Suspense from the Past, Thrill From the Present!
582503
I think Mr. Coben is being unduly humble in the preface of the novel. This is only his second work, yet its so intriguing! I would compare it to the works of Mary Higgins Clark! Undoubtedly, the characters are a little exaggerated Vs his Bolitar series where his characters are larger than life and slick. On my scale of 0-5, the violence/imagery is 2. I always include my Violence/Imagery meter so as the author should get a glimpse into the mind of his reader. I enjoyed the story, the glamour, the drama, the intricacy of plot in the last part of the novel. I have downloaded a list of Coben's works and am purchasing all his books, a few every week.
1719811
A fast-paced story with a nice mix of action, suspense, surprises on a political, historic and intriguing mystery background... Embark for a great adventure!
1443613
A very good read!  If you like adventure and suspense, this well written book is for you!!!
4442892
I loved the characters in what is now my favorite book by Hallie Ephron. Mina, the feisty ninety-one year "old" woman rekindles her acquaintance with Evie, whose alcoholic mother lives next door to Mina. Evie, a bit of an old soul herself, works in historic preservation and senses a little mystery in Mina's own history. Ephron handles the difficult issues of aging and alcoholism with realism, compassion and even a little of the dark humor you need to cope with both. Set in a neighborhood where the East River meets Long Island Sound, you can almost smell the marsh as the neighborhood filled with shotgun houses falls prey to ruthless development. Ephron blends an airplane crash into the Empire State Building in the 1940's with the timeless greed for land to create mounting suspense about what is happening to Mina, Evie and their neighborhood. Little doses of suspense begin to accumulate like a steady snowfall. Ephron, who teaches how to write suspense, defines it as "that itchy twitchy feeling you give a reader when they know something is going to happen."
I thought I had figured it all out, even pleased by the ending I knew was coming, until Ephron nailed me and one of her characters in the middle of the forehead with an snowball of an ending I did not see coming.
161044
I loved this book!  It kept me reading and on the edge of my seat from beginning to end and I read it in one and a half days because I couldn't put it down. The suspense is exactly what the reader of Thriller/Mystery novels expects and wants. Scott is the kind of kid that parents hope their child will be/is, brave, resourceful and true to the upright standards that have been instilled in him by his father, but a little foolhardy and doesn't always make wise choices (typical teen) but does his best when his choices catapults him into disastrous situations, as happens here. He faces danger from several sides, because of one unwise choice that only a teenager

would make, to fly to a rock concert with a new found friend/pilot in a raging snow storm/blizzard in Utah. This is what starts the chain of events that may cost him his life, as well as the life of loved ones. Complicating the situation for his rescue is the fact that the President of the USA is on an official visit to the small tourist town that Scott is visiting with his estranged Mother, for a skiing trip.  When Scott and his parents need the help of the small police department in the town, it is a trifle hard to get because of the president's visit and Secret Service Agents demanding that the president be the first priority of the police, so Scott and his family slips to a back burner, sort of, though the police chief wants to help, and does try, the Secret Service gets in the way. Even when you think everything is o.k., that Scott is home free, this turns out not to be the case, more suspenseful moments are on the horizon in the form of a deadly showdown for Scott and his nemesis.  This book is really a wonderful story and I would love to see it made into a movie.  Scott's adventures in the wilderness alone would make a good movie, but add a local hit-man

and the danger and suspense is off the scale! Now I have to order the other books that John Gilstrap has written, as this is my first book to read from this author, but it only took this one to hook me! I just wish they all came in Hardback, as "Scott Free" is.
4004183
A great thrill of a read! This book is filled with mixed emotions and tons of suspense lingering from one page to the next, as well as from chapter to chapter. I found the main character's quest to be one that many men can relate to knowing that one girl at whatever point in your life . Outside of the normal mystery that the main plot is based on; I found it very rewarding taking a dive into the thoughts of Rhett and witnessing a rather, unique angle of affection and admiration.

The characters all play vital roles in the mystery element of the book and the author does a wonderful job of spacing various bits of information and details that really make the reader cast valid suspicions on who may have been responsible for the abduction of Rosalyn.

This book does an outstanding job of narrating a love story and walking you through an epic suspense filled mystery, at the same time. It is definitely a read that does extremely well at drawing you in bit by bit as you dive deeper into the story and it will leave you guessing until its satisfying and revealing, climactic end.
1310272
The intricacies of time travel and changing the past are successfully addressed in this suspenseful soon to be classic! I am telling all my reader friends about this series.
2668037
This is one of those stories that you find yourself talking to the book! You can see something horrible is going to happen, and you want to stop it! Then you realize you're reading and the character isn't real; you're able to barely get a grip!  Ha!  The main characters, San Antonio Detective Theo Mazur, and FBI Agent Dr. Kate Hayden, are so real and likable. They are drawn to each other from their first meeting, each finding so much to admire about the other. Theo and Kate have known great tragedy, and have lots of compassion for the victims of the psychopaths they hunt.

The storyline is complex, violent, disturbing, and raw. The killers Theo and Kate are searching for are smart, lucky, and obsessed. "The Last Move" is an engrossing, exciting, and suspenseful read!
2789305
Not so much a whodunit as a whodunwhat, and all the better for it. Ill skip a synopsis  others have beaten me to it  but comment on the interleaving of the two eras (1924 and 1965) throughout the book which, on this evidence, is a great way of presenting a mystery and also of prolonging the suspense. The twenties and the sixties were arguably the liveliest decades in the twentieth century  so there are some interesting times to read about here and the author certainly captures the colour and naughtiness of both. There are also some great characters in there  the good, the bad, the rich and poor, not forgetting the nave, and at least a couple wholl surprise you. Once hooked the story turned into a real page-turner for me and kept me guessing right up to the end (wrongly as it happens). Some of the scenes are so vivid I found myself wondering if it would make it to the big screen (or maybe the small screen). Whatever - a right good read!
4843942
Cedar Hollow is the first Romantic Suspense book by Tracey Smith, author of the Love Trilogy. Tracey already had the romance writing down, and she has nailed the suspense aspect with her initial endeavor in this genre.

The author's writing style is easy to follow. The story-line is fast-paced, as a good suspense novel should be. I didn't want to put it down - but I had to. Couldn't pull an all-nighter, because I had to work the next day.

Part of the suspense and intrigue is due to the periodic narratives by "The Chosen One", a mysterious avenger whose time of reckoning has come, to right the wrongs, and let no one stand in the way. The first such narrative is at the end of Chapter One, so right away the reader is drawn in to the mystery. As I was reading, I correctly suspected a certain character as being "The Chosen One," but this didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book at all.

There are also gothic elements that increase the suspense in the book. Cassidy feels a sensation of coldness whenever she walks near the foot of the 3rd floor staircase. The unused rooms on the 1st floor are kept ominously dark. Even though Cassidy closes her curtains at night, they're open in the morning.

The main characters, Cassidy and Ben, are well written, and are my favorites. At the beginning of the book, Cassidy comes across as a rather cold-hearted workaholic businesswoman, in charge of acquisitions for a resort chain, which means talking people into selling their property to the resort. Ben, who has a chip on his shoulder for an unknown reason, resents her for the job she does. As the story progresses, the reader learns of Cassidy's history, and why Ben felt that way towards her. Learning "the rest of the story" makes both characters more likeable.

Also as the story progress, several accidents occur, with Cassidy barely escaping serious injury. During the time when the accidents were occurring, the relationship between Ben and Cassidy evolves - from Ben being barely civil to Cassidy, to Ben being intimate with Cassidy (with three explicit scenes). This romantic suspense is heavy on the romance! The mystery is finally solved, with an exciting climax to the story.

I enjoyed this book very much, and rated it four out of five stars. It is a pleasing blend of suspense and romance. If you like Harlequin romances, and the gothic novels of Barbara Michaels, you'll love Cedar Hollow by Tracey Smith!

Note: The author provided a complimentary copy of this book to me, in exchange for an honest review.
634190
This inventive and suspenseful thriller is like rediscovering a long lost friend. To see this film restored and digitally remastered is truly an incredible thing to behold! Starring heavy hitters such as Orson Welles and Loretta Young, I can fully understand why this screenplay was an Academy Award nominee! Full of suspense and apprehension, this is a cliffhanger that holds true despite it's age. We have a Nazi fugitive (Welles) who has created a new life and new identity, but there is a man hunting him down intent on unraveling the guise. All of the players in the film are part of this mystery unfolding, the hardest character is the fugitive's wife (Young) who must come to terms with the possibility of who her husband may truly be. One of my favorite classics of all time, The Stranger, gets better with time and age.
2475618
Certainly it is one of Helen MacInnes' most suspenseful novels!  In "The Salzburg Connection," MacInnes once again couples history with the present.  This time, however, she doesn't have to go back so far.  In a deep lake in the Austrian Alps lies a chest filled with Nazi secrets and agents from a number of countries are most eager to get possession of such a potetntial "weapon"--it doesn't contain literal treasure, but lists of "who's who and who's what" during the Nazi period.  It is supposed that there are names in this chest of quite successful individuals who were able to escape their (hidden) Nazi past.  You can imagine the urgency to get the chest.  MacInnes is a master at being in control of her thrillers.  Too, she is quite excellent in her description of the settings; her characterization is also superb.  Bill Mathison, a New York lawyer, has the inside track here and must face perilous times in his pursuit.  Along the way, he also meets two beautiful women, both of whom are eager to help him, and one of whom is set to betray him.  In the most deadly fashion!(Billyjhobbs@tyler.net)
4331678
Fast paced and thrilling to read. The history angle is so well developed and researched that I found myself lost in the train from another century. Even though Lily knew who the killer was there was still so much intrigue from other mysteries that the book kept moving. There were so many smaller added details that made this book leap off the page. A definite page turner as I had to finish it after I started (made for a late night or early morning). The minor characters, from her long lost aunt and uncle and her new found female friend are all developed to not overshadow the major characters, but enough to make us want to know more. It is classified as a historical romantic suspense, but I found much more suspense than I did romance...which because of the era the book is written in, it makes sense. Plus I talked to the author and there will be a book 2...so maybe the romance will pick up a little for Lily. Meg Mims had originally written a Gone With The Wind esque type book about the transcontinental railroad and she was told to find the story in it. I think she did that and very well!!
3186623
Cyber Crime becomes the physio in this very modern thriller - however when the police force  refuse to acknowledge
any crime has been committed it falls on Old Fashioned Sleuths to track down a missing person - enter a retired Cop
and a young worried friend of the 'missing'  dare then if you are brave enough! - I will never book online transport again!
A police friend of mine has told me that this book could easily imitate a case ongoing in Scotland - suppose this is the
new Criminal M,O, - well done Mr Brown for tackling a v real subject and threat - read with the lights on!
Can't wait for the TV/Film version!
4083450
Enjoyed the roller-coaster of thrill and mayham!  Each page, I was intrigued and afraid , of " what could possibly !" happen next!
I promise, you will want to read over and over !
2781694
A Thrilling Story Like You Have Climbed in the Back of a Motorcycle on a Bumpy, Scary, and Yet Exquisitely Exciting Journey!

This is an excellent thriller about a strong woman, Bitsy whose husband suddenly dies in a motorcycle crash. Deputy Shoemake and others attempt to dismiss this as a DUI accident. So, Mrs. Bitsy Morrissey, while still mourning for her departed beloved husband, is forced to take over Morrissey Construction Company's project and fight Mafia, industrial sabotage, arson fire, and LeGrande's Construction Company. She is determined to do this in addition to clearing her husband's name. With help from her friend Keesha and others Bitsy does relentless, smart heroics, even with a broken ankle, that required constant ice bags and pain killers.

The plot is strong, credible, and full of twists and turns. Characters are exquisitely and three dimensionally alive in a realistic and hypnotizing engaging and full of surprise and suspense in exciting dialogues. Characters like Moshe Kreigbaum who, "mixed Europe, Israel, and New Jersey with a grandfatherly Jewish accent" become as real as real acquaintances, neighbors, and relatives.

Reading this superbly written and edited book at first has maximum attraction.  It is so touching that it feels like reading about a detective, a crime, and even romance story in your local paper and right next to your home. Then, you experience a strong attachment as if this story was about you.

Around chapter two, you are hopelessly immersed in the story. If feels like you have climbed behind and riding in the back of a motorcycle while it uncontrolably goes through many bumpy, scary, dangerous, and winding roads.

I strongly recommend this impressive book!
4341113
Author Christopher D. Petersen has a way of building suspense that just does not let up. If you have read Tomb of Atlantis (or have downloaded it and are waiting for just the right relaxing weekend to enjoy it), splurge and buy Curse of Atlantis as well. I enjoyed Tomb of Atlantis thoroughly, rooting for the main character, Jack Roberts, an easy-going, handsome, smart, and resourceful engineer/adventurer. The same holds true for Curse of Atlantis. Curse of Atlantis takes up right where Tomb of Atlantis left off. And I liked it even better!! Jack Roberts and his archaeologist friends, Serena and Javier Arista, plan to look for the pyramid for which they found the key (and you will need to read Tomb for that!). Serena and Jack have a fantastic chemistry between them, established in Tomb of Atlantis, but unfortunately, the relationship is not consummated (again!) because Serena is taken hostage by some really scary Russians. This throws the plans to find the pyramid, in Greece, into high gear, since the kidnappers want the treasures that are contained within the pyramid in exchange for Serena's life.
As in Tomb of Atlantis, Petersen's knowledge, explanations, and descriptions of archaeology and engineering support and lend credibility to his novel and effectively illustrate the plot. The characters are even further developed in Curse of Atlantis and (I hope) enduring. The action sequences are well-played, and there are several twists and turns that keep the story exciting, as well as a fast read, with an extremely believable and "it could be true!" ending. These entertaining characters and creative plotlines definitely should be worked into a continuing series. Definitely download both of these memorable Atlantis novels for a beach read or rainy weekend and pray that Chris Petersen writes some more!