Book Review 2

Title: The Empty Chair
Author: Jeffery Deaver

"They call him the Insect Boy, and he knows insects well. He knows how they live and die. He knows how they elude their pursuers. Above all, he knows how they kill."

Synopsis:

The Empty Chair takes place outside of New York City in the bucolic but sinister environs of Paquenoke County, North Carolina. Rhyme - accompanied by his long-suffering physical therapist, Thom, and his beloved forensic assistant, Amelia Sachs - has just been accepted as a patient at the Medical Center of the University of North Carolina, where he is scheduled to undergo an experimental procedure that might increase the range of his mobility but might, on the other hand, result in his death. Shortly after his arrival, Lincoln's plans are disrupted by an unforeseen emergency. Jim Bell, Paquenoke County sheriff, has trouble on his hands and needs Lincoln's expertise.
According to Bell, a disturbed teenager known as the Insect Boy has murdered a local football hero and abducted two young women. Convinced that the women have only hours to live, Bell asks Lincoln to examine the trace evidence found at the abduction site in the faint hope of pinpointing the kidnapper's location. Though he knows nothing about the physical composition of the surrounding area - he and Sachs, as he repeatedly comments, are "fish out of water" in the American South - Rhyme agrees to help. Once again using Amelia Sachs as his eyes and legs, he sets up an forensic lab in a borrowed corner of the local Sheriff's office and goes to work.

Reflection:

As this book is about crime solving and mysteries, there are bound to be many suspense. At the first look, this story may seem like a simple chase story, but then it broadens and deepens to become something stranger and more complicated. As the story contains some part regarding to insects and their survival techniques, it has been a wonderful and fascinating experience to learn about insects' behaviors and survival skills even for people, like me, who does not really fancy insects much and will scream madly upon seeing one.

The story will bring you to the highest point of suspense and if you like those stories about mysteries and crime, I would think this is the book for you.

YingLing