Elizabeth Heiter

Elizabeth Heiter likes her suspense to feature strong heroines, chilling villains, psychological twists, and a little bit (or a lot!) of romance. Her research has taken her into the minds of serial killers, through murder investigations, and onto the FBI Academy’s shooting range.

Heiter's latest novel is Vanished.

From her Q & A at My Bookish Ways:

Will you tell us a little about Vanished?

Thank you so much! I’m really excited for Vanished, where my heroine finally gets to tackle the case that drove her to become an FBI profiler in the first place! Eighteen years ago, her best friend Cassie was abducted, the last in a series of kidnappings by the Nursery Rhyme Killer. Cassie was never found, and now another girl has gone missing in Evelyn’s hometown of Rose Bay, South Carolina, and the Nursery Rhyme Killer is taking credit.

It’s the case Evelyn has wanted to solve since she was twelve years old, but it means facing her hometown – where racial prejudices eighteen years ago meant she wasn’t always welcome – and facing the possibility that this time, it isn’t her friend’s abductor at all, but a copycat. The deeper she digs, the more secrets she finds in Rose Bay, and the more likely it becomes that whoever the abductor is this time, Evelyn might be the next to disappear.

What kind of research did you do for the book, especially in order to get into the mind of the Nursery Rhyme Killer?

When I wrote Hunted (Book 1 in The Profiler series), I’d already done extensive research on the FBI and profiling, but I did more for this book, visiting another FBI field office, and digging deeper into the process of profiling. One part of this book that really fascinated me was setting up the idea that the abductions start again after eighteen years. I wanted that possibility to feel real, so I did a lot of research into real serial criminals who went dormant for a long time, then resurfaced. It’s...[read on]

Visit Elizabeth Heiter's website and watch the book trailer for Vanished.

My Book, The Movie: Vanished.

The Page 69 Test: Vanished.

--Marshal Zeringue