With his seven previous mysteries, the author has earned a reputation for ingenious plotting and a clear, precise writing style — and Nine Lives is no exception. And this time, he tells readers just enough about the lives of the nine people on the hit list to make readers care what happens to them.
Peter Swanson knows how to keep a captive audience riveted. Each successive book he’s written has held its own in thrilling his readers. Once the list reaches the first person, you will find yourself hooked on a whodunit coupled with a gradually unfolding tragedy. It is a book that will render you speechless and sleepless when finished.
Literary antecedents to this story can be found in works by Muriel Spark and Agatha Christie. Mr. Swanson honors genre traditions by arousing expectations only to subvert them—and then subvert them again. Some of the surprises are so unexpected, readers may be doing mental backflips to keep up. The author of Nine Lives has surpassed his own high standards.
