Title:	Collecting the Dead
	Author:	Spencer Kope
	Published:	2016, Minotaur
	No. of Pages:	320
	Cover Price:	$25.99 Hardcover, $9.99 Paperback, $12.99 Kindle

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Collecting the Dead, by Spencer Kope, is the first novel in a new series and introduces “Steps,” who has the special ability to see people’s essence or aura. Only a few people know about his gift. He refers to it as “shine,” and it allows him to track missing persons and murder suspects. He works for the FBI in their special tracking unit, and when he sees the same shine on a body that he has seen on another previous body, he and his partner, Jimmy Donovan, pursue the killer, hoping they can prevent more murders. As they investigate, they discover that there are several unsolved murders that are related, and that the “Sad Face Killer” as he is referred to, is a serial killer who must be stopped.

While the “shine” seems a bit far-fetched, it tends to work in this novel; the characters are quite interesting, and the solving of the crimes makes sense. The book is quite well-written, and fairly suspenseful, even though there is minimal violence. Kope has an easy-going style that will appeal to many, and the story will most-likely keep readers’ on the edge as Steps and his partner solve the crimes.

While Steps is a character who is unique, readers will find that they embrace his special gift, and want him to win in the end. The novel has a different feel than many mainstream novels, and it makes for good reading. Most readers will look forward to subsequent books starring Steps who has the ability to track in a very different way than most crime-solving heroes.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this novel.

This book may be purchased at Amazon:
Collecting the Dead: A Novel