The Reaping

Steinbeck and Reed, Book 2

By: Jess Lourey

Narrated by: James Daniels

By-the-book forensic scientist Harry Steinbeck and rogue BCA agent Van Reed must catch a cold-case killer who’s returned to abduct a small town’s children one by one in this heart-stopping novel from the Edgar Award-nominated author of Unspeakable Things.

In 1998 an Alku, Minnesota, family of five was brutally murdered in their sleep. The event shook the insulated community but, without any solid leads, was relegated to the cold case files, where it moldered for twenty-five years. Until today.

Agent Harry Steinbeck hoped never to return to the northland, a place that holds terrible memories of his sister’s abduction. But when a recent homicide is connected to Alku’s unsolved mass murder, he and cold case agent Evangeline Reed have no choice but to investigate.

The case grows impossibly darker as, one by one, the children of Alku begin disappearing. And Harry and Van can’t shake the sensation that someone is watching every move they make.

As an elusive killer’s trail leads to a truth more sinister than either imagined, Harry knows there’s only one way to crack this case: he must finally face the secrets of his own past—even if doing so will cost him everything.

©2024 by Jess Lourey. (P)2024 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“Mystery and horror mix in a creepy novel whose suspenseful ending hints at a very special sequel.” —Kirkus Reviews

“With the Fall season quickly closing in, readers are scrambling for their next haunting read. And readers will find nothing more delightfully twisted than Jess Lourey’s latest chilling thriller, The Reaping.” —BookTrib

“The novel’s setting in fictional, Alku, Minn., an insular community founded by seven immigrant Finnish families, is truly creepy, and Lourey’s skillful manipulation of flashbacks cranks the suspense.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune

Amazing 4 1/2 star read

The Reaping (Steinbeck and Reed Book 2), my second read from author Jess Lourey. In The Taken Ones the character focus was on BCA agent Van Reed with forensic scientist Harry Steinbeck introduced as a secondary character. In this book he's a more primary character. Well-written and enjoyable, Amazon labels it as a Women Sleuth thriller, I wouldn't categorize it as that. I purchased an Audible copy it two days ago after reading The Taken Ones and am voluntarily reading & reviewing it, James Daniels narration made the 9-hours 42-minutes read fly by in an uninterupted read. I look forward to reading more from this author, The Quarry Girls high on my TBR list, yeah she's that good! (RIP Marley January 20, 2014 - July 24, 2018).

So intriguing I could not stop listening.

The story line is addictive and the suspense is always in a heightened state. Edge of your seat excitement, hoping we get more of Harry and Van soon!

Good story just not good transitions between time and place

I think I would have liked reading the physical copy better. Listening to it was confusing. It took me a while to grasp what was happening in the story. Maybe if there had been some kind of indication when it was going back and forth between time and places that would have helped. I did enjoy the idea of the story though.

Not as good as the first but good

The storyline was intriguing but a bit far-fetched and the time shifts were too much. It made the story difficult to follow. My main disappointment was the narrator, I’m sorry but he wasn’t a good choice for Harry. And he completely changed Van’s inflections therefore her character. I wasn’t a fan.

Unique story line

This book stood up to the first in the series and could also stand alone. The unique storylines paired with great build of characters makes for an engaging read! On to the third in the series!!