ROADSIDE CROSSES by Jeffery Deaver
ROADSIDE CROSSES by Jeffery Deaver is a new novel utilizing the lead character of Kathryn Dance. Dance is an officer of the California Bureau of Investigations and specializes in kinesics, which for the uniformed is body language. Dance has been featured in other Deaver novels and though she is not as compelling as Lincoln Rhyme she does run a close second.
Kathryn is a widow with two children. She works closely with another police officer, Michael O’Neil. In past stories it has been hinted that something romantic is developing between these two. This book takes their relationship one step further and also adds in some further complications.
Romance however is not the focus of the story; murder is. Someone has been leaving “roadside crosses” on the California highways. These crosses have a date on them that foretells a future death. The first incident involves a teenage girl locked in a car trunk and left to die. Several other incidents quickly follow.
The prime suspect is a young man named Travis Brigham. He was involved in an car accident in which two young girls died. He was not charged but a “blog” takes up the circumstances of the event and soon anonymous bloggers are posting messages calling him a murderer. The evidence points to his taking revenge against anyone who addressed the accident and the “roadside crosses.”
Deaver always excels at explaining the technical issues in his stories and this time he gives abundant information about the internet and its power for good and evil. You also learn about the synthetic or cyber world people inhabit when they play computer games. These “places” become alternate universes where they can “live.” Read this book and you will understand about this fantasy world and how it affects people in the real world.
This isn’t one of Deaver’s best books but even second best from this author is worthwhile. You will still find yourself racing through the pages to solve the mystery and identify the killer. Plus you will gain more insight into the character of Kathryn Dance and her various family and personal relationships.
I am a Jeffery Deaver fan of the first order and am always excited when he releases a new story. This book sated my appetite for the moment but I am feeling hunger pains for a new Lincoln Rhyme/Amelia Sachs story.
ROADSIDE CROSSES is published by Simon and Schuster. It contains 397 pages and sells for $26.95.