NEVER TELL by Lisa Gardner
Lisa Gardner has been writing books featuring Boston Detective D. D. Warren for some time now. A few books back she added D.D.’s confidential informant, Flora Dane, into the mix. In Gardner’s latest novel NEVER TELL both women are prominently featured as is an additional third new character. Her name is Eve Carter and she is a suspect in the murder of her husband. Warren catches the case.
Carter is a woman who was accused of murder earlier in her life. Her father was found shot to death and Carter stated she had shot him accidentally. Warren investigated the case and Carter, a teenager, was not tried for her father’s death. Now years later Carter is a married woman who is pregnant with her first child. She calls police to her home where her husband has been shot to death. Eve denies having killed her husband, but Warren wonders if two murders can be so easily explained away.
Things get even more complicated when Flora Dane recognizes the body of Eve’s husband Conrad as being a person she met while being held captive by a psychopath. She recalls only sketchy details of this meeting and so is not a huge source of information about him. Still there is a connection among the three women and this makes for a fascinating twist to Gardner’s story.
NEVER TELL is Gardner’s best book in ages. In it she takes all the depth of her characters and brings it to fruition. The case Warren and Dane are working is one of the most complex and interesting the author has ever created. There are so many variables and branches off the basic murder, and each one draws the reader into the story more and more completely.
It is not easy to keep things fresh. As stated, Gardner has used the character of D.D. Warren over and over in the past. This time out the chapters in the book switch focus from Warren to Dane to Carter. This is a wonderful way to show each character’s perspective while also moving the narrative forward. The balance of each of the characters’ story is amazingly done by Gardner. One person’s story never gets too far head of the other two.
The best feature of Gardener’s writing is how it all makes sense in the end. Sometimes authors tie things up neatly but not logically. This is not the case with NEVER TELL. Its conclusion is rational and logical. Gardner never has a misstep in the telling of the plot or the development of her characters.
Lisa Gardner has found her niche in mystery writing and she is one of the best plying her trade. She never fails to deliver a good product but with NEVER TELL she raises the bar on her storytelling. If you haven’t discovered her talent in the past I hope you will hastily grasp this new book which will certainly give you hours of reading pleasure.
NEVER TELL is published by Dutton. It contains 416 pages and sells for $27.00.
Jackie K Cooper
www.jackiekcooper.com
