My Review - Predator

5 out of 5 stars

PREDATOR by Terri Blackstock is a chilling tale taken from today’s headlines.

Krista Carmichael is on a quest to find her sister’s murderer.  Fourteen-year-old Ella was brutally beaten, raped, and buried alive.  Krista is convinced her sister’s killer stalked Ella on the social media site GrapeVyne.  With the media site’s Thought Bubble posting member’s whereabouts and activities, members can be easily stalked by predator’s masquerading as friends.  Krista is determined to find the man that killed her sister.  Reaching out to Ryan Adkins, the creator of GrapeVyne, Krista asks him to post warnings on his site to discourage young people from divulging too much information.

Ryan Adkins is touched by Krista’s loss, but his hands are tied.  Though he is the creator of the social media site, he no longer holds controlling power over it.  GrapeVyne’s board of directors feel posting warnings or disclaimers on their site would in some ways be looked at as GrapeVyne claiming responsibility, something they have no intentions of doing.  But, when two more victims are linked to the media site, Ryan can helped but feel as if action needs to be taken.  When he involves himself with Krista and her agenda, he is fired from his own company.  But that doesn’t stop him.  Ryan is bound and determined to help Krista unmasked the anonymous predator.  He knows he is onto something when he becomes the predator’s next target.

PREDATOR was captivating and unsettling.  With our day-to-day world so wrapped up in the internet and social media, PREDATOR unveils the dangers of people allowing their lives to be an open book for all to see.  The story was realistic, and the characters multi-faceted.  From the diligence of Krista’s quest, to the grieving of Ella’s dad, to the feelings that develop between Krista and Ryan, the storylines blend seamlessly.  Once again, Terri Blackstock has me reading when my attention should be on other things.  Oh well, there’s always tomorrow.