Rating: 
Summary: Deaver Dithers, but WOW!
Review: Deaver's love of excruciating detail has certainly exasperated many readers caught in his exciting stories: come ON!! Get on with the story!!!I am not going to spoil the ending of this novel for you (you're welcome). Simply allow me to say, the plot really picks up just when you think all the dust has settled. So find a comfortable chair for the long haul, and happy reading! PS: If you read at night, you will probably want to turn on ALL the lights.
Rating: 
Summary: Stunning suspense thriller
Review: It was a while ago that i read this book, and it was my first of Deavers. Since then i have bought every single book he has ever written, and have read all but a few of them. This is simple an outstanding book. it is the best hostage thriller i have ever read, and that i expect i ever will. Deaver mounts the tension beautifully...every now and then it gets so high that you literally feel it as he lets a little of the tension out...it's a wonderful display of suspense writing. Deavers characters are vivid, and his characterisation is wonderfully subtle. they are well rounded and very human. Arthur Potter is a compelling hero, and his "invisble" relationship with Melanie is brilliantly done. the way they feel connected to each other during the hostage negotiation even though they have never met is wonderful. I felt very moved. As well as being a very suspenseful book, this is also an extremely emotional one. there are times when you really feel very sorry for the characters, and an insipid hate for their characters. I felt particularly sorry for poor Donna Hawstrawn. I really wanted this book to keep going, just so that i could see if she would be okay...there are also a couple of moments in the book when you might be moved to tears. there are some devastating events, which really tug at you. Deavers portrayal of the Deaf is completely unpatronising. He is extremely good at writing about people with what might be termed "handicaps", and in this case i think he was at hsi most sucessful. He wrote about it in such a way that you did feel slight sympathy, but moreover you felt proud of these people. Also, i felt a strange but strong urge to actually really try and get a feel for what it might be like to be Deaf... This is a brilliant book, with a good twist at the end. good characters, emotional writing, stunning suspense, and an excellent hostage thriller. Deaver is simply the best.
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Summary: Terror and death in a Kansas wheat field
Review: "A Maiden's Grave", authored by popular mystery/crime thriller novelist Jeffrey Deaver ("The Bone Collector," "The Coffin Dancer," "Praying for Sleep") was first published in 1995. This is a real crackerjack of a mystery novel, folks... chock-a-block full of interesting characters; a tightly knit, thrilling plot; and enough twists and turns to keep even the most hard-boiled reader of mysteries squirming uncomfortably from start to finish. On a cloudy, blustery, uncommonly cold early July day in rural Kansas, at a lonely highway crossroads, a simple traffic accident has just resulted in the murder of two innocent people. Three hardened criminals have captured a school bus with eight deaf school girls and their two teachers on board... Amidst wind-buffeted, golden Kansas wheat fields, FBI negotiator Arthur Potter must begin bargaining for the release of the hostages. For hour after tense hour, Potter calmly, but with a growing feeling of desperation, tries to win release of the hostages By now, the young girls are being kept in a room with an incendiary "booby trap" installed. As Potter continues his negotiations, some of the girls decide to take matters into their own hands, with frightful results... "A Maiden's Grave" is the first of Jeffrey Deaver's books that I've read, but it certainly won't be the last! This is wonderful storytelling all the way! Deaver brings us a completely believable, well researched, and thrilling plot; "good guys" that, despite their manifold flaws, are easy to root for; and "bad guys" that quickly earn our enmity. Deaver immediately grabbed my attention on the first page of the book, and never let go. In quick succession, I was transported from a school bus making its way along a deserted highway, to a cemetery where Arthur Potter is tending his wife's grave and two FBI agents approach with a new assignment, and then to a Kansas crossroads where a collision between two cars results in cold blooded murder. Soon Deaver had me completely engrossed with his straightforward but vivid prose. For many hours I was unable to put "A Maiden's Grave" down... I just HAD to find out what happened next... Deaver's characters are rich and detailed. The "good guys" aren't without their flaws... The "bad guys" are evil personified. I wasn't able to find a single redeeming quality in any of them throughout the book's 419 pages. Deaver's treatment of the subject of deafness is worthy of a great deal of praise. He spends a great deal of time describing the plight of the eight school girls and their teachers, and in all cases, his hearing impaired characters are treated with compassion and accuracy. In no case is there any evidence of stereotyping in Deaver's character development. Deaver should be commended for his research, his compassion, and his sensitivity in dealing with the subject of hearing loss. "A Maiden's Grave" is not your typical crime thriller/mystery novel. It has a highly innovative, well crafted, and exciting plot, and superbly drawn characters. Folks, this one's a real, honest-to-goodness, barn-burnin' page turner. I loved it... and, I think, so will you!!
Rating:
Summary: All Night Page Turner
Review: Jeffrey Deaver is the master of suspenseful page turners, and this book delivers. Like Lincoln Rhymes, the lead character in this book is not a lovable guy. Art Potter is a hostage negotiator whose only goal is to get the hostage takers to surrender. When he is called in on a case where 8 deaf children and their teachers have been abducted, the choices he makes often seem cold blooded. Yet we are rooting for Potter to succeed in ending the stand-off.
Writing a book where most of the characters are deaf could not have been easy, but Deaver seems to be able to get into the psyche of a deaf group of young girls, and write great "speaking" parts them. We are very in tune with the girls, and most especially the teacher, Melanie, whose character undergoes a metamorphosis during the captivity.
Deaver is the master of the "I didn't see that one coming", and he does that again here. Just when you think everything is over and done, he shoots you right back into the action.
My biggest complaint with this book was the ending, certain things seemed out of character. It seemed a little pat. Regardless of that, the book was well worth the roller coaster ride, and puts me in mind of another of Deaver's books. Read this one, and you'll be "Praying for Sleep", for you are certain to be up all night, worried about those hostages.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: This is one of Deaver's best works. The plot is very strong, with many twists. The setting is almost another character in this book. The descriptions of the slaugterhouse make this a disturbing read, and helps the reader see horror these girls go through. The dialogue is excellent, as is typical of Deaver. Most author's wouldn't attempt to write dialogue that included 9 deaf characters, but Deaver pulls it off in stunning fashion. The only thing that kept this book from being my favorite Deaver book was the characters. They are all very strong and very well defined (especially Melanie, Arthur, and Lou), but there wasn't one that I could identify with. Read this book. It is excellent, and I guarantee you won't be disappointed. But also don't miss my personal favorite Deaver novel The Devil's Teardrop.
Rating:
Summary: top ten list
Review: readers may be surprised to hear that I believe this to be Deaver's best novel. I know, The Bone Collector was great,and they made a movie out of it, but if ever there was a high action suspense novel that should have been brought to the screen with big name actors, it's A Maiden's Grave. It has it all! I won't get into playing critic here, but I will say that I read over 100 suspense novels per year, every year, and this book remains one of my all time favorites. Don't start reading it unless you're prepared to stay up all night.
Rating:
Summary: A really great book
Review: I just loved this book! Of the books I've read by Jeffrey Deaver this is my favorite. I have recommended it to several friends. It's a keeper!
Rating:
Summary: A True Page Turner!
Review: The claims on the books cover don't lie - The story grabs you and won't let go. You will want to read this in one sitting. Perfect for airplane reading - the hours will fly by. In addition to the non-stop plot, Deaver has created characters that you really come to care about, in a very compressed amount of time. A light read - great if you need a break from heavier fare. First rate entertainment.
Rating:
Summary: A haunting masterpiece
Review: Eight deaf girls and their two teachers are taken hostage on a lonely, deserted Kansas road. A merciless killer and his friends with no pity. A hostage negotiator fighting to get the girls out alive. This is the starting of A Maiden's Grave. The girls are from a local school, their teacher is Melanie Charrol. The killer is Lou Handy. And then there is Arthur Potter, the FBI's senior hostage negotiator. It is a battle of wills as Arthur struggles to get the hostages out safely, while Melanie takes on their captors in a desperate fight to keep her students alive. A skillfully wrote book, flawlessly put together.
Rating:
Summary: OVERPOWERING!
Review: As a crime fiction writer with my debut novel in its initial release who also teaches in a rural high school, I found Jeffery Deaver's A MAIDEN'S GRAVE fascinating. Eight students and two teachers from a Kansas school for the deaf are taken hostage by three escaped convicts. Negotiations soon commence, and FBI negotiator Arthur Potter does his best to free the hostages. A war of wills ensues, and Deaver has a great book on his hands. His plot, with a surprising twist at the end, is first-rate. His characters are believable. His setting is too perfect. I recommend A MAIDEN'S GRAVE highly.
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