Sacrifice

I read several hundred books a year. I do not like Elmore Leonard; his material is mostly unbelievable and not especially exciting or funny. Most mysteries are formulaic and boring. Smith is a different sort of writer. He's gritty and real in a way that's hard to define. The plot isn't unique, but the treatment made the book. Can not believe the other reviews! Sooo many books are just the same thing; Lescroart, Parker, Cornwell, etc. Smith writes a mystery that's not just off the assembly line.

Tyler Pierce is an extremely likeable anti-hero with an odd mixture of flaws and strengths. He is a knight errant with no confidence in the law enforcement establishment and a strong preference for doing things his own way. The author is a skilled writer who introduces the reader to the killer early, but still manages to maintain the suspense to the end.

Well, I enjoyed this more than I did Karma or Stone City, both by the same author. I found the setting to be believable and learned quite a bit about illegal banking techniques and roofing. And I would read a book centering on any one of the characters in this one; they're that well-written.

This book definitely held my interest. What an interesting idea for the criminal to be victimized. Made me think about the fact that criminals are real people just like those of us who are law abiding. I was breathless with suspense but got bogged down during some of the descriptive landscape passages. All in all a real thriller with a main character that you just can't help but fall in love with