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Dangerous Games [Paperback]

Michael Prescott (Author)
3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)


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Book Description

January 4, 2005
A killer is using labyrinthine storm drains to dispose of his victims, who are found handcuffed and drowned, washed out of the rain-filled drainage lines like garbage. The crimes compel FBI Agent Tess McCallum to crack the case, but they're touching a nerve in Personal Security Consultant Abby Sinclair. She fears it's the same madman who invaded her nightmares once before. As the two women work with each other to solve the case, tensions rise and tempers flare. And as sure as the rain, a new killing season begins.

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

As in many of Prescott's previous books, this psychologically complex thriller features a serial killer who's all the more terrifying because of his basic ordinariness; he's Everyman, twisted. The two protagonists are familiar, too: maverick FBI special agent Tess McCallum (nicknamed "Super Fed" by an adoring media) from Next Victim, and even more freewheeling freelance security agent Abby Sinclair from The Shadow Hunter. The two stubbornly independent women make a compelling, if unlikely, team. While the killer's identity is no secret—he's a vicious kidnapper known as the "Rain Man" who leaves his victims in storm drains to drown unless their ransom is paid on time—Prescott's flair for unexpected plot twists keeps the suspense breathtakingly high to the last chapter. Why does the Rain Man insist on payment from the city of Los Angeles, instead of victims' families? How can he have access to so much insider info without inside help? Will the two loner agents stop the killer before offing each other? The likable protagonists and Prescott's tightly wound plot keep the reader hooked and guessing—and hoping for another matchup of these two heroines, should they survive.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

...messes with your mind and makes you love it. (Publishers Weekly)

Product Details

  • Paperback: 400 pages
  • Publisher: Onyx (January 4, 2005)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0451411692
  • ISBN-13: 978-0451411693
  • Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 1.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #881,397 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Born in 1960, I grew up in New Jersey and attended Wesleyan University, majoring in Film Studies. After graduation, I moved to Los Angeles, where I wrote scripts for several independent producers. I also worked as a magazine freelancer and archival researcher, and eventually started writing books. I authored six titles under the pseudonym Brian Harper before switching to my new identity as Michael Prescott.

My first Michael Prescott novel, COMES THE DARK, grew out of my interest in ancient religion and mythology. I followed up with STEALING FACES, which made its debut as an electronic book and became the bestselling e-book in the U.S. way back in 1999, and THE SHADOW HUNTER, which was praised by Publishers Weekly for its "brilliant elements of psychological horror." Publishers Weekly also had kind words for LAST BREATH ("a chilling, character-driven tale") and NEXT VICTIM ("unrelentingly suspenseful"). IN DARK PLACES was called a "dark, compulsive read" (Publishers Weekly), a "gripping new drama" (Cemetary Dance), and "hard to predict and thoroughly absorbing ... Michael Prescott at his best" (Round Table Reviews). With DANGEROUS GAMES, I began a trilogy about two female characters, Tess McCallum and Abby Sinclair, who had appeared separately in two of my earlier books. The trilogy continued with MORTAL FAULTS and FINAL SINS. Collectively those three books are my personal favorites.

Changes in the publishing industry made it hard for me to get a print deal after FINAL SINS. Ebooks, however, are more than taking up the slack. In 2010, I self-published RIPTIDE as an ebook and a print-on-demand paperback. This was followed by new ebook editions of SHIVER, MORTAL PURSUIT, and BLIND PURSUIT (three Brian Harper titles), as well as STEALING FACES. All have risen into the Top 100 bestsellers among Kindle's paid titles, with most making it into the top ten. By the end of July 2011 I plan to release my first book written directly for the ebook market, a comedy called DIE STUPID.

In addition, E-Reads has put out ebook editions of NEXT VICTIM, IN DARK PLACES, and DANGEROUS GAMES, and Penguin Books offers an ebook edition of FINAL SINS. Before too long I hope to have all my titles available in ebook form, and to write some new ones for this rapidly expanding market.

 

Customer Reviews

15 Reviews
5 star:
 (5)
4 star:
 (5)
3 star:
 (4)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.9 out of 5 stars (15 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Deeper Than It Looks, May 22, 2006
By 
Dindy Robinson (Arlington, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Dangerous Games (Paperback)
Dangerous Games by Michael Prescott takes an interesting premise, a serial killer who kidnaps women and chains them in the vast storm drains that run underneath the City of Los Angeles, refusing to disclose their location unless the City of LA pays multi-million dollar ransoms to an offshore bank account. The kidnappings always occur on a day when rain is expected, making it even more imperative that the ransom be paid quickly, because if it isn't, the waters in the storm drain will rise and the victim will die-- as has happened to the first two victims.

Leaving aside the question of whether or not a city would actually pay up on such a ransom demand (I find it very unlikely.) This is really not so much of a thriller as it is a psychological examination of two women who form an unlikely partnership in investigating the kidnapper. The first is maverick FBI agent, Tess McCallum, who is brought in from the Denver Field Office as a media ploy because of her previous success in solving a major case in LA. The second woman is Abby Sinclair, a maverick sort of private investigator who specializes in putting stalkers behind bars by whatever means necessary- even if it means breaking the law.

Throughout the book, Abby insists to Tess that the two of them are actually the same-- they are both mavericks and they both play outside the rules; but Tess is reluctant to see the resemblance and finds ways to rationalize matters when she plays fast and loose with the rules.

The identity of the kidnapper is not a big secret as Prescott identifies him fairly early in the book as a disgruntled ex LA Police Officer who was sent to prison for stalking one of Abby's clients.

What is interesting about this book is the way Tess refuses to play the bureaucratic games of the FBI, while at the same time espousing her loyalty to the organization and to the law. She disdains Abby's tactics, and considers herself better than Abby because she is, after all, on the side of law and order. The book makes a statement that the higher people go in the bureaucracy of the organization, the more they lose touch with the way things really are out in the streets-- a common lament of front line law enforcement officers everywhere.

However, for those who think that the message of the book is to forget the rules, think again. Prescott at the end makes very clear that when investigators step outside the law, there are ripple effects and repercussions.

Abby and Tess are interesting characters, as is the kidnapper, William Kolb. The remaining characters are pretty one-dimensional-- the AD of the LA FBI Office is the stereotypical character of a stuffed shirt bureaucrat who cares more about image and publicity than anything else. But that's okay, because they are incidental to the main theme of the book, which is an exploration of what happens when people don't play by the rules.

For a book that is, on the surface, a pretty good thriller, the underlying message of the book packs a punch. Tess and Abby make an interesting team. It would be terrific to see them come together again in the future with Tess's newfound insight into her own character.


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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Prescott Rules, March 31, 2005
This review is from: Dangerous Games (Paperback)
I read this book in only two sittings because I could not put it down. Prescott brings back two of his more interesting characters, Tess McCallum, FBI agent and Abby Sinclair, "The Shadow Hunter." As expected, the two women do not get along very well when hunting down a serial killer but they must learn to work together in accomplishing this feat.

The book had a good combination of action, humor and sadness. The exchanges between Tess McCallum and her boss, "The Nose" are classics. They had me rolling on the floor.

Prescott is slowly becoming one of the my favorite mystery writers.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars If this one is considered boring...., December 9, 2005
This review is from: Dangerous Games (Paperback)
This is the first book by Michael Prescott I have read and if the other reviews are correct and this story is boring, I can't wait to get my hands on his other books. I really enjoyed this book. There was a wonderful blending of mystery, suspense, humor and excitement. It is true that the killer is identified almost immediately, but I didn't feel as though that took anything away from the story. It was actually helpful to know who it was. It allowed the reader to watch how those involved interacted with the very people hunting them down.

Tess McCallum is an FBI agent who is something of a celebrity but who, like most of us, has some skeletons in her closet. Abby Sinclair, a private investigator is a gung-ho go getter with a wicked sense of humor. The killer(s) is(are) someone who could quite possibly live next door to any of us, which makes this story so believeable.

The story comes out of the shute on a dead run and doesn't stop till the finish line. I can't wait to find other books by Prescott, hope they are as good as this one was.
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Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
"She was found here," Crandall said. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
kidnapping gear, bearing indicator, junction room, storage manager
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Rain Man, Madeleine Grant, Abby Hollister, Angela Morris, Paula Weissman, William Kolb, Los Angeles, Bel Air, Abby Sinclair, City Hall, Santa Monica, Danny Lopez, Washington Boulevard, Olympic Boulevard, Wilshire Boulevard, Detective Goddard, Kolb's Oldsmobile, Lone Ranger, Mar Vista, Rat Packer, Beverly Hills, Josh Green, Richard Michaelson, Rick Crandall
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