 

Hide Away was an OK book.  I rate it 3 out of 5 stars.