The Dead Man

I just now realized that there are other books with this protagonist, Jack Davis. That's great, I love him! A former FBI agent with a movement disorder and a lot of tragedy in his past, he's smart, prickly, and has a great sense of humor. All the characters of the fairly big cast of this story avoid falling into stereotypes--they're unique and believable. The case itself is extremely creepy, but the violence isn't sensationalized (which I particularly appreciated in one instance, with a female victim.) The sharp, fun dialogue and the tight plot gave the book a cinematic sensibility. I especially liked the relationship between Jack and Lucy...a friendship with some father/daughter dynamics. It's always a nice change when a book's set in a city other than New York or L.A., and the fact that this one took place in my own town of Kansas City added to the enjoyment for me. Great, entertaining stuff--can't wait to read another one.

Jack Davis, disgraced ex-FBI agent is back on the trail of a killer as a private citizen. We get a peek into some of the more tragic events in this world weary heroe's recent past, and follow him as he comes to grips with the limitations imposed on his personal and professional life by his quirky movement disorder. Goldman does a fine job of weaving past and present with a series of seemingly irrelevant flashbacks that all come together to make one not so pretty, and ultimately surprising package.

I normally do not read this type of mystery I am more a Romance reader but I was asked by the author to try his book, it was great, I am not the type of person that reads the last page first and when I say up until the end of the book you would never guess who the killer was. This book was very well written and the story was great. I would definately recommend this book to people that like to be left at the end of their seats.

When Jack Davis is told by his friend Simon Alexander that "this job is perfect for you" Jack should have known better and ran the other way. Instead, he allows himself to be shuttled into an interview with billionaire Milo Harper whose Harper Institute of the Mind is under attack by a cutthroat attorney litigating on behalf of two patients who died in situations similar to their own dreams. The FBI retired Jack upon discovering his recent attacks of unexplainable shakes and neurological dissonances, so he's at loose ends and sympathetic to Harper, who is suffering from early-onset Alzheimer's. Jack soon discovers that the deaths are anything but accidents and that a predator may be hiding within the institute. Just as critical to Jack are two FBI agents who are determined to prove that he is complicit in another murder connected to his daughter's crimes, so he comes to accept unexpected help from his new landlady, a former sheriff's deputy who was forced out of the department and imprisoned when she fell to temptation. With a love interest who is absent more than she is present and still mourning the loss of his marriage, the abduction, molestation, and murder of his son, and the tragic drug addiction of his daughter, Jack buries himself into this new investigation that has become more complicated than he ever could have imagined. Joel Goldman always writes thrillers with compelling plots and extraordinarily unique characters, and he continues to entertain with dialogue that is witty and sharp. Despite the bleakness of Jack's past, in this second outing (after Shakedown) Jack appears to be more upbeat and the novel never becomes dark or morose. Jack's unusual investigating team is entertaining and the humor that shone through in his Lou Mason thrillers reappears here. This is a complex thriller with plots that merge towards an exciting, satisfying conclusion with a hint for more excitement in the future.

Riveting! This brilliantly written second edition in the Jack Davis' series by Joel Goldman grabs your attention from page one as the scene of a December 1959 double murder unfolds. No one was ever charged for the homicides, in which the daughter was a witness to, but lucky to have been brave enough to jump from her second story bedroom to avoid the assailant. The story then jumps to present day, January 2009, as Jack Davis meets with a friend to discuss his delicate "services" in need once again. Davis is a former FBI agent who had left the agency for health reasons. The complications of his disease made it impossible for him to fulfill his duties at the agency. His son was murdered years before and more recently, his daughter has passed away. But Simon, who is in a security business, needed him now. Milo Harper's foundation was doing studies on the human brain. But some of the study participants are dying. Not only that, but dying exactly in the way they've dreamed they would die. The foundation, The Harper Institute, are performing the studies to try to find ways to cure Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Diseases. But the studies are now pointing to deaths and could be the end of the institute! Jack, even with his physical and sometimes debilitating limitations, agrees to help his friend Simon but soon discovers, he's become involved in something much worse than "unexplained deaths". There's a serial killer loose and Jack must find out the truth and who is behind the now determined, murders. Joel Goldman has a unique style as his story unfolds in the first person, putting you into the head of Jack Davis. I found this to be quite gripping and captivating. The novel itself is quite long, so you can't read it all in one sitting, but you'll find it difficult to find a place to "stop for the night". Realistically set in the Kansas City area, I found the book to be very believable since I also live in the Kansas City area and my books are also based around the Kansas City area, however in a fictitious setting based around the Kansas City area. Goldman's realistic setting, fast-paced dialogue and chilling plotting will have you wanting to read more in this gritty suspense series. I'm looking forward to more of this author's work. [...]