Where Serpents Lie

Rating:
Summary: Darker Parker......
Review: I first discovered T. Jefferson Parker in Silent Joe, a carefully crafted and intriguing story with a twist. Joe, a sweet man with a damaged face, is one of Parker's great heroes. Naughton, in Where Serpents Lie, is another. He's a self-acknowledged flawed character who lives with regret and sorrow and deception while struggling to do his job as head of the Crimes Against Youth division of the Orange County Sheriff's Office. I liked him immensely, perhaps because he is flawed enough to be real. The crimes against children which he investigates make your hair stand on end, partly because you know they really happen. But Parker appears to have done his research and presents the cases and circumstances with compassion while creating a villain who is both monstrous and yet sympathetic. This is an exciting if long read, maybe a trifle overwritten. The novel contains one glaring error that no other reviewer has commented on, so I will. After Naughton sees photos of himself that he knows are doctored, he goes to a friend and asks the friend to doctor some photos himself, of a woman bathing a child, a woman and child who have never actually met. Apparently, Naughton means to use this doctored photo as proof that the photos which resulted in his suspension from CAY were also doctored. As readers we get on board with this idea and wait to see what happens. But we wait in vain, for this entire plot line and the requested doctored photo is never heard of again. The photo never materializes and the friend is never again mentioned. It's an editor's job to catch these things so I blame him or her more than Parker himself for this big ooops. Other than that, Serpent is another winner in the Parker ouevre. I put Parker in the company of Dennis Lehane, James W. Hall, and Carl Hiassen--all gifted writers and good storytellers.

Rating:
Summary: A winner
Review: I gotta agree with the people who said un-put-downable. This one took me a little over 24 hours. I was fascinated by the pure evil of the Horridus, and the Terry Naughton character seemed real to me. This book held my interest all the way through. And who cares how he moved the snake.Part of the fun of reading fiction is that it is make-believe and you can suspend your dis-belief and just enjoy a rousing good yarn!

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Summary: This thriller was a real killer!
Review: I like really intense thrillers ... I mean intense. This T. Jefferson Parker book was involved in three mysteries at once, something I have not had in a book. There was a death, then there was a man in jail, then there was the Horridus, which is mammouth! I mean this book was easy to read, it wasn't alot of involved reading. All I can say is if you like thrillers, alot, read "Where Serpents Lie".

Rating:
Summary: T. Jefferson Parker
Review: I loved this book as I loved all of his books. His books keep me on the edge of my chair. I feel his latest books have more of an edge to them than the first ones. Living in Laguna Beach for many years, I loved the books that took place there. Hopefully, he will continue to write great books.

Rating:
Summary: This book had potential, or so I thought
Review: I've never read Parker before, so I thought I'd start out with this one. I'm glad I did, because despite of how little I liked this one I've since read a couple of his other books I've liked more.

Where Serpents Lie should have been great but it wasnt'. I just couldn't believe the story line, either one of them.

Please don't waste your time or money on this one.

Rating:
Summary: Kirkus Reviews is WRONG
Review: In my humble opinion, Where Serpents Lie is the best crime fiction novel in the last four or five years. Parker has crafted an intricate, unforgettable plot rich with engaging characters. From start to finish the pace never falters, the action is believable and truly scary.

For the so-called experts at Kirkus to call his work "annoyingly unoriginal" reeks of jealously and envy. They couldn't write as well as Parker if their lives depended on it.

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Summary: SNAKES AND HUMAN PREDATORS
Review: It's been well over ten years since I read T. Jefferson Parker's LAGUNA HEAT. I remember that it was a good book. For whatever reason, I didn't follow up on Mr. Parker's other works as he continued to write. That was my mistake! Thankfully, I've rediscovered him. I just finished WHERE SERPENTS LIE and though the novel was written over two years ago, I have to place it on my list of best books that I've read so far in the new millennium. The story deals with Sergeant Terry Naughton, head of the Crimes Against Youth Division of the Orange County Sheriff Department in Southern California, and his hunt for the Horridus, a man who preys on young children. Two years before, Terry suffered the lost of his five-year-old son, Matt, in a swimming accident. He still feels the immense pain of the tragedy, not to mention the sense of failure and regret he experienced when he and his wife could no longer live together after what happened. Terry now pours all of his energy into trying to save as many children as possible from the human monsters out there, who secretly hunt, sexually abuse, and kill these innocents as a means to fulfilling their sick desires. There is one man who calls himself the Horridus, and he's the worst of the monsters. His pleasure comes in the form of kidnapping the children right out of their homes, then using them to complete his dark fantasies before feeding them to his thirty-foot long python. Now, in my opinion, this is definitely a guy you want to do a "Dirty Harry" on. Terry feels the same way. His one goal is to put this predator down the hard way, hopefully before he kills again. As Terry gets deeper into the hunt, he's suddenly sidetracked when mysterious pictures of him having sex with a minor are discovered by members of his department while checking out a crime scene. Terry knows that he is innocent, but few others seem to believe him. The question is who's setting him up for the big fall? Who has the most to gain? Is it the Horridus, or is it possibly one of the members of his department? Terry quickly finds himself on suspension while an investigation is started into the incriminating pictures. He refuses, however, to just sit back and wait, especially while the Horridus is still kidnapping children. With or without the help of his department, he's determined to nail this guy. He simply has to do it before he finds himself in jail on false charges. WHERE SERPENTS LIE will surprise you again and again. Just when you think you know where it's going, there will be a twist that takes you in a completely different direction. You may at times feel sick as Mr. Parker delves into the hideous side of human nature, but at no point will you stop rooting for our hero to put down this evil specimen of humanity. The writing is taunt and the suspense is relentless. Mr. Parker has created a hero with a tormented soul in the character of Terry Naughton, and your heart will go out to him at the ending when he's forced to look at himself and the people around him, realizing that monsters can come in many different disguises. This is certainly the kind of book you will try to read in one day. Don't rush it. Savor the anticipation and excitement of each page, and take your time. Allow yourself at least two days of delightful enjoyment. I'm now getting ready to start Mr. Parker's next novel, THE BLUE HOUR. From the blurb on the back cover, it appears to be every bit as good as this one was.

Rating:
Summary: worth the read
Review: Orange County has some terrific mystery authors who have produced some extraordinary mystery books. John Shannon's Orange Curtain, Kent Braithwaite's Wonderland Murders, and Carol Lachnit's Janie's Law immediately come to mind. T. Jefferson Parker is the top of the class, and his Where Serpents Lie is one of his darkest and most haunting books. I loved Mr. Parker's mastery of his detailed setting and his capturing the Orange County lifestyle. The reptile store featured in this novel really exists! His plot was fresh. I enjoy the way Parker creates new characters for almost every book. Where Serpents Lie is a dark book. It is well-written. I'm glad I read it.

Rating:
Summary: The Dark Side of Orange County
Review: Orange County has some terrific mystery authors who have produced some extraordinary mystery books. John Shannon's Orange Curtain, Kent Braithwaite's Wonderland Murders, and Carol Lachnit's Janie's Law immediately come to mind. T. Jefferson Parker is the top of the class, and his Where Serpents Lie is one of his darkest and most haunting books. I loved Mr. Parker's mastery of his detailed setting and his capturing the Orange County lifestyle. The reptile store featured in this novel really exists! His plot was fresh. I enjoy the way Parker creates new characters for almost every book. Where Serpents Lie is a dark book. It is well-written. I'm glad I read it.

Rating:
Summary: It is possible to put this book down
Review: Overall, this book was pretty good. It started off to be very interesting, but slowed down in the middle. When the plot focused on The Horridus, I.R. Shroud, and CAY it was engrossing. However, all the extraneous stuff about the main character's personal relationships with women was just tedious reading. The story again speeds up at the end and I found myself reading through the last few chapters very quickly. It was well written and a pretty good read, but I don't understand those who say they couldn't put it down. Maybe they were referring to the last few chapters. If you are from Orange County in California, you will enjoy reading all the references to real life locations. It helped bring the story to life for me.