Ten years ago Jaylin Banks was murdered in the library. A cold case that was given to Rainie and Quincy to solve. Who did it and why is what they need to answer. Was it Duchovny, the boyfriend of Jaylin who had left to go to a club? Did he come back and act on a jealous rage? Was it the security guard, the person who was working to protect the people in the library? Was there a new mystery boyfriend that Jaylin was secretly seeing?

Quincy and Rainie use their expert skills to try to solve this case. Luckily they have a log of everyone who has gone in and out of the library that day. They use their expert interrogation skills and quick wit to find the fourth man.

A great quick read by Lisa Gardner!!!

Detective D.D. Warren Teams with Quince and Connor to Solve a Cold Case

Detective D.D. Warren is working a cold case. Ten years ago, Jaylin Banks was strangled in a stairwell of the campus library. She wasn’t sexually assaulted and the three men who were in the library at the time, her boyfriend and two security guards, have alibis. D.D. enlists the help of profiler Pierre Quincy and his wife, Rainie Connor, a former police officer, to help question the suspects.

The suspects are interviewed, but no new information is elicited until D.D. begins to wonder if there was a 4th man. This line of thinking leads to some new evidence and the case takes shape.

Although a short story, about 40 pager, this is a full D.D. Warren detective story. The questioning of suspects by Pierre and Raine is well done. It keeps you guessing about who is telling the truth and whether they will be able to identify the killer.

I love Lisa Gardner’s mysteries. The characters are well drawn and even in a story as short as this one, there are twists that keep you guessing. If you’re a Lisa Gardner fan, don’t miss this one. If you’re new to her novels, this is a good place to start.

I received this book from Dutton for this review.

The 4th Man was based on a true story/murder, which definitely underscores the idea that “truth is stranger than fiction”. The reasons a person will murder are quite baffling sometimes!

Detective D.D. Warren has been working on cold case murders and this one committed ten years earlier stumped the investigators. A college student was strangled, and her body left in the stairwell of the campus library. No physical evidence was left on the scene and there were no eyewitnesses to the crime. But D.D. is a persistent woman, and she’s uncovered a lie told by each of the three persons of interest involved. She doesn’t want to miss any opportunity to catch the killer so she calls in profiler experts Quincy and Rainie to question these three men. What follows is an interesting discovery of what actually happened that night.

I’m a huge fan of Lisa Gardner’s mysteries, I’ve been reading her stories for years, but the first book I read of hers was a Quincy and Rainie book: The Third Victim, the first book they were put together, and I was hooked! Ms. Gardner has been writing mysteries featuring other detectives/FBI agents since then so it’s be quite a while since I’ve “seen” Quincy and Rainie. I’ve always wanted to catch up with them again, and with this short story I got a little to whet my appetite before their full-length return in, Right Behind You. As usual their clever deductions impress!

Even though The 4th Man is part of a larger series, it isn’t necessary to read the other books in the series to enjoy. This is mainly a crime procedural/mystery without much personal from Quincy, Rainie or D.D. Warren. It’s also very short; probably took me an hour to read the whole story.

There’s a teaser at the end for Right Behind You, and after reading I can’t wait to pick it up! As a side note, I noticed Luke Daniels is the narrator for the audio version of The 4th Man. He’s one of my all-time favorite narrators so I’m sure that would be an excellent way to “read” this story!

The 4th Man by Lisa Gardner is An FBI Profiler/Detective D.D. Warren Story. Sergeant Detective D.D. Warren is a Boston homicide detective working cold cases. Her latest case is the murder of Jaylin Banks that occurred at a local Boston college ten years ago. Jaylin had been found in one of the stairwells by a campus security guard. The police have no physical evidence of the killer and there was little violence involved. The only thing that was missing was Jaylin’s dirty white keds. Their only hope is getting a confession from one of their suspects. Warren has brought in the top three suspects to be questioned by profiling expert, Pierce Quincy and his wife, Officer Rainie Connor. If one of these three men did not commit the crime, then it is the unknown fourth man. Will they finally get justice for Jaylin Banks by identifying her killer?

The 4th Man is well-written, has a good pace, and is very easy to read. I appreciate the characters and their method of interrogation and investigation. The 4th Man is a very (extremely) short story that can be finished in about 30 to 45 minutes (depending on how fast you read). The mystery is interesting (unique) and most people will be surprised the killer’s identity. I give The 4th Man 4 out of 5 stars. I wish the story had been just a little longer. I felt that the whole story was too rushed. A preview of Lisa Gardner’s next book is included (and it is very good).

The "queen" of crime thrillers, Lisa Gardner returns following Find Her (2016) with a tantalizing mystery suspense short story, with an un·be·liev·a·ble killer twist:

THE 4TH MAN (Quincy & Rainie #6.5) with a preview of the upcoming highly anticipated Right Behind You, which will leave you salivating, and rushing to pre-order.

Boston Homicide Detective DD Warren has inherited a cold case and FBI Profiler, Pierce Quincy and his partner wife, Rainie Connor, have flown in from Oregon to assist with the case. (love this duo)!

A ten-year-old case of a young woman murdered at the university library, in the stairwell. Manual strangulation. No signs of struggle, no evidence of sexual assault. Non-violence. Not a single print, hair, thread, speck of dirt, or swab of DNA to be recovered.

The only detail out of place; she’d been missing her shoes. A pair of dirty white Keds, which per her family, she purchased the year before for less than twenty bucks. They were never recovered from the crime scene.

There was a guard on duty for the evening, plus one for the graveyard shift. The students used an electronic access system to enter the library. However, the students could also bring guests with them. These were to be manually logged in by the guard under the student’s ID.

Over the course of the years, they did not have these guest’s names and the original investigators had dropped the ball. From a list of over sixty possible murder suspects, with ten years to run and hide, the person could be clever or cold. Rainie and Quincy’s job was to push buttons of the prime suspects. (They remind me of The Mentalist ), one of my favorites. Observant. Intuitive. Sharp.

The beautiful honor student, Jaylin Banks had whispered conversations and phone calls, as well as canceled meetings leading up to the night of her murder. A smart girl dating a bad boy. Sweet and introverted.

Suspect #1: James Duchovny, the boyfriend at the time. Binge drinking, a bully, hoodlum, explosive temper, violence and a rap sheet. He had been 22 yrs. Of age at the time of the murder. A jealous rage?

Suspect #2: Dennis Ringham, early thirties; one of the two security guards working on the night in question- the university’s rent-a-cop. Someone who wanted a uniform but couldn’t have one.

Suspect #3: Laurel Santana, a professional security guard, working the graveyard shift. Married with a baby. The wild card. He had been the one to find the body. He came on at 11:50 pm.

There had also been a mysterious older female visitor. A secret meeting? Who was The 4th Man? Did someone come back or stay behind?

James and Jaylin were supposed to meet at the library and go out afterward. Her paper was not finished. He had told the security guard she was on the second floor and to keep an eye out for her. She said she needed an extra hour and would meet him at the bar.

Did he return to the library later? Whoever killed her had to be someone already inside the library. Someone with access to the library.

A student, a guest, or a security guard? A 4th Man. Motive? Obsession?

A classic closed-room murder, based on a true story—Lisa Gardner once again delivers an intriguing crime thriller with characters’ reader's love. The investigators prevailed, identifying the perp and finding justice in a case where the truth truly is stranger than fiction.

As always, Gardner has the perfect combo and all the essentials: Setting, a perpetrator, an alibi, a suspect, a victim, a puzzle, evidence, a motive, a detective or sleuth, a clue, a plot, and a finally, a breakthrough.

Lisa Gardner and Karin Slaughter always deliver the best novellas!

A killer teaser, with a bonus preview of more "real-life inspired "suspense, Right Behind You, where we continue with an unstoppable team; Quincy and Rainie as they take on a spree killer with the help of their foster daughter and an expert in fugitive tracking.

The novella is worth the read to get the preview of the real deal. Trust me, it is extraordinary. Was fortunate to have received an early reading copy (1/31/17) - Right Behind You (review forthcoming) is one of Gardner’s best yet! Jaw-dropping, spine-tingling . .

“Had a family once. Father. Mother. Sister. Lived in our very own double-wide.” . . . .

A special thank you to Dutton and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

JDCMustReadBooks

THE 4th MAN
(Quincy & Rainie/FBI Profiler: #6.5; D.D. Warren: #8.5)
Written by Lisa Gardner

RELEASING: January 3, 2017; 57 pages

Dutton

Genre: novella, series, crossover, mystery, suspense

(I received an ARC from the PUBLISHER through NETGALLEY in exchange for an honest review.)

RATING: ★★★★

Quincy and Rainie are back in action with the help D.D. Warren in this novella. I am not a huge fan of novellas but I like Gardner's quick stories that actually leave a nosy person like me satisfied. In this short story, the three crime fighters are trying to solve an unsolved case by looking at the last three suspects to see the victim alive. As they interrogate them to see who strangled the young university student they wonder if their was a "4th man". This novella is a lead up to a new novel featuring Quincy and Rainie, Right Behind You - I am so happy that this series is not finished. I will be reading the novel at the end of the month and have a review for you soon.

I was thrilled to be back in the world of Quincy and Rainie in Lisa Gardner's short story, The 4th Man.
FBI Profilers Pierce Quincy and Rainie Connor work alongside Boston PD Detective DD Warren on a 10 year old cold case involving the murder of college student Jaylin Banks. There are no witnesses, no DNA and no clues.
They re-interrogate three suspects that lead to a possible fourth.
In true Lisa Gardner fashion there is a twist in the end and never a dull moment throughout.
A riveting read!
I look forward to her new novel, Right Behind You, to be released 1/31/17.

Many thanks to the author, Penguin Random House, and NetGalley who provided a digital arc in exchange for my honest review.