Gone, But Not Forgotten by Phillip Margolin

 
Pros: a good, complex story with multiple layers
Cons: truly horrid depictions of violence
A pretty decent thriller… Definitely a bit different from the usual.

I’m talking about Phillip Margolin’s Gone But Not Forgotten.
Ten years ago, a serial killer haunted a New York town.  A task force was created.  The killer was caught, and subsequently killed.  The case was closed.
Now, a series of eerily similar killings is taking place in Oregon.  The killings are practically identical to the original killings, even though there were details that had been kept from the public.

Copy cat?  Or did the police get the wrong guy, the first time around?  And why did the killings start up again after 10 years absent?
Margolin gives us a mystery.  A story with multiple layers that goes all the way up to the President of the United States.  Along the way, we’re given several clues as to what’s really going on, but the “big reveal” still managed to provide some surprises.
Characters are well-developed and many are likeable.  The protagonists are smart.  No one makes stupid decisions (a problem that has plagued some other Margolin books).

The only negative about Gone, But Not Forgotten would be the level of violence depicted.  It is severe and makes for some difficult reading at times.  Of course, in thrillers like this, you expect there to be some violence but this book goes beyond the norm.
But if you can stomach the violence, Gone, But Not Forgotten is a tight thriller with a very good background story.  Recommended.
Also by Phillip Margolin
Lost Lake