Mystery/Thriller Book Reviews
Page Two of FourDeath Train to Boston by Dianne Day
Bantam, Sep., 1999.Hardcover, 258 pages.
ISBN: 038548609X.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
Fremont Jones and her love Michael Archer return in this
fifth adventure in the popular series set in turn of the
century San Francisco. Fremont and Michael have
been hired to investigate vandalism on the
Southern Pacific Railroad; so far, even the legendary Pinkerton
firm has been unable to solve the case. When the vandals
blow up a bridge near Salt Lake City, the train is
derailed in a horrible accident. Michael is
injured, and Fremont suffers two broken legs.
Fremont is rescued then promptly kidnapped
by a fanatical Mormon evangelist named
Melancthon Pratt, who believes that an angel
has sent Fremont to be his sixth wife. Trapped in
the Melancthon household, Fremont must use all
her wiles to convince the other five wives to allow her
to escape. Meanwhile, Michael sets out to
look for Fremont with Fremont's Chinese friend,
Meiling Li. Beset by old enemies from his spy
days and suffering from a broken collarbone, Michael
is having a tough time of it; nevertheless, he won't
give up his search for Fremont.
At first one might be worried that one of the best parts of this series -- the author's moody, almost gothic portrait of turn of the century San Francisco -- is missing from this story. No need to worry. Dianne Day keeps the suspense coming in this unusual adventure for the partners in the J & K Agency. The story is told from alternating viewpoints, which works quite well. We learn more about the thoughts of the mysterious Michael, Meiling adds a nice touch of mysticism, and Fremont is a treat to listen to, as always. Heavier on the suspense, a little lighter on the mystery, Death Train to Boston is a very entertaining story, indeed. Highly Recommended.
--Claire E. White
The Experiment by John Darnton
Dutton, Sep., 1999.Hardcover, 421 pages .
ISBN: 0525945172.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
Jude Harley, a newspaper reporter
and author, is intrigued
by a recent case where a mutilated body
has been discovered. The body was badly
disfigured, its face and fingerprints removed
so that its identity would never
be known. His story on the murder only
merited a small column towards the end of
the paper, primarily because there was no name
to put with the body, but he remains very curious
about the strange murder.
Meanwhile, on an island off the southeast
U.S. coast a young man named Skyler
is trying to escape from the strange community he
was raised in because his friends he grew
up with have been murdered.
Unbeknownst to the outside world, the leaders of
the colony have been running a society
with its own laws and customs and have been conducting
human experiments on its naive citizens.
Skyler manages to escape to the mainland where
he tracks down Jude after seeing Jude's face on
a poster for a booksigning -- a face that looks like his own.
Jude is stunned when he sees Skyler, who likes
like he could be his identical twin, if he wasn't
a few years younger.
Jude and Skyler must figure out what
is going on in the colony and what it means
to the rest of the world, before the leaders
of the experiment decide they are too much
of a risk and take them out.
The Experiment is a highly original and exciting thriller which focuses on cutting-edge scientific issues such as cloning and twin studies. This is the second book for Darnton, the Cultural News Editor for the New York Times, the author of the bestselling novel, Neanderthal, which involved an undiscovered colony of Neanderthals. The Experiment outshines Neanderthal in several respects, no easy task. His latest book has a much more exciting plot line, more interesting characters, and should vault Darnton into the upper realms of the SF/Thriller genre. The interactions between Jude and Skyler, who both look alike except for a few years in age, are especially interesting and well-written. The insight into genetics and the stories and revelations about cloning and twin studies are also engaging and compelling. A must-read for fans of science thrillers.
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