Ten Big Ones (Stephanie Plum, #10)
8.6
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Not every witness protection programme is fool proof... Stephanie Plum finds herself in the wrong...
Don't Let Go
7.8
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With unmatched suspense and emotional insight, Harlan Coben explores the big secrets and little lies...
Thriller crime
Beyond the Headlines (Clare Carlson #4)
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She was a mega-celebrity—he was a billionaire businessman—now he’s dead—she’s in jail ...
Mystery Suspense Thriller
Niceville (Niceville #1)
6.0
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Something is wrong in Niceville. . . A boy literally disappears from Main Street. A security...
Fiction Suspense Mystery Horror Paranormal
Signature Kill (Frank Behr #4)
8.0
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He's going to leave his mark on you The gripping new Frank Behr novel from David Levien, author...
The Couple Next Door
8.0
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This book is the Sunday Times best-seller and WHSmith Book of the Year 2016. People are capalmost...
Every Three Hours
10.0
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The new pulse-pounding latest instalment in the outstanding Darby McCormick series. 'One of the best...
If I Die Tonight
9.5
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Reminiscent of the bestsellers of Laura Lippman and Harlan Coben—with a dose of Big Little Lies or...
suspense fiction thriller
Ross (3282 KP) rated Tell Me Lies in Books
Jan 28, 2020
Ed James' new series takes place in Seattle rather than the UK-based series he has penned to date. There is also a change in subject, focusing on child abductions rather than the standard "murrdurr" fayre.
Special Agent Max Carter is tasked with tracking down a senator's abducted children. With the clock ticking, we see the action from the abductor's PoV as well as Carter's and the father's. The senator finds himself trying to help the abductor of his children to uncover a government conspiracy in which he may have been involved. The mix of different perspectives allows the story to flow with a good pace, with different angles of the emerging story adding up for the reader in way they wouldn't yet do for the characters. In the middle of the book the investigation did start to feel a little samey (both the FBI agents and the abductor/senator teams going through the same leads one after the other), but this didn't last long.
The change in location sadly comes with a change in writing style and this was a downside for me. I like James' flowing narrative and the American tone and style were quite jarring. I would say more American than genuine American authors. However once I accepted this it did not spoil my enjoyment of the book as a whole.
The ending of the story was mostly satisfying but with some loose ends that I hope to see addressed in subsequent books.
A departure for James' readers but worth the trip, and a good book for fans of Harlan Coben and David Baldacci.