Customer Reviews

Don't Tell a Soul

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

David Rosenfelt is a splendid author of crime fiction, but perhaps isn't yet well-known by the reading public. That is about to change. Mr. Rosenfelt is known for his Andy Carpenter series, the most recent of which was "Play Dead," which garnered a 5-star rating on Amazon (and is, inexplicably, out of print, awaiting a paperback version). These books successfully mix splendid drama with a great deal of gentle humor.

Now, this fine author has taken a break from Andy Carpenter to write a genuine thriller, "Don't Tell a Soul." The term "page-turner" has become shop-worn, so I won't use it here. Suffice it to say that nobody with a pulse will be able to put this book down. It contains a tightly-wound plot, interesting characters (both good and bad), and nail-biting developments, all of which provide for a very satisfying read. The book keeps the reader guessing about the true identity of the bad guys until the very end.

I am an avid reader of crime/thriller stories, as well as non-fiction (historical, biographies and such), but generally do not finish a book in less than a few days. But I began and finished "Don't Tell a Soul" within a period of 24 hours. (And, yes, like all of this author's books, there is a Golden Retriever in the story).

Congratulations to Mr. Rosenfelt on a masterful achievement.

RLB

David Rosenfelt made his reputation as the author of the amusing Andy Carpenter mysteries. This time around, he has written a stand-alone thriller, "Don't Tell a Soul." The protagonist is thirty-year old Tim Wallace, the owner of Wallace Industries, a small New Jersey construction company. One May afternoon, Tim and Maggie, who have been married for five months, go out on Tim's thirty-foot motorboat. Tragically, the boat suddenly explodes with Maggie on board. Tim miraculously survives but the police suspect him of orchestrating his wife's death. His life is about to become a nightmare.

Tim's nemesis is Detective Jonathon Novack, who is convinced that Maggie's death "was a cold-blooded murder." Tim willingly takes a lie-detector test and passes with flying colors. Even though Novack cannot find a credible motive for Tim wanting to harm the woman he adored, the detective stubbornly refuses to abandon his theory. To him, "this case would never get cold. He would work it whenever he could, probing it from every angle, until he could put away the [man] who literally blew his young wife out of the water."

"Don't Tell a Soul" is a page-turner that benefits from Rosenfelt's patented tongue-in-cheek humor. Tim is a low-key and appealing protagonist who decides to take matters into his own hands in order to clear his name. Novack is your typical hard-nosed cop who refuses to entertain the possibility that Tim may actually be telling the truth, even when the evidence points to Wallace's innocence. Unfortunately, the book's convoluted and far-fetched plot goes downhill as it reaches its melodramatic and formulaic conclusion. The inevitable confrontation between the good guys and the bad guys is neither believable nor suspenseful. Although Rosenfelt's novel lacks depth and the characters are strictly one-dimensional, it is entertaining enough for a day at the beach or to pass the time during a long airplane trip.

DON'T TELL A SOUL is my first novel by David Rosenfelt, and I found it mildly entertaining. Imagine a Harlan Coben novel written in the style of James Patterson, and that's pretty much what you get with this one.

The plot of this novel reminds me quite a bit of Harlan Coben's novel TELL NO ONE (even the title and front cover designs are similar). The main character is a thirtysomething guy in New Jersey whose wife dies in a boat explosion, and her body is never found. The police believe he is responsible for his wife's death, but don't have enough evidence to press charges. As the novel progesses, it appears clear that he is being framed for her death, as well as for some other violent killings. He eventually goes on the lam, and races against time to find out the truth behind what's going on.

The plot of DON'T TELL A SOUL was interesting enough for me to finish it, which is why I gave it a three star review. Unfortunately, the characterization in this novel is almost non-existent. There are at least ten key characters in this novel, and all of them are severely underdeveloped. Most of their dialogue is trite and only serves to move the plot forward. Rosenfelt changes the point of view so often that it's hard to relate to anybody in particular. As a result, I didn't find the suspense level of this book to be very high, which is a bad sign for any thriller.

In the end, DON'T TELL A SOUL is just a superficial entertainment, much in the style of James Patterson. It's certainly easy to read, but not particularly deep or satisfying. Still, if you like Patterson's writing style, and are looking for a good beach book, this may fit your requirements.

I am going to tell everyone. This is another winner from David Rosenfelt, who is definitely one of my favorite authors. I just finished DON'T TELL A SOUL, which I unabashedly read and finished despite the laundry and unmade beds. I am still unwinding from the tension, and I liked the characters. This is Rosenfelt's first (I believe) book out of the Andy Carpenter series. Hopefully, though, the author will not be let off the hook from his loyal readers who are anxiously awaiting another adventure from Andy Carpenter and his lovable friends, both canine and human.

Tim Wallace is struggling to recover from the death of his wife. His struggle is made all the more difficult because one of the detectives who worked his case is convinced that Tim actually murdered his wife, and is hell bent on bringing him to justice. Fortunately, Tim has two friends and business partners to help him through his mourning. When they invite him out to one of their old haunts for New Years Eve, Tim reluctantly agrees to go. While there, Tim is approached by a stranger, who has a secret to tell only to Tim. That secret reopens the investigation into the death of his wife, and puts Tim in the middle of a conspiracy he does not understand.

Don't Tell a Soul will appeal to fans of Harlan Coben's standalone thrillers, though it is not as violent and gritty. The elements are all there though, making this a competent and enjoyable (if not highly original) thriller.

I'm pretty discerning when it comes to the mystery/thriller/suspense genre. It's difficult to get to my top ten favorite authors. David Rosenfelt is right up there with Robert Crais, Michael Connelly, James Lee Burke, Laurence Shames (who hasn't been writing) and Thomas Perry-this is my guy list. Having been introduced to Rosenfelt's Andy Carpenter series by my eighty-one-year-old mother who hand sells his books in every bookstore and social situation, I eagerly devour his books and anticipate his next.

I wasn't sure about Rosenfelt's departure from the Carpenter series, but he has struck the mother lode in_ Don't Tell A Soul._ It's a fast-paced page turner that grabs the reader and won't let go until the last page is done. There will be no early nights for you until the entire book has been read. And I don't think you're going to figure out `who done it.'

Tim Wallace was newly married when tragedy struck. His wife died in a boating accident and the cops think Tim is good for the death. In fact, the primary officer assigned to the case becomes obsessed with putting Tim behind bars.

It's New Years Eve in a New Jersey bar when a stranger tells Tim a story of murder-before he disappears. He says he murdered a girl and provides details that Tim reports to the police. And when a body is found, the police also want to pin that murder on Tim.

Tim has few advantages in evading prison. He knows he's innocent, his lawyer seems pretty sure he is (but then he's getting a hefty paycheck) and the woman who cares for Tim's dog believes in him. With very little to go on, Tim pieces together an ingenious crime that was meant to kill him and still might accomplish that goal if he doesn't outsmart the bad guys.

Armchair Interviews says: Don't Tell A Soul is a must read. Then run out and buy all the previous Andy Carpenter novels for hour and hours of entertainment.

I came into this book with high hopes because I love this author. Those hopes were dashed almost instanly. The whole book is just filler pages until a 2 page climax. The detective is extremely annoying and I almost hate the main character. How can you expect someone to enjoy a book if the main character is annoying?!? Although one of the reviews on the back said,"David Rosenfelt has earned his crime-novelist pedigree," I can assure you that this is false. Horrid book. If you buy it enjoy your wasted money!

Being a big fan of David Rosenfelt's Andy Carpenter series, I thought I'd give his first stand-alone novel, Don't Tell A Soul, a read.

Basically, the book's plot concept involves Tim Wallace being convinced by his best friends and business partners to go with them to a bar on New Year's Eve, which is the first time he has gone out socially since his wife died in a boating accident several months ago. A death that one particular New Jersey cop is convinced was not an accident, but a murder that Wallace committed, despite his being cleared of any wrong doing. While at the bar, a drunken stranger asks Wallace if he can keep a really big secret, and before Wallace can say anything, the stranger confesses to murdering a woman and offers proof of the location of the woman's body. Then, he tells Wallace that "Now, it's your problem" and walks away. From that point on, Wallace's life becomes topsy-turvy.

Having now finished the book, my opinion is that, overall, Don't Tell A Soul is a generally entertaining read that is comprised of a smorgasbord of good and bad elements.

On the positive side of the smorgasbord, Don't Tell A Soul provides a fast-paced page-turner, has a plot that offers several red herrings and suspense, and delivers a sufficient amount of humorous dialogue and narrative that Rosenfelt has become known for in his successful Andy Carpenter series.

On the negative side, unlike the strong characterizations evident in this author's series, the characters are mostly thinly developed, the dynamics between Wallace and the police are highly stereotypical and predictable, the high-pitch level of suspense created so effectively during the first half of the book turned into just as high level of implausibility in the second half of the book -- with a conclusion that went beyond my ability to suspend disbelief, and Carpenter left some threads untied that left me hanging.

All in all, despite its flaws I think you'll find Don't Tell A Soul to be entertaining and similar in some ways (but not as good as) Harlan Coben's Tell No One. Don't Tell A Soul is a book you might want to consider when you're in the mood for light, escape reading and don't want to do much thinking. However, it is not a book I'd recommend that you rush out to read.

Rosenfelt is a fairly good writer. His style is reminiscent of Harlen Coben. From character development, to dialog, to suspenseful writing techniques, Rosenfelt seems to be channeling the same source as Coben. This is not a bad thing in my book. What is a bad thing is that Rosenfelt has just about come up with the goofiest plot I have ever come across.

The story is based in the terrorist minded days of just after 9-11. You can feel the early Bush-onian fear doused reality of that time. The main character is Tim Wallace, head of a company that contracts new fully safe government admin buildings. His wife died a year earlier in a freak boating accident and a lot of people think he murdered her on purpose.

The first half of the book works pretty well. You as a reader are not sure exactly what is going on. You just know that it looks like someone is out to ruin Wallace's life by any means possible.

SPOILER ALERT:

ok,to review this book properly, you need to talk about the plot, because this is what sinks this story beyond redemption. First of all, when you have finished reading Dont Tell A Soul, you can look back and ask a few questions like, "Hmmmm, why was Tim made a focal point of the bad guys to begin with?" Like why did they try to kill him a year before the event, then try to turn him into a fugitive on new years, then try to kill him? Why not just kill him on New Years? Why try to kill him on the boat? Seems to me that if Tim were still around during the 'event' he would not have gotten in the way of anything.

Also, can you really see two US senators plot like that? I guess I can, but so unintelligent-ly? One bad guy able to bring down the entire US government and his employer? I can go on and on, but you get the jist of some of my complaints. Just wayyyy to silly.

As I said at the beginning, this book is a lot like Coben. I would skip 'Dont tell a soul' and try instead one of Coben's more recent, non-Myron Bolitar books. They rock.

I have been reading the author's legal thrillers featuring New Jersey lawyer Andy Carpenter (starting with Open and Shut), all of which I have enjoyed. I grabbed this one thinking it was the next in the series, but this book is a stand alone thriller and the main character is not a lawyer -- good news for people who don't care for legal thrillers.

The main character in this book, Tim Wallace, owns a small business doing security construction to help make buildings secure against terror attacks. His wife is killed in a boating accident and one of the detectives investigating believes Tim has murdered her but there is no evidence to charge him with murder. The real action begins several months later when his friends drag him out for New Years Eve and a drunken stranger confides in Tim that he has murdered a woman and tells Tim where he buried her body. From that point on, Tim is in danger of losing first his freedom and then his life.

Some of the events are so over the top that only a couple people could be behind it. But even so, I didn't get the whole picture until the end and it was a fun, entertaining read.