Rating: 
Summary: Gripping mystery
Review: James Grippando's latest kept me guessing the whole way. A missing wife along with a serial killer on the loose can make for a predictable story, but not in the hands of Grippando. The story kept me entertained throughout, but I thought the second half was the better. Good mystery, good thrills, and good suspense, kept me glued too the book till the end.Recommended
Rating: 
Summary: Great start, but...
Review: James Grippando, Under Cover of Darkness (Avon, 2000) Boy, does this novel start out wonderfully. A workaholic lawyer discovers his wife has gone missing. A local FBI agent with an eye towards the serial killers' profiling unit is given the job of liaison between the branch office and the rep from Washington, her idol, after dumping her groom at the altar for sleeping with her sister. The missing wife might be dead...or she might be an accomplice to a string of serial killings. People keep turning up dead. And somehow, a fitness guru factors into it all. Everything's set up perfectly. Then it all goes down the tubes. The last fifty pages or so of this novel have "Hollywood ending" written all over them, as if just before he started writing them, Grippando got word that this book had been optioned, and he had to come up with an ending that would work in Hollywood. The whole tone changes; what would have taken two hundred pages earlier in the novel is rushed into far less than half that. Aside from the lack of wires and big masks, a lot of the ending has "deus ex machina" stamped on it. That's not to say it's not worth reading for the first three quarters of the book. Just beware the last quarter and the disappointment that comes with it. ** ½
Rating:
Summary: Under the Cover of Another Great Book
Review: Ok, I only gave this book 4 stars instead of 5 because the ending of the story left me twisting in the wind. This could have been 5 stars but since I am still puzzled as to what motivated the villain(s) in this book, I will leave it at 4 stars.
The story is about a lawyer who finds out that his wife is missing. The plot of the story centers on the fact that he does not know if his wife actually ran away or if she was kidnapped. To make it more intriguing, there is a person committing murders and the latest murder victim resembles the missing wife.
The book is a little deep in that throughout the book the lawyer/husband/father finds himself realizing that he did not know his wife as well as he thought he did. In realizing that he has chosen his career over his family, he wonders if he is somewhat to blame for what is happening with his wife and how his little girl is reacting to the whole situation.
The storyline was pretty good until you get to the last half of the book and you realize that you have stepped into the twighlight zone. Still, it is pretty good book compared to others I have read.
Rating:
Summary: Yuppie lawyer discovers conscience when wife disappears
Review: Readers can trace the life history of yuppies through the changing character of thrillers like this one. A decade ago, we were given stories about coldly ambitious, ruthless protagonists who overcame threats with actions that would challenge Arnold Schwarzenegger, and who treated women as throwaways. Now yuppie heros, having arrived at the pinnacle of career success, realize that they have shamefully ignored the significant others in their lives -- but only after a crisis affects them personally. In this case, an extremely successful Seattle lawyer finds that his neglected wife has disappeared. An investigation of bizarre murders that may be the work of a serial killer overlaps his own search. A female FBI agent who is part American Indian gets involved with the case. The writing is crisp enough, and there are some surprises along the way, particularly concerning the missing wife. However, the increasingly predictable cinematic confrontation near the end seems far too much like the Federal law enforcement assault on the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas.
Rating:
Summary: Only three stars because of the hurried, implausible ending.
Review: Really liked this book three-quarters of the way through. Then it fell flat, like a bad American movie...intriguing, to a point, but they had to finish it up quick so as not to go "over budget." I thought he'd tie the threads of the story together more convincingly, but he didn't, so I felt let down by the author when it all got jumbled up in an improbable story about cults and kidnapings and mass murder, blah, blah, blah. Books don't seem to be edited these days...just thrown out there without much thought to reader satisfaction. Makes you afraid to pick up a so-called "best seller." You just know it's all going to fall apart at some point. Why bother?
Rating:
Summary: Could have been better
Review: This book had a great, suspenseful story concept but seemed to end too abruptly without explaining the motive of the killer. I would have liked to have seen more development of the story in that area. Otherwise I thoroughly enjoyed the novel. I have read one previous book by this author, "The Informant", which was a very good story.
Rating: 
Summary: Easily one of my top 5 ever!
Review: This book was fantastic! I have read all of his books, and he is an amazing writer! This book scared me - I was tip towing around my apartment for a week! Fabulous story - great, strong characters and an amazing ending! Nothing lacking in this book! A MUST READ!!!
Rating:
Summary: Another winner from Grippando
Review: This is definitely worth reading, tho, not as good as Last To Die & Hear No Evil. I must say that Grippando is consistent with interesting plot lines and wonderful characters that will keep you reading long into the night. Recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Great book!!!
Review: This is my first James Grippando book and hope to buy others in the very near future. It held my attention from the opening page and I read it at every spare moment!! I had never heard of this author and picked it up when it was recommended in the 'if you like, this try this' section. Excellent book-surprise ending, too! I loved it! Thanks, Amazon, for the recommendation!!
Rating:
Summary: Good suspense story...3.5 Stars
Review: This is one of the better suspense novels I've read recently. Not the best, but one of the better ones. Not wasting time, the author jumps right into the suspense that carries throughout the story. As the story moves along, you learn more about the characters and come to care for them and what happens. The various characters are likeable and for the most part, act in ways you would expect them to act. The author also reveals bits and pieces of the mystery throughout the storyline, giving you enough information to help you try to figure out what the outcome will be, but not enough to reveal everything too fast. And, a plot twist towards the end gave me an unexpected but much appreciated surprise. While the story was good and it kept my attention, it could have been better...maybe with a faster pace, and more tightly woven suspense. Despite this, I would still recommend this book.
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