Dead Last (Thorn Series #12)

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Dead Last Pub. Date: 11/27/2012 Publisher: St. Martin's Press
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Dead Last (Thorn Series #12) (First Edition) Pub. Date: 11/22/2011 Publisher: St. Martin's Press

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Overview

From an acclaimed “master of suspense”(New York Times Book Review) comes a thriller in which Thorn must confront an assassin whose victims and methods are taken directly from the script of a popular TV show

April Moss writes obituaries for the Miami Herald. Her son, Sawyer, also a writer, has been scripting a cable TV series called “Miami Ops” and has been using his mother’s work as a central element of the show's storyline. In “Miami Ops,” a serial killer is using obituaries published in the local paper as a blueprint for selecting his next victims.

But midway through the season, a copycat appears off-screen, a real-life killer who is using the same strategy to select victims. When this serial killer crosses paths with the reclusive Thorn, he has no choice but to leave his sanctuary in Key Largo and join forces with a young policewoman from Oklahoma who is investigating the murders.

In addition to the show’s head writer, April’s other son, Sawyer’s twin brother, works on “Miami Ops” as the lead actor. Could one of them be involved in the killings? Or are they orchestrated by the director of the TV series, an aging mogul who badly needs a hit? And what about the female star of the show, a deliciously strange young woman who seems willing to do anything to promote her career.

Thorn walks into this hotbed of entertainment business intrigue totally unprepared for the life-altering shocker he’s about to face. This loner from Key Largo has brought down his share of killers, but he's never confronted one that was his own flesh and blood.

With the pacing of a thriller, and the lyrical prose for which Hall is renowned, this story pits Thorn against a killer—or killers—whose motives are as elusive as their identities.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

In Edgar-winner Hall’s compelling 12th novel featuring Florida PI Daniel Thorn (after 2010’s Silencer), Thorn mourns the sudden death of his new wife, Rusty Stabler, in typically idiosyncratic fashion—by burning his possessions. Then Buddha Hilton, the 19-year-old sheriff of Starkville, Okla., arrives in Key Largo to ask for Thorn’s help. Rusty’s aunt, Michaela Stabler, who was Buddha’s adoptive mother, has been stabbed to death in Starkville; Rusty’s Miami Herald obituary was placed beside Michaela’s body. The juxtaposition of clipping and corpse mimics a TV drama, Miami Ops, which employs the twin sons of the obituary’s writer, April Moss, whom Thorn knew briefly years before. Is Michaela’s killing a stunt designed to save a failing show or an act with a murkier purpose? As Thorn attempts to untangle fact from fiction, a revelation about his past changes his life. As always, Hall combines crisp prose, solid psychology, sardonic humor, and glimpses of an edgy, fast-changing Florida into a suspenseful and satisfying whole. (Dec.)

Library Journal

Hall's series hero, Thorn (Silencer), is mourning the loss of his new wife when he's forced to confront a bizarre mixture of fantasy and reality. A cable television series has a story arc about a serial killer using newspaper obituaries to select victims, and a fan is re-creating the crimes. Someone close to Thorn is the first victim. Is the killing meant to be a ratings stunt or something more sinister? A clever premise and intriguing protagonists make this thriller stand above the fray. With too many secondary characters to follow, however, it's sometimes difficult to keep track of the plot. VERDICT Longtime series fans will enjoy this entry, but newcomers might have issues with understanding who is who at times. Overall, this is another solid effort from Hall. [Library marketing.]—Jeff Ayers, Seattle P.L.

More Reviews (1) Fewer Reviews

Kirkus Reviews

Nothing, it seems, can boost a sagging TV crime series but a series of copycat crimes. After only five episodes, Miami Ops is already on life support. Blame Gus Dollimore for stretching himself too thin as show runner, executive producer and sole director. Blame his daughter Dee Dee, an actress of limited scope and unlimited pectorals, for her portrayal of the good-and-evil twins who drive the show. Blame her costar Flynn Moss or his twin Sawyer, the writer who, having successfully pitched the concept of a masked killer who leaves obituaries as calling cards at his crime scenes, may end up as TV's youngest has-been. But if Miami Ops doesn't add a million viewers within a month, it's history. Luckily for the show, but unluckily for several real-life victims, someone is evidently inspired to act out its creaky plot in real life. An obit penned by Flynn and Sawyer's mother April, a veteran reporter, and left at the first scene, implicates soldier of fortune Thorn, even though the killing was in far-off Oklahoma, and brings Sheriff Buddha Hilton calling on him. Thorn, who's mourning the death of his lover and wife Rusty Stabler, isn't best pleased to see the 19-year-old sheriff, or to get tangled with a TV cast and crew as dysfunctional as any of Hall's trademark villains (Silencer, 2010, etc.). But his hand is forced when the most appealing character around becomes the next victim, and he's soon en route to formula thrills to which he'll have an unexpectedly personal relationship. Hall works some pleasing changes on a gimmick that was threadbare when Josephine Tey used it 75 years ago. Not the best Thorn, despite some deeply felt moments.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780312607326
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Publication date: 11/22/2011
Edition description: First Edition
Edition number: 1
Pages: 336
Sales rank: 67,212
Series: Thorn Series , #12
Product dimensions: 9.50 (w) x 6.56 (h) x 1.13 (d)

Meet the Author

James Hall

JAMES W. HALL is an Edgar and Shamus Award-winning author whose books have been translated into a dozen languages. He divides his time between South Florida and North Carolina.

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cusackla

Posted December 1, 2011

Great Read!

As always James W. Hall delivers with another great Thorn Series.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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PlasticEyes

Posted May 24, 2012

Thorn approaches the shark

In "Dead Last" Hall spins another interesting Thorn story -- well written, with some good observations and life lessons. Nonetheless, I fear that Thorn may soon "jump the shark" if he continues to behave unrealistically and irrationally. First, it's hard to believe he would reject the entire fortune he inherited in Hall's previous book. The Thorn I know would keep at least a million or so in order to buy a better boat, fishing gear, or at least some new flip-flops. Instead, he stumbles around Miami with $5 in his pocket, bumming money and meals. Then there's the matter of his angst. It's just tedious to see Thorn wallowing in self-pity, but to say more would spoil the story. And finally, there's his passivity. Thorn doesn't solve the mystery in "Dead Last" but seems addled throughout. Hall is a good writer, and "Dead Last" covers some important territory in the Thorn saga, so fans of the series should definitely read this. But come on, Mr. Hall! Bring back the Thorn we admired, not this stumblebum.
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arrowmen

Posted March 5, 2012

not one of his better books

I thought his previous books were excellent but this book did not live up to the authors standards.
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Anonymous

Posted December 10, 2011

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Posted November 30, 2011

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Posted November 22, 2011

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