Publisher: William Morrow
Published: March 15, 2022
Source: Netgalley via Publisher
Summary:
The story of nine strangers who receive a cryptic list with their names on it – and then begin to die in highly unusual circumstances.
Nine strangers receive a list with their names on it in the mail. Nothing else, just a list of names on a single sheet of paper. None of the nine people know or have ever met the others on the list. They dismiss it as junk mail, a fluke – until very, very bad things begin happening to people on the list. First, a well-liked old man is drowned on a beach in the small town of Kennewick, Maine. Then, a father is shot in the back while running through his quiet neighborhood in suburban Massachusetts. A frightening pattern is emerging, but what do these nine people have in common? Their professions range from oncology nurse to aspiring actor.
FBI agent Jessica Winslow, who is on the list herself, is determined to find out. Could there be some dark secret that binds them all together? Or is this the work of a murderous madman? As the mysterious sender stalks these nine strangers, they find themselves constantly looking over their shoulders, wondering who will be crossed off next….
My thoughts:
Peter Swanson has become a must-read author for me when it comes to crime fiction and I love that his books are so thrilling and binge-worthy and this latest one is no exception – I read this one in a day! This newest one was a most-anticipated read for this month and it totally delivered!
Even though I have not read Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, which this book pays homage to, I absolutely loved Peter Swanson’s take on it and found myself hooked right from the get-go. I was so intrigued by the puzzle that he gave us, the list of nine seemingly random people on a list who start to get killed one by one. In fact, me being the geek that I am, I made my own list to keep track of who was who so I didn’t have to keep flipping back to the beginning – yes there is a character list in the front of the book that I found extremely helpful! – and as each character was knocked off, I made note of it on my list.
This book really kept me on my toes as I felt I was working just as hard as the detectives in trying to figure out just what was going here. I loved that the story is told from multiple points of view, allowing us to get to know everyone on the list, however briefly. It really does keep you hooked and the short chapters move the story along at a rather brisk pace. The twists were just right – not too many and not too over the top – but just enough to keep you engaged and on uneven footing, occurring when you least expected them, which is just how I like them. And that ending…I definitely did not see that coming!
I cannot recommend this book enough. It is entertaining, thrilling and just a great story. And now I cannot wait to pick up And Then There Were None to see how it compares! Peter Swanson continues to amaze me with just how clever and talented a writer he is and I cannot wait to see what he comes up with next!
