Skin Deep

I have been following Gary Braver's writing career since I discovered that my college fraternity brother was an accomplished author. However, in those days I knew him as Gary Goshgarian. I just finished Skin Deep and it is by far his best creative work to date. Although it is primarily a murder mystery, Gary never strays too far from the medical thrillers he is known for. I will not reveal any more than that with regard to the plot. This is a book you simple cannot put down. I will anxiously await his next novel. I highly recommend that you go out, buy a copy of Skin Deep, and lose yourself in this wonderful thriller.

As a fan of Gary Braver, I've read all his books, but I think this one may be the best, because it's so multidimensional. The psychological suspense is excellent, and the characters compelling. Who is choking the beautiful redheads in a manner reminiscent of the Boston Strangler? Could it be the lead detective and main character, Steve Markarian? This plot line is almost Dostoeveskian. The English professor? This character's an inside joke for those of us who know Braver is a college English teacher. Or is Markarian's tempermental partner the villian?) Then you've got the medical subplot, about plastic surgery, which Dana, Markarian's separated wife (who he still loves), is pursuing. The details here are well researched and informative for those of us curious about the practice. And as the book progresses, what appeared to be a subplot twines neatly into the main murder mystery plot. And finally, there's the fascinating back story of one of the male characters - presented in alternating chapters - about their twisted relationship with their stepmother - but which one is it? Markarian? His partner? The professor? Though we figure it out before the climactic scene, as I think Braver intended us to, it's still quite delicious. This is Braver's most sexually explicit book, but he handles it in classy way. There are shades of greatness here and it's wonderful to see a favorite author upping his game instead of letting things slide, as so many do.

I never met a book I couldn't put down - until now. Skin Deep is truly a page-turner. I started reading it on Friday night and finished it before dawn on Saturday. The writing is terrific and the dialogue is pitch-perfect. Bravo! Gary Braver has written an intelligent, challenging thriller. Barbara Silkstone

Gary Braver has written a number of novels that fall into the category of thriller, but which also explore serious questions about human nature. In EXILIR, for example,the questions involved aging (would you, if you could, stop the aging process while others -- your spouse, your children, your friends -- all grew older around you?) The result was a fast-paced thriller than made the reader pause to think about our obsession with retarding the aging process and staying young. In SKIN DEEP, he explores a related issue -- our obsession with beauty and LOOKING young -- but has raised the "thriller" aspect of his writing up a notch. Without giving plot away, the lead detective on a murder case involving a beautiful woman has reason to believe he might be the actual killer. It's a clever device that keeps the reader guessing well into the last 50 pages -- and just when that is resolved, the story takes two or three more twists that few will see coming; certainly, I didn't. The story flows quickly -- the writing is sharp -- the dialogue seems right on. For those familiar with Boston, the references to certain universities, restaurants and landmarks are interesting (and accurate). I look forward to Gary Braver's next book.

There are certain expectations with every genre: with romance you expect passion; in literary novels it should be all about the characters arcs; and in sci-fi, it should all be out of this world. In a thriller, you want there to be a mystery to unravel, you want a villain so evil that s/he's almost inhuman, and you want it all at a pace that could burn out your heart. Gary Braver, my friends, has done it again, and he's hit every mark without fail. He's even hit a few marks that you'd never expect in a thriller... Steve Markarian is troubled. He's in hot water with his job at the Boston PD, he's separated from his wife, and he's suddenly caught up in the biggest case of his career. They find a beautiful woman who appears to have accidentally killed herself during a scarfing session, but could it be more than that? The more they search, the more the clues lead them to murder, but the suspects are few. Maybe it's the college professor... or the bouncer at the strip club. Could it really be his partner? Or could it possibly be... himself? Steve spirals into darkness as he searches for the killer, and comes face-to-face with some terrifying personal demons in the process. Dana is Steve's wife and unsatisfied with her looks. She's not as young as she used to be and, in the course of switching professions, comes to the conclusion that she needs a little help to battle the beautiful twenty-something's who will be her competition in the workforce. At the urgings of a friend, Dana books an appointment to see the best plastic surgeon in Boston, and there's no turning back. Everything seems to be going fine, until Steve starts to see connections between the steadily mounting victims and Dana, connections that have him fearing for her life. Where Braver really stretches his legs is in a parallel storyline that takes place almost forty years in the past, the story of a boy and the strange hold his aspiring actress of a stepmother seems to hold over him. It's enthralling, it's disturbing, and it really showcases Braver's talent as a writer. If he weren't so good at writing thrillers, I'd hope to see a literary novel from him at some point...! I'd say it's worth reading the book just for these scenes, but the rest of the book is equally worth your time! This one will have you guessing almost until the very end. The reveal of the killer's identity comes a little sooner than the regular thriller, but then there's nothing normal/ordinary about this book. Not only will the killer's identity shock you, but the REAL twist is WHY the killer is murdering these women. And, believe me when I say, you'll have to pick your jaw up from the ground. Gary Braver's best novel to date. I don't really know how he's going to top this one, but I have no lack of faith that he will!