Before I start writing about the latest Tess Gerritsesn Rizzoli and Isles title, I must point you in the direction of Savidge Reads. Simon also loves Tess Gerritsen and some time ago she appeared on of his 'Savidge Grills' answering questions about her life and her writing. Here is the link below.
http://savidgereads.wordpress.com/2010/11/18/savidge-reads-grills-tess-gerritsen/
And I see, with a huge amount of envy, that he has recently met here as well as you can see from the photo on his blog. Do check that out as well.
http://savidgereads.wordpress.com/2011/07/23/savidge-reads-gets-criminally-star-struck/
Now back to the book which arrived last week and I took it up to London with me as I was babysitting lovely Florence. Once she was safely tucked up in her pink and blue pyjamas and sleeping like a little angel and after I had stopped drooling over her, I came downstairs and started reading. Helen and James had gone to the Globe to see Much Ado About Nothing and by the time they returned I had finished The Silent Girl totally unable to put it down (in between my quarter hour checks upstairs to make sure Florence was OK and had not stopped breathing, you know the usual grandmother things....).
I am so pleased that Tess Gerritsen seems to be a quick writer and produces her books quickly (seems no time at all since I reviewed the last one The Killing Place) as I am in a permanent state of anticipation waiting to see what happens next to Maura Isles and Detective Jane Rizzoli. Both the characters are moving on in their lives, Jane is now married and a mother and Maura has ended a destructive relationship with her lover.
A hand is found in a Chinatown alley in Boston and when Rizzoli climbs to the roof top she finds its owner - a woman with a throat slashed so deeply her head is nearly severed. Two strands of silver hair cling to her body and Rizzoli is in for a shock when they are analysed and find that they are not human.
"....considering what kind of monkey this is. In India, these are known as the Hamnuman Langur. Hanuman is the Hindu god known as the Monkey Warrior". The same chill.....whispered like an icy breath up Jane's neck. She thought of the creature in the alley. Remembered the gleam of its sword as it turned and slipped into the shadows"
There is a reason for a Warrior seeking vengeance. Nineteen years earlier, a horrifying murder-suicide in a Chinatown restaurant left five people dead. It seemed an open and shut case but was the real murderer ever found? Tragedy seems to have stalked the families of those involved, both losing a daughter who had gone missing. Coincidence or not?
One woman connected to the massacre is still alive - a mysterious and beautiful martial arts master who knows a secret connected to this crime and is determined that those involved will never forget it.
Difficult to continue reviewing this terrific book without giving away any of its secrets so I am going to stop right here. Suffice it to say, this is totally gripping and unputdownable and also quite creepy with this mysterious seemingly ghostly figure who keeps appearing at the dead of night. I found The Killing Place had a spooky feel about it as well and a sense of mysterious forces at hand and The Silent Girl has the same brooding atmoshpere.
I have read all of Tess Gerritsen's books, her earlier ones are well written, competent thrillers with a bit of love interest thrown in and most enjoyable, but she has really hit her stride with the Rizzoli and Isles series and long may they last.
I gather a TV series has been made but only available in the US at the time of writing. Having checked the cast and pictures I see that Detective Rizzoli and Dr Maura Isles are both extremely glamorous and nothing like their descriptions in the books. Oh dear....
