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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Well Worth the Wait, June 9, 2005
You might remember a book from 1996 titled THE LAST FAMILY, John Ramsey Miller's debut novel. Miller, a journalist and photographer of some renown, had a winner on his hands. A fast-paced thriller dealing with retribution and rough justice, THE LAST FAMILY left its readers wanting more. It was published to critical and popular acclaim, and more and even greater things were expected from Miller. Readers waited. And waited. And waited. It appeared as if Miller had retired. Fortunately, that was not the case.
INSIDE OUT introduces U.S. Marshal Winter Massey, a somewhat unassuming gentleman who attempts to balance the twin duties of job and single parenthood while keeping his priorities straight. At the beginning of the novel, Massey is reluctantly inducted into a team assigned to protect Dylan Devlin, a contract killer who is taking a turn as a Federal witness against Sam Manelli, possibly the last of the old-school gangsters. Manelli's reach doesn't stop at his cell bars; knowing that Devlin's life is the only thing that stands between him and his freedom, Manelli arranges a contract hit on Devlin. The resulting carnage leaves the government's case in a shambles, and the reputation and life of Greg Nations, Massey's best friend, tarnished.
But the contract is not quite complete. Devlin's beautiful wife Sean escaped the hit as the result of Massey's intervention. She apparently was blissfully unaware of her husband's occupation, yet she too is now the target of a group of seemingly omnipresent assassins. Meanwhile, Massey is attempting to salvage Nations's reputation, despite orders from his superior to the contrary.
He soon learns that all of what has happened --- the contract on Devlin, the apparent culpability of Nations --- is minor compared to a major clandestine operation being carried out by a shadowy organization that answers to no one but itself. Massey quickly finds himself alone, unable to trust anyone, with only his wits and talent to guide him through a labyrinthine puzzle where the first misstep will mean death not only for himself, but also for his loved ones.
Readers who fondly remember THE LAST FAMILY will find INSIDE OUT to be well worth the long wait. Massey is a believable hero, one who is a balance of lethal talents and real-world compassion. More importantly, Miller is a first-rate author, plotting and writing with a muscular confidence that draws the reader in almost from the first page while slowly weaving layers of intricacy around what initially appears to be a deceptively simple plot. Readers who become addicted to Massey will not have to wait long for another dose --- UPSIDE DOWN, a second Winter Massey novel, will be published in late June 2005, with yet a third, SIDE BY SIDE, scheduled for publication in the fall. Clear your calendar now, and jump on board.
--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Has This Been Optioned To Hollywood Yet?, June 9, 2005
There are a couple ways of reading Miller's INSIDE OUT, as a great novel with multiple sub-sub-plots, or as a great novel with one big complicated (but not too complex) plot. Either way this is one heck of an enjoyable thriller.
Winter Massey is an United States Deputy Marshal, who after a phone call from long standing friend Greg Nations, expands his specialty from tracking down fugitives to working a Witness Security detail for assassin Dylan Devlin and his lovely wife Sean. Dylan was a contract killer for Sam a godfather type figure in the New Orleans Mob, hence the need for protection. However even some of the best marshals fail to protect the target, leading a reader to think oh oh end of story...Wrong after Dylan is hit the real action/intrique begins.
Miller does an excellent job building the principle characters into people a reader wishes to get to know better, and luckily this is the first of a projected Winter Massey trilogy.
Winter is a complex widower whose son is blinded in the plane accident that killed his wife. Rush is a very likable boy as well, and Miller paints a teasing glimpse of what it must be like to be a young person that is "handicapped" with loss of sight. Rush and Lydia, Winter's mother are both intricite pieces to a plot whose focus is largely around family.
This novel is virtually non-stop action, that would make an excellent movie as well as the casting is right and the actors do not overly play their roles. There are stereotypes in this book which is one of the reason it recieved 4 stars instead of five. Overall a great read anytime but I would credit the publishers for releasing the first entry when they did as it really seems with the action and pacing to be a custom made beach read.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Must Read, August 27, 2005
John Ramsey Miller's first novel, THE LAST FAMILY was an amazing suspense thriller and I waited patiently for another offering. I'd heard rumors of a new Miller novel for the past several years, and I was delighted to find out that he had three novels being released in six months. The main character is a US Marshal, Winter Massey, a single father raising a blind 13 year-old son.
I bought and devoured INSIDE OUT in one sitting (here comes the sun time), and over the course of the next weeks read it over again slowly to savor it. All of Miller's plot twists were intelligent and unexpected and just when I knew I had things figured out, Mr. Miller jerked the rug from under me. His books move at the speed of fright, but he develops his characters so they feel like real people. Miller's style is crisp and there is not a wasted word or a word too many. My only disappointment was that the story ended. Don't get me wrong; the ending was dead-on and wholly satisfying, but I was left wishing I could follow the characters beyond the last chapter. Well, I was able to do just that. The second book in the series, UPSIDE DOWN, was even better and took up with the Masseys a few months later. I was able to rejoin the characters I had grown to care about in the first book and follow the perils of the most amazing young girl in modern fiction. On Aguust 28th I intend to be reading my copy of the final book in the series, SIDE BY SIDE, and I know it will be wonderful.
...And then the wait begins for the next dose of Miller
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