TRUE EVIL by Greg Iles
Greg Iles is the master of the suspense thriller. He has that knack for creating plot situations that have you turning the pages with anticipation and dread. His stories open with a quick revelation of the horror within and don't slow down until the last page is turned and the last situation is resolved. This is certainly the case with his latest novel of suspense TRUE
EVIL.
When this story starts, FBI Agent Alexandra Morse is having a bad year. She is a hostage negotiator and in her latest case the situation went south. One of her fellow agents on her team was killed and she herself was shot and badly scarred on her face. Also her father was killed when he tried to help the victims of a holdup. Add to that her mother has been diagnosed with terminal cancer, and now her sister has suffered a seizure. It is a bad patch of road that is definitely getting worse.
When she reaches her sister's side in the hospital she gets more depressing news. With her dying breath her sister tells her that her husband is responsible for her death. When Alex does some
investigating on her own, she becomes convinced an attorney in Natchez, Mississippi is arranging for his clients' spouses to be murdered in a non-traceable manner.
She also concludes that Dr. Chris Shepherd is going to be the next victim. Convincing him of this is going to be difficult. Chris has a beautiful wife who is independently wealthy. He has adopted her son and they have a strong relationship. It is incomprehensible to him that the woman he loves will kill him rather than possibly divorce him.
The villain behind the lawyer's actions is Dr. Eldon Tarver. He is a genius who is completely amoral, and he has a million schemes for arranging deaths that virtually can't be traced. When he learns that Alex is on his trail he devices a quick death for her.
The book builds to a climax that is chilling, but also too over the top to be taken seriously. It seems that one incident follows another and each one is more preposterous than the one before it. It makes for an exciting finish to the story but it also defeats the believability of all that has gone before.
Greg Iles is a great writer. His books are always best sellers and most of them have been fairly believable. This time he let his plot get just a little out of hand, and this renders it his most unsatisfying story in a long time. It is still good reading, but it is not believable reading. Believable horror is the most intense and lasts long after the pages have been closed, while unbelievable horror is just effective for the moment.
TRUE EVIL is published by Simon and Schuster. It contains 512 pages and sells for $25.95.