The Boyfriend

by Thomas Perry Narrated by Robertson Dean

Overview

Jack Till, who has retired from the LAPD after a respected career as a
homicide detective, now works as a private investigator, comfortable
chasing down routine cases while visiting his 24-year-old daughter,
Holly, who has Down Syndrome. But when the parents of a recently
murdered young girl, about Holly's age, ask for his help when the police
come up empty, Till reluctantly takes the case.

It was
discovered after her death that the victim had been working as a
high-class prostitute, and the police are content to assume she was
killed by a client, common in such a dangerous line of work. Yet as Till
digs deeper, he realizes that the victim is just one of several young
female escorts killed in different cities in the exact same way-all
had strawberry blonde hair, and all were shot with a 9mm handgun in the
sanctity of their apartments.

Till must find his way around the
tawdry and secretive online escort business, and decode ads placed by
young women who all use false names, sometimes advertise using other
women's pictures, and move from city to city every few months. Yet when
Till is finally able to catch up with the killer, he finds that the man
he's after is far more dangerous and volatile than he ever could have
imagined. As the body count rises, Till must risk his life to find this
seductive and ruthless killer whose murderous spree masks a far deadlier
agenda.

Editorial Reviews

The New York Times Book Review - Marilyn Stasio

Thriller fans are not to be trifled with. We know what we want—clever protagonists, cunning killers, white-knuckle action and endlessly inventive variations on the fundamental strategies of a deadly cat-and-mouse game. Thomas Perry delivers all that good stuff in The Boyfriend…

Publishers Weekly

This highly original and clever thriller from Edgar-winner Perry (Strip) focuses on Jack Till, a retired LAPD homicide detective turned PI, who prefers routine cases that keep him close to his grown daughter with Down syndrome. Reluctantly, Till agrees to investigate the recent murder of a high-class prostitute for her distraught parents. Toiling through the myriad sex market Web sites, Till sees a pattern across the country—attractive escorts who resemble each other, quietly killed in their homes. Till suspects the women were killed by a hit man, 28-year-old Joey Moreland, who insinuates himself into their lives as a boyfriend, then moves on after murdering them. Perry again proves himself a master stylist and plotter, as he effortlessly builds suspense and delves deeply into his characters, showing Till’s cunning and how Moreland grew up to be a soulless killer. Agent: Robert Lescher, Lescher & Lescher, Ltd. (Mar.)

From the Publisher

“Clever protagonists, cunning killers, white-knuckle action . . . Thomas Perry delivers all that good stuff in The Boyfriend.”—New York Times Book Review

"Another demonstration of Thomas Perry’s cool, tough-minded skill at staging battles of wits."—New York Times

"[Perry's] work is characterized by tight, clean prose, well-drawn characters and heart-pounding suspense."—Associated Press

"Perry is a marvelous plotter, and he builds suspense with all the subtlety of a master chef nursing a risotto to a buttery perfection. It's nothing new to call Perry a master of the genre, but it's no less true for being widely acknowledged."—Booklist (starred review)

"[A] highly original and clever thriller. . . .Perry again proves himself a master stylist and plotter, as he effortlessly builds suspense and delves deeply into his characters."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"While there is plenty of action and tension here (indeed, it may well be Perry’s best book to date), it is the moments that Till spends with his daughter—in person and across the miles—that make The Boyfriend a memorable book and give rise to a heartfelt demand that we see more of Till sooner rather than later."—Bookreporter

"The strength of the psychological drama lies in Mr. Perry’s capacity to develop his characters. Perry has turned out another riveting mystery."—Washington Times

"Perry launches another excellent series. . . . The pacing is rapid, Till is an intrepid hero, and the ending is satisfying."—Library Journal

"Perry's prose is perfect. The Boyfriend is a model for thriller writers and one that should reinforce the reputation of the author of The Butcher's Boy and The Informant. If you haven't read anything by Thomas Perry, you're in for a delightful surprise."—Huntington News

“[A] terrific, suspenseful read.”—Midwest Book Review

From the Publisher - AUDIO COMMENTARY

"Perry is a marvelous plotter, and he builds suspense with all the subtlety of a master chef nursing a risotto to buttery perfection, but what really separates him from the thriller field is his ability to fold psychological complexity into the onrushing narrative." —Booklist Starred Review

Library Journal - Audio

Perry (Butcher's Boy) launches another excellent series starring protagonist Jack Till, a highly respected and now retired homicide detective who works as a private investigator. Though he's initially hired to find the murderer of a call girl, the action quickly escalates into a search for a clever, manipulative hit man. The intensity of the story takes an occasional short break whenever the gentle side of Till is revealed in interactions with his 24-year-old daughter, who has Down syndrome. The pacing is rapid, Till is an intrepid hero, and the ending is satisfying. Reader Robertson Dean (winner of nine Earphones Awards, 2010 Best Voice in History & Historical Fiction) continues his track record as an excellent narrator who can effectively switch among a variety of characters. VERDICT Enthusiastically recommended for the vast fan base that Perry has built up as well as those who enjoy a battle of wits between adversaries. ["A guaranteed winner," read the starred review of the Mysterious Pr: Grove hc, LJ 3/15/13.—Ed.]—Deb West, Gannon Univ. Lib., Erie, PA

MARCH 2013 - AudioFile

Less is usually more. Heeding this advice might have improved Perry’s new novel, and Robertson Dean’s narration of it. Perry’s story never makes up its mind whether it’s a noir PI novel or a fast-paced thriller, and it doesn’t completely succeed at either. Likewise, Dean tries too hard to take on too many voices: a gruff ex-cop turned PI, a smooth and seductive hit man, and the series of high-class prostitutes the hit man uses as covers. Dean commands the listener’s attention with his clear reading and hypnotic basso profundo. But his female voices are syrupy, and the detective’s husky tone sounds forced. Throughout the reading, Dean’s enunciation is unnaturally precise and ultimately comes off as not believable. One has to wonder why publishers are willing to invest in a finished audiobook without providing more direction in the studio. S.E.S. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

The creator of the murderous Butcher's Boy (The Informant, 2011, etc.) and vanishing enabler Jane Whitefield (Poison Flower, 2012, etc.) summons a new hero to track down a killer with a penchant for strawberry-blonde escorts. Catherine Hamilton may have been a call girl, but her parents are devastated by her murder. They offer LA shamus Jack Till $100,000 to find her killer. Jack, whose background is limited to his years as a homicide cop and whose private life, to an adult daughter with Down Syndrome and an ex-wife who left him right after Holly was diagnosed, quickly discovers that Catherine's death was only the latest in a pattern that includes at least five earlier victims in cities across the country, all strawberry blondes, all available online and all, Jack concludes, shot by the same boyfriend who'd moved in with them for at least a month apiece. Why does he kill, what makes him treat his victims as he does, and how can Jack catch him before he kills again? As Jack's figuring out the answers to these questions, Perry reveals them directly to his readers via a series of flashbacks to Joey Moreland's early years, his criminal apprenticeship and his wholehearted embrace of his lethal vocation. He makes it clear, however, that the very limited amount Jack can learn about his flexible, resourceful, well-financed quarry won't be enough to anticipate his next move. The ending is a letdown, the same way waking up from a brutally suspenseful dream is a letdown. But there's all the pleasure a master craftsman can provide every inch of the way there.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940171066154
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Publication date:	03/05/2013
Series:	Jack Till , #2
Edition description:	Unabridged

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