What happened in The Last Echo by Kimberly Derting - Recaptains

The basics

Title: The Last Echo

Author: Kimberly Derting

Series: The Body Finder #3

- The Body Finder (March 2010)
- Desires of the Dead (February 2011)
- The Last Echo (April 2012)
- Dead Silence (April 2013)

Add it: Goodreads

Goodreads Summary:

In the end, all that’s left is an echo.

Violet kept her morbid ability to sense dead bodies a secret from everyone except her family and her childhood-best-friend-turned-boyfriend, Jay Heaton. That is until forensic psychologist Sara Priest discovered Violet’s talent and invited her to use her gift to track down murderers. Now, as she works with an eclectic group of individuals—including mysterious and dangerously attractive Rafe—it’s Violet’s job to help those who have been murdered by bringing their killers to justice.

When Violet discovers the body of a college girl killed by “the girlfriend collector” she is determined to solve the case. But now the serial killer is on the lookout for a new “relationship” and Violet may have caught his eye....

Read a full summary of The Last Echo by Kimberly Derting below. If you can’t remember what happened in The Last Echo and you need a refresher, then you’re in the right place.

in short

Violet is now working with Sara Priest and her team of “psychics”. There is someone going around killing girls again, and Violet and the team have to figure out who is doing it. We do, of course, get to see the killer’s point of view, and is spectacularly creepy. There’s also a murderer who holds a grudge on Violet. Jay and Violet are still together, and Rafe and Violet are growing closer. I ship it. Violet eventually gets kidnapped by the killer, but she kills him and so is left with her own imprint. She also gets blackmailed into staying on Sara’s team, even though she really doesn’t want to be there.

what happened in the last echo?

• Violet is now working with Sara Priest and is helping the cops find bodies and murderers. She has a new friend called Krystal.

• Violet finds the body of a girl called Antonia, who had been missing for two weeks. The killer has been dubbed ‘the collector’. He tries to preserve the bodies, and he gives them manicures.

• Violet learns that Krystal’s ability is seeing the dead, like a medium. She still doesn’t know what Rafe’s is.

• Rafe, Krystal, and Violet go to Antonia’s place – where they’re not allowed to go because, hello, crime scene – to search for evidence. A cop catches them. Rafe tells the cop to call Sara, and they all get taken to the station. Here, Violet encounters a man called James Nua, who has several imprints. Sara gets Rafe, Krystal, and Violet out of trouble with the police.

• Throughout the novel, you see flashes of the killer “caring” for his victims. He wants to have them as a girlfriend.

• Rafe turns up when Violet is with Jay. Raf and Violet go to see James Nua, a supposed child killer, to see who he has killed, and how many. Violet says she needs to see the bodies to figure out who exactly Nua killed, but she can confirm that he’s killed at least five people. James Nua figures out that Violet goes to White River High because she had been wearing the school hoodie the night before.

• Violet sees the bodies of the victims and confirms that Nua killed them.

• A girl called Casey is taken. She’s from the same university as Antonia.

• Sam tells Violet that Rafe’s feelings for her “were more than just friendly”.

• Violet learns that Casey worked at the cafe that Antonia often went to – The Mecca. The killer may have found them there.

• Violet discovers that when she touches Rafe, they feel a jolt of static. Shortly after, Rafe gets into an accident and crashes his bike when some idiot woman makes an illegal turn. He is taken to hospital, and it is revealed that he is Sara’s brother. They’re half siblings, and their mother died of lung cancer. Rafe is kept in hospital overnight.

• It turns out that Rafe has visions, and he had one the night his girlfriend, Sophie, was killed, but he wasn’t fast enough to stop it. He gets visions by touching things. Rafe is the reason that Sara started up this team of “psychics”.

• Outside the Psychic HQ, James Nua grabs Violet. He hits her repeatedly. Sara comes into the alley and shoots him, and he runs off. Violet hears music nearby. It’s revealed that Rafe called Sara because he knew Violet was in danger. Nua dies from his gunshot wound and Violet sees the imprint on Sara. Violet has lost her purse in the alley. Jay drives her home.

• Dr Lee, Violet’s therapist, works for the people that run Psychic HQ.

• The killer decides that he wants Violet as his new girlfriend.

• Violet’s parents tell her that she can’t be on Sara’s team any more after what happened with Nua in the alley.

• Casey’s body is found.

• Violet goes to see Rafe at his house and they have a chat. Rafe reveals that he and Sophie had that static jolt thing between them too. Rafe and Violet almost kiss, but they stop. Violet goes home.

• Rafe calls Violet and tells her that they have ‘the collector’. They found his mother’s body, and they now know his name – Caine – and his address. The cops and Sara are on their way there now. Violet is relieved. She is also home alone.

• Violet smells a gross imprint, and initially thinks that it’s the cat. It turns out that it’s actually Caine. He’s come for her. He’s the one that stole her purse in the alley, and his imprint is the music she heard. Caine knocks Violet out.

how did it end?

Violet is taken to a cabin in the woods. She’s kept in a girly room. She has to convince Caine that she loves him in order to manipulate him. Caine falls asleep next to Violet, and she sneaks out. She tries to use the telephone but of course it doesn’t work. Violet leaves the cabin, and as she is doing so she sets off an alarm. All the lights in the cabin turn on, and Caine wakes up. Violet runs into the woods.

Caine looks for Violet. She finds a barn and hides in there in the dark. Caine finds her soon enough, and she threatens him with a pitchfork. His flash-light breaks so he can’t see where Violet is, but Violet knows where he is because of the imprints.

Violet climbs up into the loft area, but Caine reaches her on the ladder. She knocks him down, and then she passes out.

Violet wakes up in the morning and she sees that Caine fell on the pitchfork and is dead. Violet now has her own imprint – the sound of a music box.

Violet walks down a road and her uncle, Stephen, finds her.  She’s reunited with her family and friends.

In the epilogue, Violet meets with Dr Lee. Lee tells Violet that she can’t leave Sara’s team. He threatens Violet’s cousins. He tells her not to tell anyone. Bastard.

anything else

Echo – What Violet senses on dead bodies. It can be related to either taste, scent, sight, or sound.
Imprint – What Violet senses on people who have killed animals or people.

This is a full plot summary of what happened in The Last Echo by Kimberly Derting. Check out our recap list for more recaps. If you can’t find what you need, you can request a recap from us!

Other recaps for this series:

• Desires of the Dead (The Body Finder #2)
• The Body Finder (The Body Finder #1)