Murder
can be made to look like suicide, and suicide can be made
to look like murder.- Mistress, James Patterson
Benjamin Casper is a reporter for The Capitol Beat. He's single,
intelligent and inquisitive. He rides a Triumph motorcycle
and owns a Cessna plane. He's also in a woman's apartment,
going through her things - but it's not what you think. Diana
Hotchkiss asked Ben to do something for her. They're close
friends, but Ben believes that will all change. The strongest
romances begin with friendship. When Diana takes a dive off
a building, Ben discovers he doesn't know her at all. And
his next story begins
Pretty early in the storyline you get a hint of what's really
going on, which drives Ben to search farther and dig deeper.
Ben discovers there's more than one group of individuals who
want him to mind his own business. Eventually the storyline
picks up momentum and has the reader/listener wanting answers
as well.
The author warns us from the start that Benjamin's mind wanders
when stressed, which leads to a lot of trivia-like quotes
(presidents, movies, etc). It does get old at some points.
Also, Ben's mother died young and her death is brought up
throughout. The story is told in first person. The main character's
narration goes from curiosity to fear. And sometimes his humor
surfaces in his trivia thoughts. As the mystery unravels,
his guarded, determined journalist voice takes over.
Kevin T. Collins narrates Ben's investigation (as I call it).
Collins does more than bring Ben to life - he is Ben. I don't
think anyone else could give this young, curious (yet slightly
odd) man the same read. Collins is well-known in TV, film,
musical theater, and radio. He's also a popular narrator in
audiobooks, including the popular Lone Survivor (Winner,
Audiofile Earphones Award).
I think readers/listeners will appreciate the complex storyline.
The audio version is nine discs and unabridged. I think if
they ever do an abridged version they should leave out some
of the trivia. Mistress is a suspense-filled listen.
Pass it on.
Reviews
of other titles by Patterson & Ellis
Mistress
[audio]
Guilty Wives [audio]
Invisible [audio]
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