SOLITUDE CREEK

Jeffery Deaver

Grand Central Publishing

May 12th, 2015

SOLITUDE CREEK by Jeffery Deaver is a riveting mystery. He is definitely the Master of Suspense with the many twists and turns throughout the novel. It is an understatement to say he manipulates his readers as he sets them up for one course of action and then abruptly changes it. This latest Kathryn Dance novel is no different.

What makes this plot so gripping is that any person can see themselves in the victim’s situation. Whether in an elevator, a music club, a book signing, or an amusement park, the antagonist is able to manipulate a situation to cause chaos and panic, something he thrives upon. His first attempt at turning people’s fears and greed into a weapon was at a small concert venue on the Monterey Peninsula in California. Cries of fire caused people to panic and run for the doors, only to find them blocked. Investigators led by Kathryn Dance discover there was no fire and the six who died were stampeded. The rest of the book finds Kathryn and her team racing the clock to find the perpetrator before he strikes again.

Kathryn Dance, a California Bureau Investigator, uses kinesics to question suspects and witnesses. As a body language expert she is able to tell if someone might be lying if they begin “to speak more slowly, since your mind is trying to craft the lie and make sure it’ll be consistent with everything you’ve said before. The second is a slight increase in pitch.” Readers will like Kathryn, finding her caring, intelligent, and perceptive. Through her family interaction, including her two dogs, Dylan and Patsy, named after Bob Dylan and Patsy Cline, Deaver is able to show Kathryn’s personal side. This makes her more of a realistic character, and in this novel the love triangle that was happening between Kathryn and her two beaus will be settled.

SOLITUDE CREEK, as with all Deaver books, keeps readers on their toes. He does not have just one main twist and turn, but numerous ones. This novel is literally a page-turner since on one page the author sets up an expectation and on the next page twists it around.

Elise Cooper