THE SUSPECT is the very first book I've read by Fiona Barton. I didn't know that this book is the third in the Kate Waters series. However, I found no problems reading this one without having read the previous books. Actually, it made me more curious about the previous two books.

Journalist Kate Waters' son went traveling two years earlier. Since then she's only had sporadic contact with him. When she hears about two young women who have gone missing in Thailand can't she help but think about her own son. Kate is a very driven journalist, and she is after a scoop, but she's also a mother and the parent's angst is getting to her. What happened to the girls? Are they still alive?

I found THE SUSPECT to be a fast- paced book that unfortunately lacked thrilling moments. It's not a bad book by any means, but it just never really got under my skin... Although the ending surprised me. It was a very interesting way to end the book. This is a book where the present storyline is interwoven with the girls' experiences in Thailand. I found the parents' and siblings' desperate hunt to find the missing girls to be tragic.

As for a thriller, I found THE SUSPECT wasn't a heart-pounding page-turner. That being said, it's a decent book, well-written, and I found it to be a worthwhile read. I liked the storytelling so much that I want to read more books by Fiona Barton!