Deviant Ways

Rating:
Summary: A little too over-the-top
Review: 'Deviant Ways' has lots of action, evil, evil villains, and flawed heroes. However, it has all these things to the 10th power. Mooney also makes some mistakes with plotting and details.

Some examples are: in one sequence Jack Casey, the ex-FBI, small town detective main character, is driving a truck, and then he is in a Porsche, and then is once again in the truck. The Sandman, the evil genius always knows Casey's cell phone number, no matter how many new phones Casey gets. In addition, the Sandman always has better technology than the FBI. The Sandman's technological expertise almost becomes comical later in the book. I will not even mention the problems with the Invisible-Man-ex-profiler-techno-wharehouse Malcolm Fletcher.

There are also quite a few times when it becomes obvious that this is Mooney's first book. The example that annoyed me the most was Mooney's numerous descriptions of how Casey would become weak or lightheaded. When you read the book, just count 'em.

I rated this book three stars because it was fairly exciting to read, even given the flaws I mentioned above. And I definitely think it would make a very good Die-Hard type movie.

Rating:
Summary: Spectacular Thrill Ride
Review: A battle of evil geniuses. Mooney cleverly writes about Jack Casey, Malcolm Fletcher and the Sandman as if they were all sides of the same coin. The action a little over the top at times? Maybe. Say whatever you want, Chris Mooney delivers the goods. This guy is a great writer, and I'm sure he's going to get even better in time. (And I don't know why a few of you reviewers have to focus on a stupid typo in the book. I mean, that's all you have to say about the book? That you found a typo? Who cares???)

Rating:
Summary: Mooney takes the reader to the edge.....
Review: AND leaves him there!

For those who have read Greg Iles and love him (who doesn't?), Chris Mooney will be a nice addition to your repertoire. A relatively new author, DEVIANT WAYS is Mooney's first offering and I can only hope that he does not suffer from the disease often plauging new writers, Freshman Success.

...

So here's the deal, typically, a thriller has "stop-and-go" action. Not so with DEVIANT WAYS. Mooney keeps the reader involved with every chapter, literally. He has achieved this interactive involvement by creating surprise twists. As he sets up a situation with a seemly logical outcome, he'll shock the reader with a pardoxical twist. ... there are a couple of blunders within the storyline (something a good editor should have caught) but this does not detract from quality of the book. Another area that Mooney seems to have a natural talent for is character development. With the exception of Fletcher, we don't have any superhumans in this book. Rather, this book reflects the innate flaws that every human possesses. Mooney does an outstanding job of building each character's strengths but then throws humanity at us with the expected ideosyncracies.

As earlier stated, Mooney's knack seems to be his ability to maintain the level of action to keep the reader on edge. He uses the technique of ending a chapter in the middle of an action sequence propelling the reader to the next chapter automatically. A very effective tool as it makes it difficult to put the book down.

I've already purchased Mooney's second book just based on this read alone. This is about the highest compliment I can give an author. Sure, Mooney will continue to develop his skills and will only get better but hey, I want to be there for the entire ride.

Rating:
Summary: An Exceptional Debut
Review: As other reviewers have given a synopsis of this novel, I will not repeat them. Mr. Mooney has written a fast paced, character driven, top-notch supense thriller. If you buy no other suspense novel this year - buy DEVIANT WAYS. As a suspense fan you will not be disappointed.

Rating:
Summary: Chris Mooney is "da bomb"
Review: As the contrarian I would like to believe I am, I took twice as long as is usually the case with a book in this category to complete Chris Mooney's first novel. I just refused to force myself to finish because I didn't want to look for something else to read that I knew would not be as good. Move over Patterson and Deaver, it's time to create a slot on the best seller list for a new contender.

As an FBI profiler, Jack Casey was at the top of the heap. Now, after a slew of cases that weigh heavily on his psyche, most especially the one that cost him his wife, he's trying to rebuild his life working as a detective in the tony New England town of Marblehead, Massachussetts. But instead of hormonal teens looking for a diversion, he comes up against a brilliant and deranged killer who calls himself "The Sandman", hellbent on bombing his name to the forefront of public consciousness. In order to apprehend him, Jack is going to be obligated to re-visit mental recesses he just as soon allow to remain blocked off. Aided by the suave, witty, mysterious, and eminently (not to mention imminently) resourceful Malcolm Fletcher - another ex-profiler, Jack has to battle his through a litany of obstacles, including those internally created. Can he outthink The Sandman and are forces from his past going to allow him to succeed?

Mooney doesn't waste time or pages building to a crisis. DEVIANT WAYS is non-stop action from page one. Without a dull interlude to be found, it is a thriller in every sense of the word.

Rating:
Summary: A Pacy Thriller
Review: As thrillers go this book isn't bad at all. The story twists and turns and rapidly unfolds, which I liked. I also liked the fact that the killer, the 'Sandman', was unique in his murder technique, his methods being reliant on technology and of a twisted nature. Of course, as with most thrillers, the Sandman had a dark history supplying him with motive, and the detective on the case, Jack Casey, has his own history of a wrecked family, an unhealthy relationship with killers, is struggling to keep his current relationship together, devotes too much of his life to his job, is unhappy, etc. But there is so much more to this story, including gruesome past cases and crooked FBI officials, that you can't help but like it. I would recommend it, but hope that you don't get as frustrated as I did with the typical detective problems that Jack Casey experiences!

Rating:
Summary: Oh, please!
Review: Bottom line: Chris Mooney can write.

Top line: This book is beyond far-fetched; it's badly edited (on one page the hero, Jack Casey, is in a truck with the supposedly good guy, ubermensch/superman [but possibly bad] Malcolm Fletcher; farther down the page, Jack's in a Porsche; then in the next paragraph, he's in a truck. On another page, a cop throws away the same cigarette three different times--a trick I'd definitely like to learn.)

Deviant Ways is repetitious, and hardly credible, with a villain who-when he is finally introduced-fails entirely to come to life. He's simply not real.

The book is beyond derivative; it reads like an homage to Thomas Harris. And while Harris's books may _seem_ simple, it takes great skill to write as well as Harris does. Mr. Mooney is nowhere near that point. I do think that once he stops trying to ape other writers and begins to explore the scope of his own abilities, he may well write a book worth reading. But Deviant Ways isn't it.

Rating:
Summary: Passable fun ride
Review: Chri Mooney's Deviant Ways isn't a masterpiece of suspense. It is an awkwardly written book which is able to grab you by the gut once in a while and take you on a very wild ride. But the book is so far-fetched at times, and the dozens of characters that graze the pages of this book are so badly desinged they all end up looking and sounding alike.

I have to admit that the more I read, the more I got into the story. But at one point in the book (about halfway through), you just have to let all your disbeliefs go in order to enjoy the ride. Jack, our main character, is trying to save a woman which is trapped in a car filled with explosives. Oh yeah, and the madman killer is controlling the car. Jack rides on top of cars, doing the super hero things, and ends up surviving AND without a single scratch. Plus, the madman is following them in his car, so how can he drive AND control the other woman's car all at once?

There are many things in this book that you just can't believe. And the dialogue is often horrendous. But if you're able to let go of your sense of logic, then the book becomes enjoyable. I particularly liked the climactic - if overwritten - ending and there is one scene involving a bomb, a young boy and a pool which is just amazing. But the rest of the book is average at most.

This book was written to be turned into a film, there is no doubt about it. The paper-thin characters and short chapters are crying to be adpted into a film. And this whole book, with a little retooling and rewritting, could become a great action flick. But on the page, the whole drama doesn't play as well as it could. First time author Mooney should try to develop a style instead of trying to figure out how to bring upon the next blow-up.

One last thing... Mooney seems to love silly similes. So many chapters begin with very childish and unnecessary descriptions of the sky. After a while, you just feel like screaming, "No more!"

Rating:
Summary: Heavy Duty!
Review: Chris Mooney has written a superb first novel: this is a brilliant story, intricately woven with twists and turns leaving you on the edge of your seat. The novel takes place in a small town in Massachuetts. The basic plot is that someone is killing families in a cruel and horrific fashion. Usually the husband is forced to watch while his family is slaughtered before his very eyes. The chief investigator, Jack Casey, a former profiler with the FBI immediately recognizes the similarities between these murders and his own tragic witness to his wife and unborn child's slaughter: an event that catapulted him into a mental institution for a brief period. The villain of this piece calls himself The Sandman; and, he wants Jack Casey in the middle of his massacres. The Sandman wages a cruel psychological war against Casey and taunts him in such a way as to almost push him back into madness. Another former FBI agent, Malcolm Fletcher, joins Casey in his hunt for The Sandman. Fletcher, we soon learn, has his own reasons for the joining the chase.

There are elements in this novel that call to mind Thomas Harris' Hannibal Lecter; but the villain here is more like a Lecter on steroids: he has the good doctor's taste for gore and relishes the chess match between himself and what he views as decidedly low rent competition keystone cops; but his character has another dimension because of his technological prowess. The character development of all the characters was basically solid. I would have liked a more fully developed Taylor (Jack's love interest); and, I wouldn't be surprised to see Jack Casey again. The Malcolm Fletcher character is probably the big winner here: he has all the mystery and swagger of a real hero. Fletcher could easily be the principal in a prequel. If I have any negative impression it is with Mooney's over use of particularly annoying blasphemies: it merely detracts from his superior talent.

Rating:
Summary: Great New Writer!!
Review: Deviant Ways is a great book - a nonstop thriller packed with excitement. Jack Casey is a man who is haunted by his past - as an FBI profiler he saw the worst in people and also experienced the loss of his wife and child. Now trying to start a new life in a small town he is confronted by a serial killer like no other. The Sandman is cruel, gruesome and cunning. Jack teams up with another ex-FBI profiler Malcolm Fletcher to find the Sandman. Fletcher is a dark mysterious man with a hidden agenda which adds another level of suspense to the story.

The chapters are written like James Patterson (short, tight and full of suspense). Chris Mooney does a great job of developing the main characters and grabbing your attention early in the book.