Book Review: The Mephisto Club

Reviewed By: Cheryl - RAM

The Mephisto Club     Amazon US PB Amazon US HC Amazon Canada PB Amazon Canada HC
Tess Gerritsen
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Thriller   Medical   Woman Main Character
Series: Maura Isles and Jane Rizzoli # 6
Ballantine Books, September 2006

With this latest incident in the lives of medical examiner Maura Isles and detective Jane Rizzoli, Tess Gerritsen has moved firmly into the realms of obscure biblical mythology Although weird and obscure religious speculation has recently become wildly popular, Gerritsen's take on the theme is original.

As in her previous book 'Vanish', Gerritsen uses the device of two parallel stories. The reader gradually learns something of the history of the villain at the same time as the main story develops. She is a mistress of this technique, and carefully times her revelations so as to maintain suspense while keeping the pace of the story up.

Moira and Jane are called out to a murder that appears to involve a bizarre ritual. The scene raises questions about the nature of evil - can a human being carry out such vicious acts? I would have answered 'yes', being of the opinion that humans are entirely capable of committing horrifically evil acts, but the mysterious Club of the title proposes another answer, and the idea of 'monsters among us' does add excitement to a plot.

The twists and turns of the plot are satisfactorily handled in a smoothly professional manner, and there are hints that readers who like Gerritsen's combination of violent crime and pseudo-religious secrets will not only enjoy this book, but can also anticipate enjoying further books in the series.

Cheryl - RAM

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Cheryl - RAM