The Killing Game by Iris Johansen

-Reagan


*DISCLAIMER:  I DID NOT READ THE FIRST BOOK IN THIS SERIES*

The Killing Game by Iris Johansen is the second book in the Eve Duncan series.  The book is about Eve Duncan, a highly talented forensic sculptor, who leaves her island haven to identify some bones found in a mass grave that may or may not be that of her daughter.  While doing this, a serial killer decides that he needs a little entertainment and decides to give Eve a little challenge.  A little girl's life, and Eve's hang in the balance.

Before this, I had never read an Eve Duncan book or an Iris Johansen book, so the first thing I did was skim through the first few pages.  They were filled with all kinds of positive reviews saying that other novels by Johansen were full of realistic characters, fantastic dialogue, and an engrossing plot.  So needless to say, I was pretty excited.

And boy was I disappointed.

The plot was okay, but it certainly wasn't enthralling.  There were no big twists or complicated plot points to be found.  It was practically spoon-fed to the reader.  And the entire book leads up to the confrontation with the big bad serial killer, but only lasts a little under a chapter.  Not exactly a reward after reading three hundred some odd pages of not exactly quality reading.

Not only was the plot less than promised, but the characters and dialogue weren't up to par either.  The characters were really flat.  They had this seemingly magical ability to completely understand each other and themselves all of the time, no communication or prior relationship necessary because everyone, especially the female characters have this 'energy' or 'presence' that makes them completely identifiable; especially to strangers and especially to serial killers.  Ugh.

And, oh my, the dialogue.  There are only so many cliches and poorly executed one-liners that a girl can take.

Overall, I would not recommend this book.  If you're looking for something quick an easy to read on a plane or you're in between books at the moment and are desperate for something to read, this might be the book for you.  Just make sure to pick it up from the library or a friend instead of buying it.