Customer Reviews

Killer Summer (Thorndike Core)

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

 

 

Sheriff Walt Fleming is back. He and his department are guarding two ballyhooed "John Adams" bottles of wine set to be auctioned off. He is also trying to shoehorn in some fishing with his dead brother's son, seventeen-year-old Kevin. But duty interrupts their river time when Walt's ever-vigilant eyes notice a wrecker towing a Taurus away from town, and he chases after it. In no time, Walt, Deputy Brandon, Fiona, Walt's father, and Kevin get involved in a tense imbroglio featuring a trio of criminals, a wealthy man's private jet, a teenage girl tantalizing Kevin for her own ends, a tough ranch caretaker, that presidential wine, various dangerous diversions, and a string of nail-biting struggles in rough country.

KILLER SUMMER is more a "head-on" (or straightforward) thriller than Ridley Pearson's last Fleming novel, KILLER VIEW; it doesn't conceal suspect identities for example, and it begins less tautly but still captivatingly. Arguably, it is slightly more predictable as a consequence. It differs too in that it also revolves strongly around the teenagers, Kevin and Summer Sumner -- hopeful of attracting younger readers perhaps, but sometimes, particularly in their dialog, conveying a commercial TV type of young people's relationship. However, like its predecessor, KILLER SUMMER presents some terrific wilderness suspense as characters battle the elements and each other for simple survival. The Sun Valley area, vibrantly described by Pearson, continues to deserve to be oonsidered a pivotal "character" in this series too.

Walt, a reliable, intelligent man, bears realistic insecurities and conflicts in his private life. He feels most in control as Sheriff of Blaine County, Idaho, than as son, uncle, or potential lover. His tentative "romance" with Fiona and his sometimes petty irritations endear him to the reader. At the same time, his professionalism and scouting and investigative skills make him an authoritative, capable protagonist. I look forward to his further adventures.

I am an unabashed big fan of R.P. and have read every one of his books so it was with great anticipation that I started to read "Killer Summer".
When I finally got it I couldn't wait to start it... after about 50 laborious pages I realized I couldn't wait for it to end-even contemplated not finishing it-which would have been a first for a RP book ( I even finished the dreadful ""Parallel Lines")-but stuck with it although scanning the last 100 pages not caring at all about the outcome since none of the characters were the least bit interesting...nor was there even a trace of a compelling story line.
There is even a "love that will last a lifetime" devolpment that had me shaking my head since the Romeo and Juliet in question had known each other about 5 minutes.

If you want to "kill a summer"(pun intended!)weekend:then go ahead and read it.

I realize he has contracts with his publisher to fulfill but I hope he will wait a bit until he can get an idea that will produce something of equal quality to a number of his earlier exceptionally good works: "Hardfall","The Angel Maker","No Witnesses","Beyond Recognition" and "The Pied Piper" among others.

This is my first encounter with Ridley Pearson's Sheriff Walt Fleming, and Killer Summer was a good blend of mystery/thriller. Now I gotta go back and pick up the other two. I really enjoy the character and all the things he has to face in his life. Despite the fact that the plot lends itself to all the drama in Walt's life, I know from raising five kids of my own that these things will come at you in the worst of times.

Pearson's writing is lean and taut. He also introduced enough factoids about wine-making and glider flying and some of the other medical and law enforcement stuff that I enjoyed getting something of an education along the way as well. But those things mixed right into the story line and characters, and proved essential as well.

However, the pacing sacrifices a little of the character development of the ancillary players I wanted to see more of. Janet Finch, the specialist in wine history and wine bottles, seemed to drop right out of sight after her bit in the mystery was done, and I wasn't really ready to let go of her or the wine expertise she brought to the story.

To be fair, by the time some of the characters that revolve around the wine plot disappeared at the same time the suspense plot kicked into high gear and Walt's emotionally battered nephew Kevin was in danger.

The first half of the book took a little effort to get into, but Christopher Cantrell's hijacking of a car in the middle of traffic was cool enough to suck me in almost immediately. Unfortunately, the plot followed side roads for a time, including a jaunt down Walt's personal life that stuck out, before swinging back into the groove. Then the last half of the book seemed to rush right through things, and a lot of the action shifted off Walt's efforts to save Kevin while focusing on Kevin's efforts to save himself.

Still, this is one of those perfect beach reads. Killer Summer has short, compact chapters and an elaborate plot that spins naturally out of the action and the characterization. The book's engagement and pacing is good for a lazy summer or a few hours in the sun or on a trip.

I enjoyed the feel of organic growth of the books. The references to past cases (two previous books) let me know I'd missed a lot worth reading, but it didn't throw me off so much that I couldn't enjoy this book. Now I want to see how all this started, and I want to read the next Walt Fleming novel to find out what happens in this likeable sheriff's life. One thing is for certain: whatever comes through next isn't going to be easy, but it will be interesting.

Ridley Pearson is on of the most talented authors that is published today. This book, however, was no where as good as his others. Weak story, characters that are not like-able. I was extremely disappointed with this book and the other "killer" books he has written. Don't bother reading. If you enjoy Ridley Pearson, stay away from this.

Killer Summer is the 3rd installment in Ridley Pearson's series featuring sheriff Walt Fleming. Walt is Quantico-trained, an expert tracker, a crack shot, and a very smart law enforcement officer, but he's disappointed his father--an ex-FBI guy--by opting to chase criminals in bucolic Sun Valley, Idaho, instead of chasing some more prestigious position. Still, high-profile trouble seems to find Walt. This time out he suspects that a gang of thieves is planning an elaborate heist in conjunction with a wine auction that's being hosted in Walt's jurisdiction. The prize: three bottles believed to have come from Thomas Jefferson's cellar. At the same time, in a storyline that eventually intersects with the wine heist story, Walt's nephew Kevin gets into trouble with a girl who's vacationing unhappily with her father in Sun Valley.

Start to finish, Killer Summer is a riveting read. I love the main characters: Walt and Kevin are both likable and smart in the face of adversity, which I find appealing. We don't learn much about the criminals Walt's up against--and I suppose I would have liked to know more about them--but we are made to understand that the ringleader is careful and smart at what he does as well. The various strands of Pearson's story are expertly woven together. The writing is crisp. Killer Summer was a book I really didn't want to put down.

-- Debra Hamel

This is the third story Pearson has written with Sheriff Walt Fleming; but given the simplicity of the main characters, it's not a problem reading the books out of order. Protagonist Walt Fleming is a basic character type. He's a straightforward cop who's good at his job, works too much, and is headed for divorce. The story involves insurance fraud, a spoiled teenager, a businessman in financial trouble, an "Ocean's Eleven" thief, and a whole host of other basic by-the-book characters. It's very predictable, and skipping paragraphs may be your best bet on getting to the end. Killer Summer is mildly amusing if you're filling time until the next best seller hits the shelves.

I am a huge fan of Ridley Pearson. I really enjoy the Lou Boldt series and I have taken to this series with Walt Fleming however this book is a pretty big let down.

The book seems to have nothing that draws me back in for more, unlike his other books. Maybe its the long hiatus with no Lou Boldt novels that has me turned off a bit but I really looked forward to this new book to release on paperback. The first 100 pages were abnormally dull for a Pearson novel. He usually has me hooked a few chapters in and once I am locked in I find time to get back to the book and find out what happened - not so with Killer Summer. Walt is still a very likeable character but the surrounding story lacks badly, it's flat and quite honestly, a little boring. It seems like he put this together differently or perhaps rushed it. I kept thinking it would pick up pace wise but mid way through I was hoping for the end..... and soon. I will not give up on Ridley, he is fantastic and everyone can put out a stinker once in a while so its alright with me I just hope he gets back on his A game for the next book and hopefully it will be starring his bread and butter character Mr. Boldt!

I'm a sucker for heist movies & books. I adored Ocean's 11, and Ridley Pearson's Killer Summer definitely takes a page from that book. (It even openly acknowledges this, as Walt takes to calling the unidentified mastermind of the heist "George Clooney," which is a nice touch.) The heist in this book is complex and satisfying, with plenty of twists and turns. Unfortunately I can't say much more than that without risking giving away something important!

I loved the characterizations in Killer Summer as well, and my only complaint there was that there were enough interesting characters that it felt as though some of them got short shrift. In particular, I would have loved to see more detail on "George Clooney" and his partner, Lorraine. Walt is surprisingly socially awkward for a main character, and I love it. He has trouble relating to his nephew Kevin, Fiona (a friend and co-worker he's developing feelings for), and his own dad, not to mention his soon-to-be-ex-wife, the deputy she's leaving him for, and more. He's a dogged and determined man, often confused and hurt by the people around him, yet who won't give up on anyone.

My other favorite characters were the teens, Summer & Kevin. It's rare to see teen characters in an adult novel that are handled this well. They aren't overly precious or annoying. They aren't perfect, too-smart, too-dumb, or transparent plot devices. They have their own personalities, make mistakes, try to do what they think is right or reasonable, and just generally succeed at being every bit as interesting and fun to follow along with as the adults. My only difficulty with them, in fact, was that I never did understand how Summer intended to pull off a particular part of her plan--again, I don't want to go into too much detail here.

I did run into one detail that jerked me out of the story a bit when a side character is referred to as having a "master's in science from MIT." I paused, blinked a couple of times, read that aloud to my husband (who graduated from MIT), and watched him (literally) facepalm. Hopefully this is an artifact of the fact that this is an uncorrected proof and will be fixed before publication.

Anyway, that's a niggly detail that I imagine most people wouldn't notice. This is a highly enjoyable book with plenty of characterization, small-town scenery, and complicated heist details to keep you satisfied!

Sheriff Flemming is having to deal with the annual wine auction which may be good for the town but is a little much for him. Add to that very pricy and rare bottles of wine reported to have been owed by Thomas Jefferson that is the target of some very crafty thieves and Walt has his work cut out for him. Walt has to be all over Sun Valley as he tries to thwart the robbery then track down his nephew and the girl that manipulated him into a very dangerous position.

I like Sheriff Walt Flemming and his can do attitude. I thought towards the end of the Lou Bold series it was getting a bit stale and stilted after so many books so it's nice to see new life. Unfortunately, there are there were some things that just didn't work but that's just the way things go sometimes. I like Walt's personality and demeanor and the fact that he has custody of his children but I'm not sure what man would be able to work side by side with the man sleeping with his ex-wife. All in all, it's a good, not great read.

I've been a fan since the early Lou Boldt days and look for anything new by Mr. Pearson. He takes what could have been a somewhat predictable plot, throws in a few interesting twists and lets the events slowly unwind in a thoroughly enjoyable book. His dialogue is believable and moves the story line along in a natural progression.
I like his way of letting the reader see how his characters work their way out of sticky places without telegraphing his plot-lines. I also appreciate a writer who lets you see places you have never been without turning things into a lengthy verbal trip.