A Thriller (Archie Sheridan & Gretchen Lowell)

This is the second book in the Archie/Gretchen series and I loved this book. I had a very hard time putting it down.

Reporter Susan Ward wants to have her article printed in the paper she works for. It's a continuation from the first book in this series about Molly Palmer and senator Castle who took advantage of her when she was still a minor. The senator suddenly dies and Susan story is pushed aside and the editor does not want to print it.

In the meantime, Detective Archie Sheridan is on the case again. The second book picks up a few months later and Archie has not seen Gretchen in a while as he stopped the weekly visits. Next thing he knows Gretchen has escaped and he knows he is her target.

Susan wants in on the story as she did a story about Archie in the first book and has also met Gretchen. Reluctantly Archie partner Henry lets Susan be privy to some information about Gretchen.

Can Archie catch Gretchen before she goes onto another murder spree and eludes the police or can he set the ultimate trap to catch her? Can Susan put enough pressure on the Molly Palmer story and get it told as she thinks people need to know about it. Can Susan have the inside scoop on the escape of Archie and write a front page story with all the facts and help catch her?

This book was great. Plenty of action. The characters were good. There is some mild sex in the book which some people may be opposed to.

I can't wait to read the next book to see what happens as the book ended with some questions answered and others just starting to form.

I realIy wanted this book to resolve the situation but it continues. That made me mad and I wanted to give the book a bad rating because of that. I also wanted to give it a bad rating because Archie turns his back on his wife and because of the ditsy reporter! She is so stupid, which is bad. What is worse is there are no repercussions for her stupidity. She should have been prosecuted for interfering with an arrest! However, I decided that, to be fair, it was a good book. However, I am really tired of Archie. I understand he has a kind of Stockholm thing going on, but I'm losing patience with him just like his wife. Actually, I'm surprised she has had so much. If I were her, I'd chain him to a gurney and call Gretchen to come pick him up by now. Everyone around him rallies to his side and he just wallows in his misery and longs for the person causing it. I think when Gretchen was torturing him she took out his common sense.

Portland detective Archie Sheridan, the former head of the Beauty Killer Task Force is obsessed with a serial killer name Gretchen Lowell. Archie is now a pill head due to the fact that Gretchen tortured him for ten days straight leaving him without a spleen and a heart that she curved into his flesh as a reminder. After Gretchen turned herself in, Archie tried to turn his life around and be the husband and father he was meant to be. But Archie again finds himself back on the task force with another body that just maybe is connected to Gretchen although she’s locked up.

Gretchen is locked away, but she has affair with a guard for years and turns back the hands of time, by claiming he raped her and he kills himself. The game plan worked to get Archie down to see her before she was transferred to another prison. The staff takes extra precaution to secure her from one prison to the next. Gretchen out-smarts them all and goes on her killing spree and escapes to torture Archie more. Everyone but Archie underestimated the power of Gretchen.

Susan and Parker work for the newspaper Herald and find themselves caught in a middle of a Senator investigation of him having sex with a minor name Molly. The senator comes clean with Parker and Molly comes clean with Susan. But someone stops the news for hitting the front page by killing off Parker, the Senator and Molly, leaving Susan to fin for the truth. But Susan doesn’t go down without a fight to save her story and Archie from Gretchen.

“Sweetheart” is the second installment of incredible stories of murder, mystery and torture. I can’t wait to start in on the third book “Evil at Heart”. Chelsea takes her readers on a mission that just will not end.

Reviewed by Claudia Mosley for Suspense Magazine

Archie Sheridan is man of contradictions. He and his wife are distant thought Archie wants to be committed to her. He is a good father to his kids. He’s a dedicated detective and, by all accounts, good at his job. Archie is also a broken man. He is heavily addicted to painkillers and living on borrowed time. Worse than his addiction to painkillers is his obsession for Gretchen Lowell. He no longer visits her but she is never far from his thoughts. When she is harmed in prison he can think of nothing else and when she escapes he’s driven to find her. Cain writes a very complex character that has tender moments with his children and a drive to self-destruction.

All of Cain’s characters are well fleshed out. Gretchen is deviously clever. It is rare to have a female serial killer that takes pleasure in killing at the level she does. She derives joy from the game. In her interaction with Archie she needs for him to be her continued victim instead of transitioning to better mental health and disconnect with her that would make him the one who got away. I found nothing predictable in this novel or, for that matter, the one before.

“Sweetheart” is very much a character driven novel and I have talked a lot about a few of the characters showcased. I would be remiss to not mention the brilliance of the plot. The twists and turns are unforeseen and with each scene the credibility of how dangerous Gretchen Lowell can be is built. She lures people into herself. They simply cannot resist and she uses the rush to destroy them.

If you like mystery, Chelsea Cain is an author not to be missed. Pick “Heartsick” and “Sweetheart” up today.

Sweetheart is the sequel to heartsick and though it doesn't require you to read the first book you still should simply read it because heartsick was a much better novel. The problem with this book was that almost every character endlessly annoyed me. I still don't like Susan a reporter that has all the negative stereotype traits of what people think bloodthirsty reporters and people that are from a hippie Portland Oregon lifestyle. Susan isn't portrayed as a villain but as a complex supporting character that I found so unlike able that I only kept reading to see if she hopefully got murdered sometime in the novel. Archie our "Hero" a detective on the trail of a serial killer was less sympathetic this time around and even Henry his partner who was extremely like able in the first novel made incredible annoying decisions that a real detective most likely wouldn't think of doing. Annoying was the reoccurring theme this time around but I did keep reading it until the end and although I will not reread this mess anytime soon I will give the next book in the series a try hopefully issues are resolved.

"Forest Park was pretty in the summer. Portland's ash sky was barely visible behind a canopy of aspens, hemlock, cedars, and maples that filtered the light to a shimmering pale green. A light breeze tickled the leaves. Morning glories and ivy crept up the mossy tree trunks and strangled the blackberry bushes and ferns, a mass of crawling vines that piled up waist-high on either side of the packed dirt path. The creek hummed and churned, birds chirped. It was all very lovely, very Walden, except for the corpse."

It's been two months that Archie has seen Gretchen Lowell. He has moved in with his ex-wife and kids. But the body in Forest Park has brought him back to her. Here in the park, a young runaway was buried - Archie's first Beauty Killer homicide. And any homicide detective will tell you; you don't forget your first. When a couple of more bodies are found, Archie, Henry, Claire, and the "Hardy Boys" wonder if they've found more of Gretchen's victim's. But Susan Ward has identified one of the bodies as Molly Palmer. Her story about Senator Castle and the dead girl has been killed, because her beloved mentor Parker has driven off a bridge with Castle in his car. Sheridan wants to see Gretchen about the other two bodies, but there has been an incident at the prison: an incident in which she manages to escape custody. Archie must race against time to keep his family, Susan, and his friends safe from his former nemesis, even if it means sacrificing himself.

Again, Chelsea Cain writes a great hook, but unfortunately loses her edgy prose in SWEETHEART and has succeeded in turning Archie Sheridan from a compelling survivor of the Beauty Killer into a sniffling love-sick puppy. Susan Ward has now become an amateur sleuth and has lost some of her edginess that I so loved. SWEETHEART read like a continuation of HEARTSICK rather than a sequel. The cases intertwine without the police noticing which I found bordering on the bizarre as I did with the brand placing within the novel. But it still is a nice, fast read for the beach or a rainy day.

Just as with Heartsick, I thought this book was phenomenal! I didn't think it was possible to be any more twisted than the first book, however, the author has really found her niche in psychological thrillers!

I think that Chelsea Cain has superb writing abilities and is very thorough and descriptive with her story line, but not so much so that the story drags along and becomes too in depth. She knows how to draw a reader in and keep them interested from the first page to the last.

This books helps you get a little more insight into the lives of Archie Sheriden and Gretchen Lowell and maybe helps you better understand the twisted reasons behind the whole story.

Once I started reading this, I couldn't stop, if I had to stop, I couldn't wait to be able to start reading it again! I also can't wait to move right along to the third book in this series as book one and two have both been off the charts!

I listened to the audio version of this book and I thought that the narrator, Carolyn McCormick did a wonderful job of conveying the story. Too often, I find myself turned off of a book simply because I didn't care for the narrator of the story, however, that was not even close to the case with this book. It was a wonderful and quick easy listen!

I can't wait to pick up the 3rd book in this series!

Chelsea Cain's debut horror novel, "Heartsick," introduced readers to the shocking yet compelling "couple," Portland police detective Archie Sheridan and serial murderer/shrink Gretchen Lowell. In that novel's dual-track plot, we were horrified as Lowell slowly murdered Sheridan as Sheridan gradually fell in love with her. "Heartsick" was a gruesome, bloody, and darn fun read.

"Sweetheart" picks up where "Heartsick" left off. Sheridan is a mere husk of his former self, while Lowell is in maximum security prison, having traded the gradual disclosure of the as-yet-undiscovered bodies of her 199 murder victims in exchange for a life sentence. Intrepid reporter Susan is now hard at work trying to nail a beloved Oregonian who just happens to be in the U.S. Senate for the statutory rape of a 14-year old babysitter in years past (an allusion to local politics that Oregonians unfortunately recognize all too easily).

These various strands get intertwined in a jumble of a book involving political coverups, Gretchen's murders, Sheridan's struggles to reunite with his loyal wife Debbie, and Gretchen's eventual escape from prison.

The strength of the book is Cain's ability to get inside Sheridan's head as he struggles with his personal Stockholm Syndrome - he's flat-out in lust with Gretchen, a fact that is as repellent to his own good sense as Gretchen herself. He hates her more than anything he could have ever imagined, but she's his heroin. Not even the balm of family and friends can pull him out of his addiction.

Unfortunately, Gretchen is off-screen far too much in this book. There's lots of talk of Gretchen and many agonized references to what she has done, but still she remains more of a specter haunting the fringes of this book than a real terror. And when she is on-stage, she is not given all that much to do, frankly. This is a problem because Gretchen is so obviously inspired by Thomas Harris's Hannibal Lecter (which Cain cleverly acknowledged in "Heartsick"), but the less Gretchen gets to break out and forge her own unique brand of sadistic carnage, the more she seems like a cheap knock-off and less the compelling villain we were so attracted to in "Heartsick."

Still, sequels are hard, and Cain has managed her sophomore work with skill and some humor. There are plenty of good scenes here. But all in all, here's hoping that "Evil At Heart," Cain's third book in this series, puts Gretchen back in the forefront where she can grow and mature into her own paragon of evil rather than lingering in Dr. Lecter's shadow.

This was enjoyable. Not as good as the first book in this series of characters but I did seem to easily fly through this book. When I worked at Barnes and Noble I was given the advanced copy we got by my manager and started it right away. I was intrigued by the characters and the story. It was not amazingly written but it was enough to keep me entertained.

Years later I finally decided to give the second book a try. This time around I was interested in the story and it was very easy to follow. There weren't a lot of characters I needed to remember, and the plot was on a one way track. It was a good quick read and I am glad I read it but now I can move on.

The one issue I did have with this book is that Chelsea Cain relies on the same hero and villain to sell the story. The more I learned about her detective the less I liked him. When I start to hate the main character I get bored with the book real fast. This time I enjoyed it but I am less interested in reading her third and fourth book now. I can understand a writer using the same characters to keep a relationship interesting but this was a continuation of the first book.

This novel was such a disappointment. We were introduced to author Chelsea Cain with her first novel HEARTSICK. It was an intriguing psychological thriller that also first introduced us to the main characters serial killer Gretchen Lowell and her only surviving victim - detective Archie Sheridan. I would rate HEARTSICK very highly. The characterizations were pretty believable and she made the ongoing relationship between Gretchen and Archie believable. There was also a major plot of another serial killer. This novel was very suspenseful and at times shocking. A very promising debut for Ms. Cain.

Second novels are usually where we see what an author is truly made of. If they had an impressive debut does the talent carry on or even possibly grow. Some authors are one hit wonders. Having second novels be sequels to the first can also be a difficult task. Yes, the characters are ones readers are used to but there must be a purpose to the conitinuation of the story,. For me everything excellent about the first is totally lost in SWEETHEART. The relationship between Gretchen and Archie is still a strong focal point but the believable insightful characterizations are gone. Archie's actions and lingering attraction/need for Gretchen which made sense in HEARTSICK make no sense here. The reader must suspend much belief with this novel. i found myself scipping through the book after reading more than half so I could finish it.

There is again a plot of other murders and here the plot line lacks any suspense or intruigue. And most important the relationship between Gretchen and Archie that carried the first book is no longer a great psychological character study. There was honestly no reason to bring these characters back for the lackluster plot and poorly conceived developments. There was comparison to Hannibal and Clarise from SILENCE OF THE LAMBS with HEARTSICK. I don't know if they were that well developed but they certainly were interesting.

I read SWEETHEART and must admit I found no suspense at all. The readers were totally let down with a very subpar secondary literary attempt. It is so sad for there was much expectation here. Archie and Gretchen have lost all substance and hopefully this is the last we see of them and Ms. Cain will proceed to new territory with her next novel and hopefully she will again be capable of the literary level that she seemed to possess with HEARTSICK.

Sweetheart brings back all of my favorite characters as of late: Henry, Susan, Bliss, Archie and most importantly the lovely Gretchen Lowell. Chelsea Cain delivers an entertaining follow-up to Heartsick; I was enhanced to say the least. Gretchen's allure is unavoidable, and I couldn't help myself before picking up this book. The "Beauty Killer" is one killer that I find myself just as fascinated by as Hannibal Lecter (and that's a high compliment coming from me. Seriously, I love Lecter, but I'm not sure that's something I should brag about...).

Gretchen and Archie's...relationship is one of the most complex and confusing ones I've read as of late, and I honestly can't get enough of them. Both are them are crazy in their own way, and this result in there never being a dull moment with either of them. I'm so psyched to read the next one, so that's all I'm going to say about this one...besides, you know, read this book! :P

Connected by a strange and pathological obsession, the cop and the woman known as the Beauty Killer are in another cat-and-mouse game in Sweetheart, the sequel to Chelsea Cain's Heartsick.

Is Archie Sheridan (the cop) hoping to finally capture Gretchen Lowell (the killer), when she escapes from captivity? Or is his compulsion related more to his twisted desire for her? Are they like two halves of the same soul? Are they destined to end up together, speeding toward some unimaginable hell?

These questions and more propel this story, while on other paths, detectives are trying to solve murders that are seemingly linked to a politically corrupt senator, who is rumored to have bedded his children's babysitter when she was only fourteen. And now unidentified dead bodies are popping up in parks, all of them connected to this same senator.

Susan Ward, the reporter hoping to break the fascinating story, becomes embroiled with the detectives in putting the pieces together, while also searching for Archie and Gretchen, who have disappeared.

Now that's all I'm giving you, lest I spoil your fun.

Just like in the previous novel, I was biting my nails and flipping pages, reading late into the night. But now that I've turned the last page, and I know there's still another book in this series, I think I'm exhausted. Too much. I'm done.

So while this tale is just as dizzying and fast paced as the previous one, there were some confusing elements that probably mean I have to read it again, to sort everything out. In the end, the author tied things up so quickly, that it felt--well, anti-climactic.

Thus...four stars.

Laurel-Rain Snow
Author of: Web of Tyranny, etc.

If you haven't read HEARTSICK, Chelsea Cain's debut novel, please stop what you're doing, buy that wonderful book, crack open the spine and come back when you finish. You'll be a little blurry-eyed and surprised by the speed with which you turn those pages, but you won't be gone for long.

SWEETHEART, a title that is by turns appropriate and oh-so-totally wrong, is a perfect meld of jagged edges. It contains the salt of The Silence of the Lambs, the pepper of Basic Instinct and the garlic of Fatal Attraction. But the red meat (and there's plenty of it) is all Cain's own. The meat is not so much a bizarre triangle as it is a rectangle --- or, to put it more accurately, a box. The corners --- Portland, Oregon detective Archie Sheridan, his ex-wife, Debbie, reporter Susan Ward and serial killer Gretchen Lowell --- are so sharp that everyone will get cut before it's all over.

SWEETHEART begins a few miles down the road from where HEARTSICK left off. Lowell is in prison, permitting herself to be captured in order to save Sheridan's life. He and his ex-wife are living together, though their house is a wide harbor where they pass each other with wide berth. Ward, still nursing unrequited feelings for Sheridan, has moved in with her mother, a flaky hippy-dippy who is a realistic, believable caricature of herself. The discovery of a trio of bodily remains on a hillside, uncomfortably close to where one of Lowell's victims was initially spotted, sends Sheridan reeling on a trajectory toward Lowell once again.

Sheridan, by the way, is a mess. Addicted to Vicodin (partially as the result of the wounds that Lowell inflicted upon him), he is struggling in a big way, medicating the pain caused by the medication he is taking for the pain. When Lowell escapes during a prison transfer, his obsession for her takes on its own addictive qualities. Lowell, however, is also addicted to Sheridan in her own way, with similar jeopardy attaching to her. Physically and mentally on a downward spiral, Sheridan concocts a plot designed to capture, and perhaps eliminate, Lowell but at the ultimate personal cost.

As the climax is played out in a remote Oregon wilderness against the backdrop of a roaring forest fire, Lowell and Sheridan do a deadly dance even as Ward races to Sheridan's rescue --- an act that may actually put him, and Ward, in greater danger.

Chelsea Cain is a marvel. A journalist herself, she infuses SWEETHEART with equal parts violence, erotica and mystery to create another winner that matches the quality of its predecessor. For all of its incredible plotting and pitch-perfect narrative, however, the heart of the book is its characterization. You walk away not only understanding Sheridan's obsession with Lowell, but also feeling just a bit of that obsession yourself.

--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub

Connected by a strange and pathological obsession, the cop and the woman known as the Beauty Killer are in another cat-and-mouse game in Sweetheart, the sequel to Chelsea Cain's Heartsick.

Is Archie Sheridan (the cop) hoping to finally capture Gretchen Lowell (the killer), when she escapes from captivity? Or is his compulsion related more to his twisted desire for her? Are they like two halves of the same soul? Are they destined to end up together, speeding toward some unimaginable hell?

These questions and more propel this story, while on other paths, detectives are trying to solve murders that are seemingly linked to a politically corrupt senator, who is rumored to have bedded his children's babysitter when she was only fourteen. And now unidentified dead bodies are popping up in parks, all of them connected to this same senator.

Susan Ward, the reporter hoping to break the fascinating story, becomes embroiled with the detectives in putting the pieces together, while also searching for Archie and Gretchen, who have disappeared.

Now that's all I'm giving you, lest I spoil your fun.

Just like in the previous novel, I was biting my nails and flipping pages, reading late into the night. But now that I've turned the last page, and I know there's still another book in this series, I think I'm exhausted. Too much. I'm done.

So while this tale is just as dizzying and fast paced as the previous one, there were some confusing elements that probably mean I have to read it again, to sort everything out. In the end, the author tied things up so quickly, that it felt--well, anti-climactic.

Thus...four stars.

Laurel-Rain Snow
Author of: Web of Tyranny, etc.

If you haven't read HEARTSICK, Chelsea Cain's debut novel, please stop what you're doing, buy that wonderful book, crack open the spine and come back when you finish. You'll be a little blurry-eyed and surprised by the speed with which you turn those pages, but you won't be gone for long.

SWEETHEART, a title that is by turns appropriate and oh-so-totally wrong, is a perfect meld of jagged edges. It contains the salt of The Silence of the Lambs, the pepper of Basic Instinct and the garlic of Fatal Attraction. But the red meat (and there's plenty of it) is all Cain's own. The meat is not so much a bizarre triangle as it is a rectangle --- or, to put it more accurately, a box. The corners --- Portland, Oregon detective Archie Sheridan, his ex-wife, Debbie, reporter Susan Ward and serial killer Gretchen Lowell --- are so sharp that everyone will get cut before it's all over.

SWEETHEART begins a few miles down the road from where HEARTSICK left off. Lowell is in prison, permitting herself to be captured in order to save Sheridan's life. He and his ex-wife are living together, though their house is a wide harbor where they pass each other with wide berth. Ward, still nursing unrequited feelings for Sheridan, has moved in with her mother, a flaky hippy-dippy who is a realistic, believable caricature of herself. The discovery of a trio of bodily remains on a hillside, uncomfortably close to where one of Lowell's victims was initially spotted, sends Sheridan reeling on a trajectory toward Lowell once again.

Sheridan, by the way, is a mess. Addicted to Vicodin (partially as the result of the wounds that Lowell inflicted upon him), he is struggling in a big way, medicating the pain caused by the medication he is taking for the pain. When Lowell escapes during a prison transfer, his obsession for her takes on its own addictive qualities. Lowell, however, is also addicted to Sheridan in her own way, with similar jeopardy attaching to her. Physically and mentally on a downward spiral, Sheridan concocts a plot designed to capture, and perhaps eliminate, Lowell but at the ultimate personal cost.

As the climax is played out in a remote Oregon wilderness against the backdrop of a roaring forest fire, Lowell and Sheridan do a deadly dance even as Ward races to Sheridan's rescue --- an act that may actually put him, and Ward, in greater danger.

Chelsea Cain is a marvel. A journalist herself, she infuses SWEETHEART with equal parts violence, erotica and mystery to create another winner that matches the quality of its predecessor. For all of its incredible plotting and pitch-perfect narrative, however, the heart of the book is its characterization. You walk away not only understanding Sheridan's obsession with Lowell, but also feeling just a bit of that obsession yourself.

--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub

Archie Sheridan, the pill-popping hero cop from Heartsick, is back. He hasn't seen serial killer Gretchen Lowell for months (after seeing her once a week for 2 years) and is trying to put his life back together with his ex-wife and his children. Then a girl's body is found in the woods, reminiscent of Gretchen's first victim, but this time it's tied up with Susan Ward's story about the Senator Castle's past affair with 14 year old Molly Palmer. Gretchen Lowell escapes from prison and Archie is the only one who has the chance to capture her. Can he separate himself from her forever and send her back to jail?

My favorite character in this novel is Gretchen Lowell, the contemporary of Hannibal Lecter. Her prowess at manipulating people is still a big part of the story, but a softer side of her is also shown. She actually cares about Archie and maybe loves him in some twisted way. It was nice to see her a little vulnerable. She is the villain, but she's also sort of an anti-hero. I want her to get caught, but some small part of me wants her to succeed and get away because she's a compelling character. I can see a small glimpse of why Archie is so obsessed with her. Their relationship is more fleshed out in this novel, rationalizing her power over him.

The story is fast paced and exciting. When Gretchen calls Archie from his children's school after she escaped, my heart was pounding. I couldn't put this book down. The two plot lines were handled very well and resolved in interesting ways. I can't wait for what the future holds for these characters.

Once the After-School killer had been revealed....and Gretchen Lowell's part in it, Archie Sheridan promised himself he was done. Done with Gretchen. Done with his visits to the prison to see her. She had controlled every aspect of his life for so many years, he couldn't even count. Now, he wanted it all to be over. Archie had moved back in with his (ex-) wife and kids. He was back on the force working cases. And he was in therapy.

Susan Ward had also moved on since the After-School killer. She moved back in with her mom! She decided that after a brush with a killer and death, a little growing up may be in order. No longer does she have pink hair because apparently turquoise is more professional. And she is serious about her investigation into Senator Castle's life. She knows the man was bad news, and now she has sworn testimony from Molly Palmer, the girl that had the "relationship" with the Senator when she was 14 years old. That is, until the Senator AND Susan's mentor end up dead, when the car they were in crashed over the Freemont Bridge.

All the players are back in this follow-up to HeartSick. And while I was hardly able to put this book down, I didn't like it nearly as well as I did the first. The things that made HeartSick so good was the fact that is was unique. Gretchen Lowell, the female serial killer...and the way she was still in Archie Sheridan's life. THESE were some of the reasons I really liked HeartSick. In Book 2, these reasons aren't unique anymore. In fact, they were a little redundant.

The relationship between Archie and Gretchen is also a big part of this book. Truth be told, it really made me uncomfortable. I find it hard to believe that any person that had been through what Archie went through, could still have feelings for his captor. Was he in love with her? In a really twisted way, he was. And it just made me want to shake him. He does a lot of things that no sane person would do. And if you can actually get over the fact that the woman fed you drain cleaner and tortured you for 10 days, then more power to you. But when said woman threatens your family...and your small kids, then maybe it's time to say enough is enough.

I actually liked Susan a lot more in this book. She was trying to balance her need to be a journalist and get "the story" and the fact that a lot of journalism feeds off the pain of others. She showed a lot of sass and determination in this book, and I think she might have been my favorite character.

I'm not saying it's a bad book because it's not. Chelsea Cain has created some really memorable characters and she certainly knows how to write some thrilling sequences. Personally, I don't understand Archie. He's a broken man, yes. I know. But one with a family that has looked past a lot of stuff to let him in again. And he is ready to pack it all in for a homicidal psychopath. Makes me think his sanity should be a little more in question!

If you've read HeartSick, you will probably want to read Sweetheart, just to know what happens. Who knows, maybe you'll love it more than I did!!

Twelve years after Police Detective Archie Sheridan stood over the body of a dead girl in Forest Park, in Portland, Oregon [his first homicide case], he is again called to that scene to view the body of another as yet unidentified dead girl. It is only a few months since Archie returned from medical leave, two and a half years since he had been tortured nearly to death during the ten days he had been held prisoner by Gretchen Lowell. In the interim, he and has wife had divorced, then started living together again after a year and a half had passed, hoping they could salvage something together.

Archie had been head of the Beauty Killer task force, and after she was captured and imprisoned, had gone every week to meet with Gretchen Lowell, dubbed by some the Queen of Evil - Sundays at the State Pen, part of his ritual. Gretchen herself had had other rituals. She had her obsessions; Archie's obsession became Gretchen herself. Archie's whole being --- his body, life, mind and very soul --- have belonged to Rachel. She had claimed, almost unbelievably, 199 victims --- Archie was to have been the 200th --- but in the end she spared his life, leaving him "only" grotesquely scarred, mentally and physically, and dependent on pain meds. As part of her plea deal, Archie ultimately became the conduit for her confessions and the location of the bodies of 41 of the people she had murdered. And against all reason, Archie remains obsessed --- one might almost say possessed --- by Gretchen.

In a separate story line, we meet Susan Ward, the 28-year-old ambitious and [currently] blue-haired reporter for the Oregon Herald, who was herself nearly the victim of another serial killer, in what became known as the After School Strangler case. After Henry tells her "You care about stories more than people," she tries to be more sensitive vis-à-vis the girl at the heart of the huge story she is working on about an enormously popular State Senator who had seduced his kids' 14-year-old babysitter. Susan is brought onboard by Archie to cover the Forest Park murder case, which becomes even bigger when the remains of other bodies are discovered.

Although she has been a very real presence to that point as Archie et al retrospectively go back over the events of the past, Gretchen herself doesn't make an actual appearance until page 88, when she escapes from the penitentiary [something broadcast loudly on the back page of the book] and, naturally, contacts Archie immediately. And the horror starts anew. From that point, things go into high gear, and this reader could not put the book down. Gross descriptions of torture and sadism are kept to a minimum, and the book is just as compulsively readable as was "HeartSick," the book which introduced these characters. Recommended.

If 'Heartsick,' the first book in Chelsea Cain's suspenseful Gretchen Lowell series, kept you on the edge of your seat like it did for me, then 'Sweetheart' will knock you right out of it and into the next room.

'Sweetheart' builds on the foundation begun in the first book skillfully, and quickly. With the Gretchen Lowell story supposedly put to rest, reporter Susan Ward is back on the story that she was working on at the beginning of 'Heartsick,' an expose of a popular senator and his affair years ago with a teenager. Detective Archie Sheridan is in therapy and trying his hardest just to hold on, repair his ties with his estranged family, and stay away from the obsessive and dangerous relationship with imprisoned serial killer Gretchen Lowell, while investigating a new series of corpses. About a third of the way in, the story takes a dramatic turn for everyone involved, never lets up until the very end, and then leaves you hungry for more.

More than "just" a thriller, 'Sweetheart' digs into some pretty hard subjects. Is killing someone an act of passion, or of power, or some of each? What is the nature of the relationship between Sheridan and Gretchen? The level of tension (sexual and otherwise) between them is brought to new heights, but it is more than that. Is he her victim, for the rest of his life? Can he ever break free from her, and just what will it take if he can?

'Sweetheart' is an exciting story from beginning to end, and a study of some deeply damaged and starkly believable characters. Chelsea Cain had a strong beginning with 'Heartsick,' and proves in 'Sweetheart' that she is just getting started. I can't wait to see what's next!

It's more about the characters this time and less about the crime drama, which threw me off for a bit. The book spent a while reintroducing us to the main characters, such as Archie and Susan, while inserting the requisite unexplained set of homicides. In the end, however, since I had become attached to the characters the first time around, I eventually came to enjoy this book quite a bit and found it entertaining.

The good news is that she's scaled back the graphic depictions of torture in this one. In fact, there's a bit of sex in this one just to spice it up (although I won't reveal between which characters). One thing I'd highly recommend is avoiding reading any summaries or posted reviews as this tends to give away some main points in the storyline. I was fortunate in that I didn't know what was going to happen and looking at the summary posted by either the store or the publisher, I can see how reading the summary would have spoiled some plot lines in the book.

The difference with this book, though, is that the crime(s) being investigated take a back seat to character development, which seems an odd choice for a second book, especially when we know about the characters already. Still, there's more to learn about Archie and more about how his relationship with Gretchen evolved is revealed. I took a bit of ribbing in my review of the first book when I compared some of the plot to Silence of the Lambs (which I didn't mean to imply was as good as that, but simply that it was an intriguing crime drama). As the crimes in this take a back seat to the main characters, I didn't feel disappointed but I could see someone still expecting more of the same of the first book might be disappointed. I've heard that this might be a trilogy, so I'll be up for reading the finale of the series.

Sweetheart is Mrs. Cain's second novel to her debut, Heartsick. Heartsick is where readers were first introduced to the highly volatile and psychological relationship between Detective Archie Sheridan and notorious "Beauty Killer" Gretchen Lowell.

It has been a couple of years now, since the day Archie became one of Gretchen's victims. It will never matter how much time pass as Archie will always think about Gretchen.

Susan Ward, a reporter for the Herald has a big story about to make headlines. It involves Senator Castle and a fourteen year old babysitter. Before the story can release, Senator Castle ends up dead. As if that was bad enough, a body is discovered in the park...the same park where Gretchen's first victim was left.

Archie appears on the scene. He starts having flash backs to his time in captivity as Gretchen's victim. It has been two months since, Archie last paid a visit to Gretchen in prison. Archie receives a phone call, that Gretchen has escaped prison. Archie knows he is the only one that can bring Gretchen in again. It will be like old times as Archie chases after Gretchen.

I guess you could say I have become obsessed myself with Archie and Gretchen's relationship. It is so sick and wrong but oh so good. The way Gretchen toys with Archie is so entertaining, that I found I can't tear myself away, once I start reading. I think I even set a new record by reading this book in only an hour and a half. I do have to admit though that I did think Heartsick was a little better. It was because in the first book, the story mainly focused on Archie and Gretchen; whereas in this latest story there were more characters playing parts. For me it is all about Archie and Gretchen's relationship. I am anxiously awaiting the next book.

After reading her first novel, "Heartsick", I was pretty eager to read this follow-up. And again, we have a tense, gripping story of psychopathology as detective Archie Sheridan - aided by his friend Henry Sobol and reporter Susan Ward - try to track down the perpetrator of a series of murders in the Portland, Oregon area.

Archie seems to be on the road to recovery from his addictions to Gretchen Lowell, the Beauty Killer he captured some years ago, and prescription painkillers. He's moved back into his home with his wife and kids, and has stopped his weekly visits to Gretchen in prison.

But the current case endangers all the progress he's made, and threatens to destroy all he's achieved.

I enjoyed this book, but I have to say that I'm starting to lose my sympathy for Archie. Yeah, he made real strides forward as this novel begins, but the fact that he relapses so badly - and I'm not giving away anything that doesn't happen pretty early in the story - has brought me to the point where I'm starting to feel this guy needs someone to give him a swift kick in the butt.

It's very possible to have a continuing series centered on flawed characters; when done well, it makes for compelling reading. Dave Robicheaux's an alcoholic; Harry Bosch is riddled with melancholy; Bob Lee Swagger is trying to deal with the effects on his skills of advancing age.

But Archie Sheridan is absolutely WALLOWING in abject self-pity, and frankly, it's getting very hard to take. I personally have very little to no sympathy for that quality in people.

If this series is going to continue, Cain's going to have to find some way to resolve this and move the character forward.

As in Heartsick, this novel combines two very compelling characters in an intriguing crime mystery. I was happy to see many of the same characters reappearing in this sequel as opposed to only the two main characters, Archie and Gretchen. I especially liked Susan as a secondary character.

The action and pacing is excellent. Psychologically, the characters are a bit disturbing, which I think is what the author was going for.

My only real disappointment was that while Archie seemed to have had a slight character arc in the first book, making small steps forward to a better place psychologically by the end of the story, in this novel, he seemed to have dropped right back to where he started, and he didn't seem to have any internal growth throughout the story. I would have liked to see how he changes. Or maybe he did change, just not in the way I had hoped. Regardless, his lack of internal movement forward made the ending a bit flat for me emotionally.

Susan also disappointed me a little with some actions and decisions that seemed unlike her normal character. She had never shown herself to be stupid, so some actions seemed out of character. But on a whole, she was an interesting character I enjoyed reading about.

On a whole, the story was very entertaining and kept me reading. The characters are all extremely unique and original, making for a very vivid novel and an engrossing tale.

Sweetheart is a sequel in a story detailing the relationship of a detective, Archie, and a female serial killer, Gretchen. It begins with a cliched worn out, run down, tortured detective who was allowed to live so that this woman could essentially torture him emotionally and mentally for the remainder of the book.

In many ways, the book was easy to read through and the story line was engaging enough to keep the reader interested. However, it had several premises that were difficult to swallow. The prime one of these is its dependence on "Stockholm Syndrome" or a captive's ability to romanticize and side with his abuser, even after the physical torture had ended. It was hard to swallow Archie's dependence on Gretchen after heinous torture, even though the author continued to remind us of how "sick" our detective remained. It was also hard to believe that anyone would be as omniscient as Gretchen. She wielded uncanny abilities to lure men in, and get them to help her escape or kill for her. By the end of the story, she was nothing more than a mythical siren, constantly pulling unsuspecting males to their death...except for Archie, who was, of course, miraculously saved each time.

If you are into the crime mystery/detective/horror genre, this is a fast book and will draw you in. Be prepared for graphic descriptions of torture.

I'd downloaded the audio version of this book from my library via Overdrive and was listening to it on my MP3 player as I did an endless amount of yard work. The player was tucked into my shirt and overheated, leaving me stranded 1/2 way through the book. I was so distraught about the interruption, that I stormed back inside, covered with dirt and grass seed, and ordered the kindle version as a treat for myself for finishing the rest of the weeding, raking and mowing. The characters are well developed, with both Archie and Gretchen being interesting and multi-layered. Niether the plot nor dialogue is cliche in the least. I so enjoyed this book (my first by Chelsea Cain) that I just ordered #3 in the series and I'm sure I'll move on to the next few in the series as well. I'll eventually go back and read the first book, Heartsick, but for now I'm interested in the months that follow where Sweetheart left off. I recommend this book.

In reading the second installment of the Gretchen Lowell series, I was interested to find out what happened with the unusual relationship of Archie Sheridan (Portland police detective) and Gretchen Lowell (serial killer). Ms. Cain did not disappoint me.

Archie Sheridan is trying to mend his relationship with his wife and children. He has kept away from Gretchen Lowell, but his thoughts are always with her and the pills he takes for the pain caused by being Gretchen's last torture victim, are taking their toll. Archie wants to die and Gretchen's escape from prison has given him a plan to make his wish come true.

Susan Ward wants to expose Senator Castle's past "affair" with a 14-year old, but there is a cover up that involves murder. Who killed her mentor, what have the bodies in the park have to do with the Castle story and who is trying to kill her?

Again, a great suspense thriller with two nail-biting mysteries to keep you reading until the ultimate climax. On to book 3.

Chelsea Cain's earlier book Heartsick, introduced us to the pill popping, Portland cop Archie Sheridan, and serial killer Gretchen Lowell, who murdered over 200 people. Her latest book, Sweetheart, continues the characters created in the first book. This review is based on the audio version which has a great reader.

This story, #2 of what I suspect will be a trilogy, takes place two months after the last story ended. Archie Sheridan, is still a physical and mental mess. He finds his marriage and family life on the rocks, and he is back investigating what could be a new serial killer, with 3 bodies found in a local park.

In this book we learn how Gretchen and Archie's relationship began. There are a few sub-plots within the serial killer story, however, the author does a good job of blending the stories.

Sweetheart is fast paced and has the same characters as the previous book and a few new ones. The author does a good job of bringing the reader up to speed in case they have not read the first book. This book can be read alone, but I would recommend reading Heartsick first. A word of caution...........you should beware of the fact that there is a lot of graphic violence and profanity in both of these books.

In Cain's follow up to HEARTSICK, we find Portland Detective Archie Sheridan still getting over from his "encounter" with serial killer Gretchen Lowell of two months prior. This is virtually impossible, however, as Archie an Gretchen have a twisted sadistic bond that runs deep.A woman's body is found in Forest Park, the same location of the first of Gretchen's Beauty Killings ten years ago. Archie can't help but believe the murders are related, but since Gretchen is in prison it seems to be impossible. Archie begins to work with Susan Ward, a reporter, and when they uncover the identity of the body it becomes a high-profile case. But when Gretchen escapes from prison, Archie is unable to focus on the case. He knows he is the only one that can bring in Gretchen, once and for all. But just how much is he willing to sacrifice? He almost lost his life once, is her apprehension worth risking it again? Just like HEARTSICK, SWEETHEART pulls you in from the first few lines. The storyline is faced paced and powerful. The various sub plots slowly weave together, and the ending appears with the reader begging for more. I sincerely hope Cain has another Archie Sheridan book up her sleeves. The demand definitely exists!

"Sweetheart" is the sequel to "Heartsick," the first book to feature the twisted relationship between Portland Detective Archie Sheridan and the serial killer, Gretchen Lowell. In this novel we learn more about how Gretchen has a hold on Archie. We also find out that Archie is learning to manipulate the serial killer as well.

Reporter Susan Ward is also back from the first novel and is still bursting with energy with mixed results. Her mentor at the newspaper dies in a car wreck and she believes it is a murder that only Archie can solve (with a little help from her, of course). Susan believes that bodies that turn up in the park may be related to a story she is writing for the paper as well as her mentor's death.

"Sweetheart" is a good read. As a sequel it doesn't have the freshness that "Heartstick" featured, though. The murders in this book are definitely secondary to the Archie-Gretchen relationship. And the way all the plot lines finally converge just seems a little too convenient. "Sweetheart" is good, just not great like the first novel.

While I will not pretend Sweetheart is on par with Cain's first Archie Sheridan story, I do feel that it perfectly book-ends things plot-wise. I read a lot and despise loose ends, so the fact that this book was as much about Susan's Molly story and Senator Castle as it was Gretchen and Archie, made me very happy.

Like before, the story moves fast and bounces back and forth between Archie and Susan. This time around Susan really had her own voice and some decent character development, although at the end it seemed like she may be as broken as Archie.

The strangest thing, is that this story was not really a serial killer story, but more along the lines of a Steig Larsson mystery/thriller. In the end, I could barely put this down and recommend it to fans of the previous story.

Although both Heartsick and Sweetheart contain plot elements commonly found in serial killer/thriller books, Cain's series continues to be outstanding because she brings her characters to life so well. The main character of Archie is especially unique, and the scenes in Sweetheart in which Archie tries to return to a normal life with his family are very poignant.

In addition, Cain manages to maintain a dark tone throughout both books, causing the reader to feel a sense of dread as s/he turns the pages. The reader is submerged in the grisly details of Archie's world from page 1 of Sweetheart.

Although I very much enjoyed the Gretchen storyline of Sweetheart, overall I did not like it as much as Heartsick because I was a little disappointed by the Susan storyline. It seemed like relating the two stories was too much of a stretch.

Overall however, this book is a must read for fans of grisly thrillers, and I hope that Cain does not make us wait as long for the third installment.

I truly enjoyed Cain's Heartsick. Although it was a by-the-numbers thriller, it introduced some truly incredible characters. Its sequel, Sweetheart is quite a disappointment. The wit is gone. The characters are no longer interesting. And the plot itself is so convuluted and self-indulged that you stop caring halfway through.

Archie is still fazed with Gretchen's spell. Gretchen is the female version of Hannibal Lector; a mad serial killer without remorse and with too much intelligence for her own good. After solving the Afterschool Murderer case, Archie has stopped seeing Gretchen at the prison. But soon enough, she escapes and her hold on him is stronger than ever.

Meanwhile, Susan is investigating a politician. But when he is murdered and her story is buried by the newspaper, Susan is left wanting more out of this story. Eventually, she is brought back to Archie and will become fully involved in Gretchen's escape.
How do the two stories relate? They actually don't. And that's why the book feels so disjointed. Cain tries to mix two different mystery plots that never mesh well with one another. The characters have also become quite convoluted. Archie is so absorbed in Gretchen that he becomes a caricature, not a realistic persona. After a while, you just want to shake him to wake him up. It's almost as though he likes being tortured by Gretchen, both physically and psychologically. How can you care for a character that doesn't even try to help himself? Susan is whiny and often annoying. And Gretchen? I liked it much more when she was a mysterious character whose presence was felt more than anything else. Now that she takes an active role in the story, her character isn't as amazing or scary as it was before.

As for the plot... Well, let's just say that the characters do so many stupid choices that you stop caring for them quite early in the story. The book starts off strong with a murder investigation. But when Gretchen escapes, Archie and his family and Susan and her mother are placed under police protection. The book stalls for 100 pages. And then, finally, Archie and Gretchen meet. And that meeting is so anti-climatic that the whole finale seems quite redundant.

Many characters have the chance to kill Gretchen during the story, but none of them do. I think Cain needs to move on and develop new characters. She is too trapped in this narrative. After just two books, it already feels drawn out. She's capable of much better.

Book Club Review
SWEETHEART
by Chelsea Cain

Our book club's book for June was SWEETHEART, by Chelsea Cain. We seem to have managed to pick up a lot of newer authors lately, but not with their first books. We took a "field trip" to a local Barnes & Noble one night to do a little scouting, and we found this book on the remainder table, in hardcover, for a really good price! We had read a Jane Whitefield/Thomas Perry novel recently, and we decided we like thrillers (we also read SHARP OBJECTS, by Gillian Flynn, which falls into that category as well). So, SWEETHEART it was.

This is a serial-killer book/thriller, the second in a series that began with HEARTSICK. The hero is Archie Sheridan, the detective who has found and brough to justice the so-called Beauty Killer, who is a stunningly beautiful female psychopath named Gretchen Lowell. If you want sick, look no further than Gretchen. She's truly and viciously violent under her stunning and erotic exterior. Prior to the opening of SWEETHEART, Archie has embarked on a twisted romance/friendship with Gretchen, who is locked up but still manages to exert a strong influence over Archie, who has become addicted to pain pills as his dark relationship with Gretchen continues.

SWEETHEART begins with the finding of some new bodies in the woods, combined with a young journalist's pursuit of a story that will take down a pervy old senator. Before we know it, Gretchen has escaped and started to kill again, all while drawing Archie deeper into her Web. Who will win this time? Gretchen tried to kill Archie once; will she do it again? And is Archie suicidal enough to let her?

This isn't a book for those who can't handle graphic violence, because there are some really sadistic scenes in this book. That aside, as a group we just didn't think the book worked. Every single character seems derivative of someone who's been done before. Gretchen Lowell is literally a female Hannibal Lecter, doing the same things he does, even using some of the same words and techniques. The ties that bind Archie to this monster are clearly strong, but the author provides no psychological background into Archie's life or what would draw him to such a hideous being at the expense of his own wife and children. The supporting characters, while likable enough, have no personality and seem to serve mostly as filler. The plot is predictable, right up to the "set up the sequel" ending; but not one of us felt any desire to read any more installments.

While the whole book is pretty unbelievable from beginnign to end, there is one scene (near the end of the book) in which a supposedly smart character does something so incredibly stupid that that scene alone could make the entire book fall apart. If you end up reading SWEETHEART, you'll know it as soon as you see it.

Sad to say, overall we give this one a thumbs down. It's a fast enough read, competently written, but feels more like a pre-screenplay than a novel; and as a group we were quite underwhelmed.

Less a sequel, and more a continuation of where the last book left off, "Sweetheart" has some tense moments, but overall is a bit of a letdown. Much of the action from the first book has been replaced with much more analysis of Archie's tortured mind. Needless to say, it's not a pretty place, and doesn't even qualify as anti-hero stuff to me. He just seems self absorbed, (or Gretchen absorbed actually) at the expense of everything else. Frankly, I suppose that's the point, but then we're left with a not very likable protagonist, a serial killer who by the end shows her hand and loses a bit of her mojo. (Is everyone just looking for love in the end?) and a group of supporting players who we only care marginally about.- Except his poor beat upon wife. Cain is clearly creating her own Lecter like body of work, but like those books, hopefully she'll know when enough is enough and move on to other dark pastures.

Cain's follow-up to Heartsick picks up almost exactly where its predecessor left off; unfortunately, Cain's talent hasn't progressed much either. Once again, Lowell and Archie's relationship is by far the most interesting aspect of the book, so why waste so much time with a secondary story that never grips and never becomes interesting? What's more, Lowell becomes more generically "serial-killer omnipotent" here. I liked the way Cain toyed with that in the first book by showing us some of her tricks, but here she's a little more brilliant and omniscient, and it's far less interesting. I still think there's a lot of promise in the series, but Cain needs to pare down the side stories and focus on Archie and Gretchen, and figure out what she wants to do. I still enjoyed this well enough, but it's pretty forgettable, and if I hadn't read Heartsick, I certainly wouldn't care too much.

Chelsea Cain's second novel, more of a continuation than a sequel to HeartSick, has a fatal flaw: the central figure and her reach are highly unbelievable. Archie, now recovered physically from his near-death experience with serial killer Gretchen Lowell, has moved back with his family. He thinks constantly and fondly of Gretchen, addicted to her, even as he claims to love his wife. When two people drive off a bridge and bodies are found in the park, Archie finds himself linked with reporter Susan, now turquoise-haired, who wants the scoop. The trouble is, as always, Gretchen Lowell.

Gretchen is portrayed as a sort a female Hannibel Lechter with Jedi Knight-like mind control powers. Supposedly, her charm is so incredible that men kill and maim for her, and everyone under her gaze will do whatever she wants, even if it endangers their or others' lives. The problem is that when she appears on the page, she is two-dimensional and uninteresting, with no believable psychological tricks that make people like Archie lust after her even after she has made him drink drain cleaner and scarred his body, as she did in the first novel. There's nothing cunning about her. Archie is obsessed with her anyway and cannot wait to get a phone call from her, but why? Because she's hot in bed? The whole confession angle seems tacked on as an afterthought, even for Archie. Because the main suspense in the novel involves Gretchen, it leaves a yawning hole in the middle. The other murders are secondary, even at the end, when that subplot is neatly wrapped up.

The best part of Sweetheart is in the final seventy-five or so pages when Cain ratchets up the suspense. This novel is easy to read, with competent writing and recurring characters that are likely to please those who loved HeartSick. You don't have to read the first to understand this one, although it helps; Cain supplies enough of the background material to ease new readers into the story.

I love a good thriller, but it must be both intelligent and gut-wrenching. Sweetheart is neither. Two stars for most of the book, with an extra star added for the suspense near the end.

Reading Sweetheart is like being on a thrill ride at the amusement park. It's something that is meant to be enjoyable at the time, but not something that gives you long-term insights into the meaning of life. And I think that's exactly what one gets out of Chelsea Cain's second book. Granted, it does not have the character or plot development of great literature. Nor is the prose even as well constructed as that of other authors in the same genre, like Tana French (In the Woods). Yet, I don't think Cain is trying to write that type of book. She is aiming to write a fun thriller, and that's what you get with this book.

She wants you to not be able to put the book down, and it is hard to do so. Her paragraphs are relatively short, as is the book overall, something which actually helps one blow through the novel in a day or so. And that's fun.

She continues with the same set of characters as appeared in her first book. I like this because although her books are rather short, repeat appearances allow for some character development. The main characters are not fleshed out like those in a work of classic literature, but for the genre they are not too simplistic either. Archie Sheridan is a good character BECAUSE of all the faults Cain has given him.

And I thought the general mystery to be solved in this second book was more satisfying than the one from Heartsick, her previous novel.

The only potential negative I see from this book, then, is that for a day or so of reading the hardcover price might be a little much when "calculated" that way.

Chelsea Cain has followed up her debut hit, "Heartsick" with a fine second effort in "Sweetheart".

Once again, we are thrown into a grisly murder case led by Archie Sheridan. Of course, his obsession with now detained female serial killler, Gretchen Lowell, remains at the 'heart' of the novel and he continues to call and visit her to not only reconnect (she was once his therapist) but also to gain her insight into his current case. The case he is working on quickly takes a back-seat as the action shifts to the escape from prison by Gretchen and the eventual reunion of herself and Archie.

Not as gripping as the first book - but a fast read full of good characters and a cop-killer relationship different from anything else in thriller literature. Of course, things end with a set-up for a third novel and I look forward to it!

Sweetheart, the sequel to the very exciting Heartsick, brings back pychopath Gretchen Lowell and Detective Archie Sheridan. Their twisted, yet seductive, relationship continues to be the heart of the story; although, for me, its compellingness has dimished somewhat. Further, Cain must learn to make this relationship more of the backdrop in future books in this series, and to make the intended plot the "real" story and the more interesting one. Without going into the details of the plot and risk spoiling any of its intended surprises, I found the main story in Sweetheart to be only moderately interesting and somewhat predictable. Sweetheart is an okay read but pales in comparison to Heartsick. If you decide to read Heartsick, I'd strongly recommend that you first read Heartsick.

An excellent followup to its counterpart original Heartsick. Both novels are written with intelligence and care, sucking you into its personaities and keeping you on your toes, guessing and twisting right along.

More of a psychological play on the relationship between a female serial killer and her primary pursuer, the books pile puzzles, mystery and intelletual torment on top of scares and tension.

It's all here and if there ever was a book, that if done correctly, could achieve the same success as Silence of the Lambs, Heartsick & Sweetheart are it.

The personalities in the book are real. The exploration of the crime scenes seem as if ripped straight from real crime scenes, and that is what makes the book such a fantastic read as the story travels into some of its more frightening areas.

I purchased both "Heartsick" & "Sweetheart" at the same time. Heartsick (Cain's First Book in Series) grabbed my attention immediately - this one did not. You get to revisit stories from Heartsick that result in the plot for this book. All the characters are back to assist Archie Sheridan in a (not-so-new) murder plot. Without spoiling the ending - the FEMALE serial killer in this story is not enough to keep Sheridan (I-HATE-MY-LIFE because I was better off dead) interesting. We did get a little background into why Sheridan is SO attached to Lowell. Even though, she kidnapped him, tortured him and killed him However, unlike her other victims she revives him only so she can torture him some more. The past is the plot...you will understand once you read the book - and I do recommend you read it if you liked heartsick.

With the synopsis clearly spelled out and outlined there' s no need for me to explain the subject matter. I started reading this book, put it down, restarted, stopped...this went on forever and as part of the vine program I felt obligated to finish it, finally how many months/years later I have. If your a fan of graphic violence, explicit language and gruesome bloody scenes this is the book for you.
Considering I'm a huge fan of Val McDermind's Tony HilllThe Mermaids Singing (Dr. Tony Hill and Carol Jordan Mysteries)l series I can't be considered a 'prude' this mess just seems to be tossed around for shock value. Enjoy if it's your thing.

I had a very difficult time getting into this novel. It seemed to be a repeat of Heartsick - same people, same problems. Sure, Gretchen's in jail but she's still got Archie captive - but she doesn't need physical restraints anymore because he's so mentally dependent on her now. He's back on the job but with only half a mind because he's trying to pull his life back together, or make people think he is. When Gretchen escapes from prison, all bets are off. Archie drops his current case and decides he's the only one who can catch Gretchen - but at this point the obsession is mutual.

I'm afraid I can't recommend this as a great read - see some of my other reviews for better suspense novels. Or try the author's first book if you haven't already read it.

Sequels have to be the hardest kind of stories to write. There's so much to overcome. There's the "been there, done that" aspect of the interplay between the characters. There's having to repeat much of the backstory, so that the book can stand alone.......good luck making THAT interesting. There's knowing that readers of the first novel will be split between those who want story continuity and those who crave novelty. And there's twice the pressure to finish it quickly.
I believe one has to take these very elemental issues into account when reviewing a sequel.
"Sweetheart" was a solid read, well imagined and executed, given the above constraints. Sure, I skimmed occasionally,during the requisite back-story infodumps and revisited character development, but then, I ALWAYS do.
I won't bore you with story details, as there is already too much of that in the previous reviews. Suffice to say that I read this book with relish and was never disappointed. Cain has a quirky sense of humor that shows itself at all the right times, a natural story teller's feel for timing, and a knack for putting the reader in the scene.

Final note, (and a review all of its own), my wife hugged this book every time she picked it up. :-)

Sweetheart by Chelsea Cain

I was really torn when finishing this book, as I thought the writing was well done and I wanted to speed to the finish. However, the characters just left a bad taste in my mouth.
This is the second book in the series starring Archie, a homicide detective and Gretchen the serial killer who kidnapped and tortured him for 10 days.
There is a side plot which is interesting, but involves another annoying character, reporter Susan Ward. A reporter that gets to investigate right alongside the detectives and is privy to sensitive information just isn't my cup of tea.
Archie, who jeopardizes the lives of his wife and children for the sake of a serial killer, was very unappealing to me.
The best part of the book was the short chapters, where I could either exercise by having to get up and retrieve the book from me throwing it across the room or getting a glass of wine to forget why I kept reading. Yes, I plan on reading the third in this series, Evil at Heart, as I have a review for vine. I am hoping Archie can redeem himself.

Another brilliant psychologically thriller from Chelsea Cain.

As Detective Archie Sheridan attempts to move on with his life, separating from his twisted relationship with serial killer Gretchen Lowell, his life falls apart. Not only is he failing at kicking his addiction to pain medication, Lowell isn't willing to let him go easily.

When she escapes from prison, Sheridan must attempt to end the attachment between them once and for all -- by going back into the pit. Will his love for his family be enough to keep him safe from Lowell's manipulations? Only time will tell...

With just the right amount of gore and horror, Sweetheart will keep you up late at night. With the lights on.

This is the sequel to Heartsick, in which the further evolution of one of the most demented relationships in fiction continues to be explored. Gretchen is unusual for a fictional serial killer in that she is a female; her foil is a more typical male detective. Writing is taut and skillful, but does not completely make up for a somewhat implausible plot. Don't get me wrong, I'm certainly for suspending my disbelief, and once you have done that, you are repaid with some genuine chills. Overall, this is an especially scary police procedural, certainly worth the time for those who appreciated the first book, but I'm not certain if she is going to gain new fans here.

I read Heartsick, after finding it in a clearance bin at Barnes and Noble. I thought it was an incredible book as was so excited that the sequel, Sweetheart was coming out in just a few weeks. I was however a little dissapointed in the direction of the characters, Archie in particular. I understand the trauma he suffered in the first book and the realization of the extent of his previous relationship with serial killer Gretchen, but their continued relationship just didn't make sense to me. The fact that he would rather be with her than his kids and wife, somehow the reasoning behind it just was not conveyed in the readings. I think he is a troubled man, and I hope by the next book he gets himself togeather. Overall, I liked the book and can't wait to see what happens next.

This book was addictive in spite of its flaws, but the deus ex machina ending just killed it for me. It was a blatent attempt to keep the cash cow of Heartsick going for at least one more book, logic be damned.

I was happy to suspend my disbelief for awhile as the events became more farfetched. But the resolution was so preposterous that I felt it was a waste of time and money because not a damn thing was resolved. (At least I got the book for 50% off). Just because you have a successful book doesn't mean you need to milk it for a zillion sequels. Please, just create new characters and start over, you did it once it can't be that hard.

And I'm glad. Heartsick was necessary to build the relationship, but difficult reading at points for my stomach. I'm hooked on the series now and will read them
all. Each character is well done, and I am especially interested in psychological fiction. This author has delved into a rather strange version which I've not encountered before, and I am hooked. There are 3 to go so far. Not sure how far this can go, but I do hope it ends at at proper time and doesn't get dragged out as some do. Excellent series, but please read from the beginning.

Sweetheart was a difficult read for me. One of the important attributes of good fiction is that the story allows the reader to suspend reality and go along with the fictional world created by the author. While I was happy to live in Archie's and Gretchen's world during the first book, I did not want to be there during this story. There was a bit too much sadomasochism. Archie is physically and mentally tortured by Gretchen, Archie psychologically tortures his wife (and kids?) and Archie's partner tortures himself. If the author was a male I would think he was a misogynist. Since Ms Cain is a woman, is it misandry? No one seems to come off as sympathetic characters in this second book. It's time to kill off Gretchen and find Archie a new nemesis.

The medical errors in this book make me want to scream. Archie's liver failure is caused by acetaminophen (Tylenol) poisoning one of the active ingredients of Vycodan and not from the opioid in Vycodan. All the rehab in the world would not make his liver better after Tylenol poisoning. In my fictional world Archie would by treated with oxycodone so he would not receive Tylenol. Any physician treating Archie's pain would know this. In several scenes the author just rattles off some medical descriptions she pulled from a book or off the web and incorporates it into the story. It was painful for me to get through those passages. I was reaching for the pill box.

I do love the secondary characters in the book and the fact that I have taken the time out to critique this book indicates I am hoping that Chelsea's next book is better. Three stars is not bad and I am glad I read this sequel and I look forward to rejoining Archie and friend's world in the next book.

Reading Heartsick first is an absolute must. It sets the stage appropriately for Sweetheart. Heartsick has the best beginning of any book I've read in quite a long while. (You have to enjoy these types of book though.)

I found the relationship between the two main characters in this book intriguing. To think that a person held captive could become enamored of their captor seems implausable until you read this book. Their developing relationship is enthralling all the way along.

I'm not going to spoil the ending for anyone, so I'll just say it is satisfying and makes me hope for another this series - soon.

After being underwhelmed by the first in the series I persevered with the second book since a friend had recommended this series. What a load of rubbish. I don't expect this genre to be extremely realistic but this story is so ridiculous. I suppose it would be a (mercifully) short series otherwise since in real life a cop would shoot Gretchen dead, instead of being easily brainwashed into obeying a beautiful serial killer. If the characters weren't so whiny I might read more for comedy value but instead it's just annoying.

I'm genuinely surprised how much I enjoyed this sequel - it has received some rather mixed ratings. But I think it's just as exciting as the first book in the series, Heart Sick. It continues to follow the Hannibal Lecter-like tradition set up in the previous novel, but the relationship between these two main characters definitely turns in some rather unexpected directions! The ending here is left wide open for an upcoming sequel - and one that I plan on reading! The series so far has all been exciting, fast-paced and a lot of fun to read! I am looking forward to seeing where it goes from here!

Heartsick was so amazing, I never thought anything could top it! But Chelsea Cain has done it again and then some. Archie, Henry and Gretchen are back for another game of cat and mouse. While fighting his addiction to both Grethen and Vicodin Archie, Henry and news reporter Susan are trying to solve the murder of three bodies found in the woods as well as the death of a friend of Susans and a Senator. You would think that Archie's sick obsession and need for Gretchen has abated because he hasn't seen her in months, but it's only gotten worse. And one trip back to the prison is all it takes to throw him deeper into her clutches. For some reason she has this sick hold over him - and when she escapes from prison, he thinks he is the only one who can bring her in. Not caring if he lives or dies, Archie will go to any length to end this game with Gretchen once and for all. But will Archie take it too far? Will Gretchen finally be out of his life and more importantly his head for good??? You will not be able to put this book down. I started it at 7pm and finished it just before 11. Way past my bedtime - but well worth staying up for.

This book effectively complements HEARTSICK and I immediately will read EVIL AT HEART. What I enjoy most is the the unique relationship between cop (Archie) and perp (Gretchen) while the reporter component (Susan) is a great conduit to help move the story along.

Attraction, manipulation, and deception team-up and move through the pages of Chelsea Cain books. She is quickly moving up my favorite author list. Gretchen is one of the most evil characters that I've experienced in a book and similar to Archie, I just can't stay away. :-)

Sweetheart, the sequel to Heartsick, is just as good as the first book! This book delves deeper into the relationship between Archie and Gretchen. Imagine being obsessed with the person that tortured and tried to kill you. So obsessed that it affects every single aspect of your life. This book was an amazing page turner. I started reading last night and only stopped because I had to. As soon as I got the opportunity, I picked the book back up and didn't stop until I finished. Gretchen Lowell is one of the most captivating "bad guys" I've ever read about.

I'm so glad I discovered this series. Creepy serial killer Gretchen Lowell is high on the list of creepiest monster, bar Hannibal Lector of course, although she doesn't eat her victims, just tortures them.. with nails.. and drain cleaner. Some serious Stockholm Syndrome problems for Archie - Gretchen really messed him up. But CC makes it believable. I admire an author who can switch from good to evil so rapidly, there must be a little serial killer in her already.

I really enjoy well written psychological dramas, due to my professional background in the field of Psychology. Some of my favorite authors include Keith Ablow, MD, Patricia Cornwell, Catherine Coulter, and others who write psycho-drama and horror from a more objective and "distant" point of view. However, in Ms. Cain's two stories, the horror was far beyond depravity and soullessness. It took me nearly 4 months to slug through this book as I continually felt such revulsion that I had to set it aside. There were paragraphs and chapters that I scanned only very briefly or just by-passed entirely due to the brutality and suffering that was described in such extreme levels of sadism. I don't even want to remember the characters or any details of this work. Overall, the content of this book left me wondering about the history and mental landscape of the author. I will not revisit the writing of Chelsea Cain again.