Forensic analyst Evelyn James is going to have to use all of her training to help solve the latest murder to hit Cleveland. A woman has been found murdered in her penthouse, but there is no indication of anyone entering the suite. All possible entrances and exits are locked; there is no one on the surveillance tapes; and the husband has an alibi. It is up to Evelyn to analyze all trace evidence to try to find some clue to give the detectives some direction to go with their investigation. Will she be able to find that most important piece of evidence that can break the case wide open? Or will she be forced to wait and see if the killer strikes again?

Evelyn has little time to do any analyzing before someone else in the same building is attacked. This time it is a fellow co-worker, and she is even more determined to try to find some connection. When another closed apartment victim is found, this gives Evelyn more to work with, but also increased pressure to help find the culprit. Little by little she notices similarities in the evidence, but nothing that points to a killer. If she can determine how the women are related to each other, then maybe that can lead them to a killer. What is the link between the women? How did they know each other?

Elizabeth Becka grips the reader from the beginning and pulls them in to her detailed web of intrigue. Evelyn James is a wonderful scientist who follows the trace evidence wherever it leads her, even if it is straight into trouble. Evelyn is also a single mother who is trying to juggle the responsibility of raising a daughter while earning a living; so many people can understand her determination to succeed. It is refreshing to read a book that is so into the details behind the crimes, and takes you into the laboratory where these leads are followed through. UNKNOWN MEANS is a fabulous novel that will have the reader riveted and unable to put the book down.