THE NEVER GAME by Jeffrey Deaver
Jeffery Deaver is one of the most meticulous mystery writers writing today. His plots are always specific and detailed and the solving of the crime(s) is always done methodically and memorably. All of this is true in his past novels and it is true again in his latest novel THE NEVER GAME.
Most of Deaver’s fame as an author has come from his series of books featuring the dynamic duo of Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sacks. Their adventures in mystery solving will fill your TV screens next year in “The Bone Collector.” For now Deaver is introducing a new leading character in THE NEVER GAME. His name is Colter Shaw and he is a man who finds missing people. In some cases rewards are offered for them being found and Colter will take the reward is he can bring the missing person back alive.
In this new novel a young woman has gone missing from her father’s home in the Silicon Valley. The father offers a reward and Shaw hears of it and comes to offer his services. It doesn’t take him long to find a tie-in with a video game named “The Whispering Man.” This game, the makers of the game and some of the users of the game figure into a solution to a rash of kidnappings.
Like Lincoln Rhyme, Colter Shaw is very methodical in his tracking of the abductor. He studies the crime scene area and makes projections based on the percentage of certain occurrences having happened, or on certain occurrences happening in the future. Going through this process is what makes the story appealing to readers.
What limits its appeal is the video game background. For some readers this would be a big plus but for other readers it will not be. Deaver being Deaver makes sure his readers know the ins and outs of the video game world. He gives tons of information which some will read avidly and some will avoid.
There is also the question of “why Colton Shaw”? Why bring in a character with no connection to the Rhyme/Sachs world? Most of his readers would have devoured a new Rhyme/Sachs story or at least a story about someone who has had a connection to these two in the past. If you are a reader of the Rhyme/Sachs books you know there is a wealth of characters just waiting to tell their stories.
Still this is the here and now and a new Jeffery Deaver book has arrived. Anytime that happens it is a cause for excitement. No one can create a mystery quite like Deaver, and no one can meticulously describe the solving of such like Jeffery Deaver. He has done it over and over in the past and he does it again in THE NEVER GAME. Colter Shaw is the interesting new character who leads the way. And the game is on.
THE NEVER GAME is published by G P Putnam’s Sons. It contains 416 pages and sells for $28.00.
Jackie K Cooper
www.jackiekcooper.com
