Taking Lives [Hardcover]

Michael Pye (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 22, 1999

A riveting psychological novel about a young serial killer who takes on the identities of his victims.

The first one he didn't really have to kill. The yound college-bound kid had been hit by a car. He was almost, if not already dead when Martin Arkenhout smashed his head with a stone.

With this chilling opening scene, Michael Pye begins a brilliantly daring and suspenseful novel about the fragile borders that define who we are and the hidden desire in each of us to reinvent ourselves. When Arkenhout can no longer maintain the identity of his first victim, he takes another. Then another. He thinks he can live their lives better than they do, and he continues the pattern until he happens to choose the wrong victim and his secret begins to unravel.

We are taken from New York to the Bahamas to Amsterdam, and finally to Portugal, where Arkenhout (now living the life of one Professor Christopher Hart) is eventually tracked down by the story's narrator, John Costa, who is in pursuit of the real Hart because of a theft he committed. Costa has his own set of troubling circumstances: a failing marriage, the slow uncovering of his tormented family history, and a growing desire to leave it all behind by tasting Arkenhout's brand of dangerous freedom.

With exhilarating apeed and psychological suspense, the plot of this extraordinary novel drives to its startling conclusion.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Martin Arkenhout, a young student from Holland, is taking a break from his studies to explore the United States and beyond. Tall, skinny, and somewhat unsure of his new surroundings, Arkenhout looks and acts like any other traveler. But this 17-year-old is no innocent abroad. He takes the concept of enriching one's life through travel to a terrifying new level, and gets his kicks from murdering various strangers along the way. What makes these killings even more grotesque is the fact that Arkenhout steals the identities of his victims in an attempt to displace his own persona. This perversity allows him to "invent himself" whenever the urge strikes. Yet one personality is harder to maintain then all the others--that of Professor Christopher Hart, who was an art teacher with a special affection for Dutch art and, apparently, a love for valuable manuscripts. The theft of one such manuscript gained the special attention of a private investigator, John Costa. Martin Arkenhout must now pay his own price for the professor's purported crime, and is hotly pursued across the globe.

Taking Lives is a bizarre masquerade ball where nothing is as it seems, and every character has a hidden past. The final reprise of this deranged dance reaches a brilliant crescendo, and keeps us hanging on until the very last, and very shocking, note. --Naomi Gesinger

From Publishers Weekly

The second novel by the author of The Drowning Room is equal parts literary thriller, noir study of the mysteries of identity and poignant account of exile and return. It begins as Martin Arkenhout, a Dutch exchange student traveling in Florida, brutally dispatches a traveling companion badly injured by a hit-and-run driver, rationalizing the death blow as a mercy killing. He then takes over the victim's identity and begins a series of such killings, ever in search of new persona?as long as each victim has good sources of cash and credit. One of them, however, turns out to be an art historian who has stolen some valuable antique watercolors from the British Museum, and John Costa, a minor official at the museum, sets out to find him. He tracks Arkenhout to Portugal, where the novel takes a new turn?for Costa's father recently returned there after a life of exile in London, and on his death it becomes clear that he left a mystery, related to the dire politics of the old days, behind him. Costa and Arkenhout both become involved with an attractive local lawyer; there is an inevitable further murder and yet another switch of identities; and the book ends on a somberly enigmatic note. Pye is a writer with a remarkable eye and a fresh, vigorous style, and many scenes leap to life; the sense of rustic life in Portugal is exquisitely rendered (the author lives there), and he is equally adept at sudden outbursts of violence. But the book's rather shallow concept, including its unconvincing sex scenes involving the Portuguese lawyer, weighs against its virtues. It reads as if the author intended to write a modish thriller, then was led, by the weight of his material, into more interesting but ultimately unresolved directions. 50,000 first printing.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Knopf; 1st edition (February 22, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375402608
• ISBN-13: 978-0375402609
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,257,622 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unusual and Rewarding, September 14, 2004

By 

Aussie "peter_b2" (Easton, CT USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Taking Lives (Paperback)

Taking Lives is the first Michael Pye book I've read. Based on an unusual, but plausible premise, it is an engrossing read. Pye writes very well and does a great job of putting you in the scene. The story starts off and finishes off well, but sags a bit in the middle. Despite this, Taking Lives is worth reading if you like this genre.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars High Merits - Taking Lives - One Reader at a Time, February 23, 2004

By 

Track Cejj (My Library) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Taking Lives (Hardcover)

The type of book any avid reader can easily delve into, and stay hooked. The writing technique was sophisticated and superb, brought the story to life.

After the plot thickened, I was able to piece together what would happen, but I finished, and was glad I did! Mind blowing conclusion... would recommend to any body.

I wasn't a fan of John Costa's character.. not sure if that's just me? But I liked the writing techniques, that displayed the personalities of Martin. So many people can be related to him, and it helped bring him to life. Very haunting, but very reverent.

Based on the merit, this book has received in reviews, I'm shocked to find so many disapproved of it. This story captures every aspect of any other suspense thriller. This book held everything for me.. drama, suspense, crime.. you name it.. This book deserves better credit! A+

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Interesting premise but ultimately disappointing.., March 15, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Taking Lives (Hardcover)

The premise of this book, about a serial killer who assumes the identities of his victims, hooked me from the get-go. That, plus the interesting title that sums up the plotline, made me think that here was a witty writer who had gone beyond the usual cliched serial killer premise. For about 50 pages, I thought I was right. I was even with the author when the museum curator begins to track down the killer who had assumed the wrong identity, that of a professor who had taken valuable pictures from a library. Still, so far, so good. But the whole time there was something bothering me; the unbelievably affected writing style of this author. It's one thing to move beyond commercial fiction; it's another to devolve into a style that captures your imagination and no one else's. As the plot began to spin out of control and became less and less believable, the affected writing had me grinding my teeth more and more. Finally, I could take no more and barely got through with the book. Ultimately, the author tossed credibility out the window and fell in love the bizarre voice of his narrator. Ugh! A promising premise down the drain. Don't bother.