Echoes of Darkness by Darlene L. Turner

Echoes of Darkness by Darlene L. Turner
Stand-Alone Novel
Publisher: Love Inspired Trade, June 24, 2025

REVIEW BY JOAN HALL

Police Constable Oaklynn Brock has a dark secret. She’s the daughter of a serial killer. Now living and working in a small Ontario town, the only ones who know her true identity are the police sergeant and forensic crime scene investigator, Chloe Olson, who is also Oaklynn’s best friend.

Soon after Oaklynn’s father died by suicide in prison, a copycat killer shows up in Kenorapeake Falls, and Sergeant Rollins assigns the case to Oaklynn. The town’s mayor brings in the Canadian Watchers Squad, a privately run special task force, to assist. Since all the victims were part of a local cult, Caleb Green is the perfect person to work on the case due to his previous involvement in a similar sect. He also has some past issues to deal with.

“I have to do this by myself, Dad. It’s time.” Time to face the darkness head-on.

Darlene L. Turner, Echoes of Darkness

As the number of victims mounts, it becomes apparent that the killer knows Oaklynn’s identity, which puts both her and Caleb in danger.

Echoes of Darkness deals with serial killers, cults, and references to child abuse, so this may trigger warnings for some readers. However, the author handles each element without any gore or explicit details. Christian elements are woven throughout, but never come across as preachy. Caleb has a strong faith. Oaklynn’s is a slow journey, but very realistic given her background.

“God did not cause the pain. Yes, He allowed it and we’ll never understand why until we meet Him face-to-face, but while I have life in me, I will trust in His unfailing love.”

Darlene L. Turner, Echoes of Darkness

I found this book hard to put down. The killer’s identity came as a complete surprise.

While this was published as a stand-alone novel, I would enjoy additional stories featuring other people in the Canadian Watcher Squad (who are also members of Caleb’s family). The book ended a little too abruptly for me, even with an epilogue to wrap things up. For this reason, I’m taking off half a fish.

If you like page-turning suspense, Echoes of Darkness is for you. I give it four and a half well-deserved fish.

composite image of four and a half drawn fish from the British Museum on unsplash

I purchased the Kindle version of Echoes of Darkness through Amazon.

29 thoughts on “Echoes of Darkness by Darlene L. Turner”

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    1. This only had subtle references. Even though the subject matter was bothersome, I was able to read through. I did want to mention it in my review because some readers don’t handle the subject easily. Thanks, Jacqui.

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  11. Thank you for sharing such a thoughtful and detailed review, Joan. I appreciate the way you described the plot, though suspense novels are a bit too intense for my taste, especially ones involving serial killers or cults. I’m glad it resonated with you, though. It’s always great to hear when a story is both powerful and meaningful.

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  13. Joan, somehow I missed this post. I’m sorry for the late response. While I tend to shy away from books involving cults and/or serial killers, I’ve read a few that have grabbed me and refused to let go. It sounds like this novel was engaging, especially with the desire for a sequel or series books to follow. That says a lot about how well it was received!

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    1. I’m like you about staying away from books about serial killers. This is the second one I read this year and both handled the subject matter well. I really enjoyed Darlene’s book (as you can tell from my review).

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