“Verdon's plot devices are intelligently layered in "Peter Pan Must Die." The denouement is one of the most unusual in crime fiction, and yet is perfectly logical. Verdon's cleverness again shines in "Peter Pan Must Die." – Associated Press
“Peter Pan Must Die is a thrilling read. The rhythm of the novel keeps you on the edge until the last pages–John Verdon has done it again.” – Downtown Magazine
“This case is the most perplexing novel Verdon has crafted to date…Readers who love a good whodunnit will be stunned as to who is really behind the murder of Carl Spalter.” – Florida Times-Union
“Stellar…The plot is full of Verdon’s usual challenges (e.g., it was apparently impossible for the murder to have been carried out), but the cleverness is surpassed by the probing analysis of what makes Gurney tick.”
—Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
More Praise for John Verdon
“It’s always a pleasure to watch a keen mind absorbed in a difficult puzzle, which is how Dave Gurney distinguishes himself in John Verdon’s tricky whodunits.”—New York Times
“A masterful bit of writing that builds to a surprising and satisfying climax. The tension and enigmatic situations created en route to the conclusion make this book a definite nail-biter. John Verdon’s writing skill might well cause him to become known as ‘The Puzzle Master.’”-New York Journal of Books
“A razor-sharp serial killer thriller… The tension is palpable on virtually every page of a story that perfectly balances the protagonist’s complex inner life with an elaborately constructed puzzle.”—Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
“Taut and suspenseful…Verdon is in top form as he lays out the twisty mechanics of the crime, creating an agreeably sinister villain.”—Washington Post
“The crime is grisly and the cop is complicated. A nice combination.”—New York Daily News
"Good writing and good storytelling often aren’t the same thing. Verdon combines them masterfully.” - Newark Star Ledger
“Verdon is a master at controlling pace, illustrating the story of a rich but complicated marriage, pondering what it means to be sucked back into your life's work even if it might kill you, and demanding that the reader use his or her brain to figure out what comes next.”—Salon
2014-06-05
Verdon’s successful series—featuring thoughtful, puzzle-solving retired NYPD detective Dave Gurney—adds another chapter with this dark tale of a demented contract killer who becomes entangled with a rich, but disturbed, family.Kay Spalter is in prison for killing her real estate–mogul husband, Carl. But Jack Hardwick, a former New York State police investigator, is out to spring her from her cell. Not because he thinks she's innocent; no, Hardwick hopes to prove police misconduct. Gurney’s crude, foulmouthed investigator friend lost his job after assisting Gurney with another case, and now he’s knocking on his buddy’s door asking for help on the Spalter situation. Initially, Gurney isn’t interested, but once he dips his toe into the mechanics of the investigation, he starts seeing all kinds of things that make no sense: crime scenes that fail to add up, missing witnesses, people whose stories contradict the evidence presented in court, and suspects that include a drugged-out daughter and a brother who maintains a questionable online church. When the lawyer going to bat for Kay Spalter turns up dead, it becomes evident that Gurney and Hardwick are dealing with something much larger than a mishandled case. Soon, the two men and Hardwick’s stunning police-officer girlfriend, Esti, are on the trail of an insane international hit man. Gurney’s fans like the detective’s patient unraveling of complex puzzles, as well as his unflappable confidence. However, those new to sidekick Hardwick’s brashness and lack of charm may wonder why Gurney would work with him. Verdon has constructed a taut, fascinating tale, but the story gets messy in its final chapters when the retired cop rejects sensible suggestions to bring in the authorities in favor of handling the killer on his own terms, bringing the case to a terrible conclusion.Gurney’s and Hardwick’s outsized egos interfere with good judgment in this otherwise smoothly written novel.
