Jeffery Deaver creates insanely devious plots calculated to make your head explode ... Deaver’s cunning plot dazzles with its crafty twists and turns, but when the fun gets really nasty, it’s comforting to repeat this mantra: It’s only a game. … It’s only a game. … It’s only. …
Deaver should take a bow, as his risk paid off in spades. Not only is Colter Shaw one of the year’s best new characters, but his background and personality make him more intriguing and entertaining than Lincoln Rhyme, Deaver’s longtime, fan-favorite hero ... Deaver knows just how much background to provide, offering enough about Colter’s past to flesh him out and explain how he became such an experienced tracker—while leaving enough on the table to keep you wanting more, which he’ll no doubt touch on in future books. As for the gaming stuff, some of the descriptions get a little tech-heavy, but Deaver proves good at re-explaining things in layman’s terms, making it easy to understand. So whether you’re a hardcore gamer or total newb to the tech scene, readers will be just fine following along ... Well-plotted and built on an intriguing premise and an exciting new character, The Never Game delivers in a big way and is one of Jeffery Deaver’s best thrillers in years.
Readers come to expect the unexpected in Deaver's novels, and this story proves to be no exception. The first massive twist involves how quickly he solves the case, which in the hands of a lesser writer would be the entire tale. But Deaver is just getting started ... Deaver introduces a fascinating new character in the methodical Colter Shaw. Nothing is predictable in the case, and like a curvy mountain road, the twists are intense. Hopefully more stories with Shaw are in the future.
A quirk in the editing will jolt some readers out of the story ... For some reason, the editor has seen fit to use some peculiar contractions in the prose, contractions that work perfectly well when speaking, but are strange and annoying in prose ... One more thing. There seems to be a trend nowadays of inserting controversial, politically driven 'issues' into fiction even though those 'issues' have little or nothing to do with the actual story. That aside, Jeffrey Deaver has come up with another sharp, smart story with intelligent, emotionally mature characters. Plenty of twists and turns and subplots involving the techy world of internet gaming deftly handled by the author are sure to keep readers engrossed and turning pages to the end. Deaver is a joy to read.
I see The Never Game as a comeback novel for Deaver. Not like he ever left the game; in fact, he has consistently put together solid novels and short stories but found his work sometimes lost in the shuffle of a myriad of new thriller writers who joined the large list of his contemporaries that are still out there. With the infusion of a new, hip series like this one featuring Colter Shaw, we have the opportunity to see a fresh Deaver, who now has a very modern character that allows him to dive into new territory like the gaming and dark-net backdrop.
Shaw is a carefully constructed character with a rich backstory that could spark several novels (his own family history features a particularly tantalizing mystery). The story is—this will come as no surprise to Deaver’s many fans—full of twists and right-angle turns, and a second Colter Shaw novel feels not just inevitable but mandatory. Deaver is a hit maker who always delivers the goods.
For once Deaver takes more effort to establish his hero’s bona fides than to give him a compelling and logical plot. The results are subpar for this initial installment but more encouraging for the promised series.
