A review by mojoshivers
Inherit the Dead by Charlaine Harris, C.J. Box, Lee Child
4.0
I was prepared to give this book a middling three-star grade. The shifts between the writers’ styles were far more noticeable than I was lead to believe, a lot of the book was spent shuffling back-and-forth between the Hamptons and NYC, and a lot of the characterization just seemed malleable from writer to writer. All these made for a story that seemed inconsistent at best.
But the ending rescued it, which is why they left the esteemed Lawrence Block in the anchor spot. I can’t think of a better writer to land the plane as it were after a very turbulent ride. Not only was the explanation of what was going on concise, coherent, and convincing but it managed to tie in the relevant threads of Pericles’ former case, his own troubled family life, and his prospects for the future without missing a beat.
Say what you want about campfire type novels, when the setup is good and the ending is excellent, a lot of the missteps in the formula can be forgiven. After all, the only thing that matters is that the mystery presented was engaging and comes to a satisfying conclusion. And, under those simplified criteria, this book is a hit. Is it a home run? No. Hardly. But I’d say it’s a solid RBI double.
But the ending rescued it, which is why they left the esteemed Lawrence Block in the anchor spot. I can’t think of a better writer to land the plane as it were after a very turbulent ride. Not only was the explanation of what was going on concise, coherent, and convincing but it managed to tie in the relevant threads of Pericles’ former case, his own troubled family life, and his prospects for the future without missing a beat.
Say what you want about campfire type novels, when the setup is good and the ending is excellent, a lot of the missteps in the formula can be forgiven. After all, the only thing that matters is that the mystery presented was engaging and comes to a satisfying conclusion. And, under those simplified criteria, this book is a hit. Is it a home run? No. Hardly. But I’d say it’s a solid RBI double.