Eight stars
Returning to re-read Stephen White's great thriller collection after a number of years, this summer binge should be a great adventure. White keeps things exciting as Lauren Crowder puts herself in a significant amount of danger. After befriending a legal intern at her firm, Lauren tries to help Emma when she's being stalked. Lauren ends up firing her weapon at someone someone outside Emma's house, though she remembers nothing. After being taken into custody, Lauren finds herself in a medical emergency, which has Dr. Alan Gregory in a panic as he tries to protect his wife's medical secret and get the truth about the shooting. A chilling story that flows with such ease. Stephen White is back with another great piece in this addictive series.
After the assassination of the US Surgeon-General, his daughter, Emma Spire, is forced to pick up the pieces and dodge the notoriety that soon follows. She ends up as a legal student in Boulder, Colorado, where Lauren Crowder takes the young woman under her wing. While she wants to keep a low profile and live simply, Emma seeks to be respected in her own right. She meets a tech-savvy businessman and is soon pulled into the middle of his life and new invention, which seeks to replicate the visuals of the person wearing its hardware. Emma is captured in a precarious position, which causes her grief, though when the recording goes missing, it's a full-on panic.
Lauren worries for Emma and can sense that something is wrong. Emma admits that she is being stalked by someone with a copy of the recording. When Lauren promises to help her, things go south quickly, especially after a body is found outside Emma's home in the middle of a blizzard and Lauren realises she has the weapon. When Lauren is arrested, Dr. Alan Gregory is sent into a panic, worried about both his wife and Emma.
As Lauren admits that she is not only uncertain about what happened, but that her MS is getting worse, Alan will have to hire an attorney and get Lauren her medication without spilling the secret diagnosis that his wife is trying to keep off the radar. A wife in jail for potentially trying to kill a man, another who is being stalked and her notoriety about to send the tabloids into the stratosphere, and one man trying to keep it all together to help them both. A chilling story of worry, action, and sleuthing as Stephen White puts his protagonist in the crosshairs throughout this piece.
I remember discovering this series years ago, devouring many of the books in short order. When I chose to return, I decided that I would try a complete series binge, getting the full Alan Gregory experience. Stephen White uses many of his personal experiences as a clinical psychologist to pull on ideas and character aspects, which becomes apparent in this early novel.
White's clear narrative style is peppered with some meandering moments, complementing the larger story and keeping the reader engaged. The reader learns more about Dr. Alan Gregory and Lauren Crowder, pushing their new marriage to the brink with this scintillating situation that can only end poorly, if they are not careful. The narrative builds around both plot lines: the stalking of Emma and Lauren's incarceration for shooting someone. When things reach their zenith, White is able to spin both tales into an impactful conclusion, in which no one is left without some scars in the aftermath. Dr. Alan Gregory is less a therapist and more a worried husband, trying to use his contacts to help Lauren, which personalises him in this fifth novel. Great banter does enrich the story and keeps the reader curious about the characters who are able to fill the pages of this book.
Plot points keep the reader wondering as White juggles two significant issues throughout this book. The issues of both Emma and Lauren emerge throughout the story, which bounces between timelines, though neither woman is able to completely understand what is happening to them. With surprises around every corner, White keeps the reader on edge as they try to decipher the truths that appear throughout the narrative flow. In a series that has been so impactful, I am eager to see where White will take things next, with strong characters and wonderful plot development.
Kudos Mr. White, for an action-packed read!
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