Content levels
Trigger warnings
Hero archetypes
Heroine archetypes
Protagonist archetypes
Tropes
Themes
Synopsis
For Haley Richardson, fear does have a smell. So do hate and happiness. A head injury as a child gave Haley an extraordinary sense of smell. Her gift allows Haley and her German shepherd, Jax, to be one of the most successful search and rescue teams in the Midwest. Her gift is also a curse as she detects people’s feelings. For her sanity, she’s reclusive until each time she’s called on to find the lost. When girls begin disappearing with tragic results in her hometown, Haley teams with the county’s new sheriff, Dane Campbell, to find the killer. Haley is drawn to the outgoing sheriff, whose daughter is emotionally damaged. After a lifetime of feeling like an outsider, though, Haley is reluctant to get involved with the child, whose melancholy threatens to overwhelm Haley. As the murders test Haley’s gift and skills, she learns that sometimes a search and rescue can be about the heart, and the heart can lead the way home.
Tags
Is Scent of Fear (Scent Series Book 1) appropriate for my child?
Suitable for most readers 16 and up.
A romantic suspense featuring a serial killer targeting young women, with moderate violence and emotional trauma involving children. Romance is closed-door with minimal on-page content.
What to know going in
This book has moderate violence, mild sexual content, and mild language. Content notes include child harm, murder, kidnapping, and death (see the full list above).
Who'll love this
Teens who love mystery and romance will be drawn to this unique heroine with an extraordinary sense of smell solving crimes with her dog.