Okay, I get it...yes, I did what I consider the unpardonable, skipping a book in the series. However, it may have saved me time in the long run, by not going back and reading it. I read the first in Deaver's Lincoln Rhyme series, The Bone Collector and loved it...gushed over it, which I can do from time to time. Gave it four stars only because I'm so stingy with five stars...saving them for the best of the best.
The Bone Collector was what a great mystery should be, had all the elements for a best seller and was rated four and five stars by most reviewers. So perhaps I was expecting too much when I began reading this number three in the series. (One best-seller, four-five star review, in my mind, does not automatically makes a second one in that ranking.)
The first word that comes to mind is contrived. The entire book seemed contrived and just made-up as it was written. Bad guy, turns into good guy, in the next chapter. The deep down nature of who a person really is...just changes two chapters ahead because it's convenient to the story. That just goes on and on from beginning to end.
And so many characters...ok, was he with so-and-so or was he with the other guys? Got tired of trying to figure them out but continued on because, because...it's Jeffery Deaver for crying out loud!
Not the worse book I've ever read but it sure wasn't up to Deaver's usual great storyline and character development.
Fought with myself on the number of stars and just looked...three, maybe two (two being 'it was ok') so I opted for two.
It was ok but can tell you, I'm not as anxious to read another Deaver as I was before I read this contrived mess of a book. Deaver needs to redeem himself in my eyes because I know he writes better than this.
