Copy kindly received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This sounds like a really good book, but I had to put it down, because the writing style is too choppy and disjointed feeling, and feels a bit impersonal. Not the writing style for me, but based on the idea of the book, I am sure others will enjoy it.

Another good addition to this series. Good writing and plot.

Lincoln Ryme and offsider (and partner) Sachs make a dynamic team. Both are extremely clever and driven by the love of solving problems, particularly crimes. Ryme has an encyclopedic knowledge of chemistry and leaves Sherlock Holmes trailing in his dust when it comes to working a crime scene. Sachs is the brawn of the duo but doesn't lack intelligence.

They are assisted in this story by the endearing Ercole, seconded from the Italian Forestry Service.

The story is complex and the tormented kidnapper keeps a step ahead in a tense and well written story. There are of course complications, frustrations and false trails. A very enjoyable book with interesting characters and It is highly recommended.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advance copy.

It is so lovely to read a new Lincoln Rhymes book. As usual the plot has twists and turns, a really enjoyable read.

Book blurb...
Number one bestselling author and master of suspense Jeffery Deaver returns with the thirteenth Lincoln Rhyme thriller, which sees a crime go global...

The only leads in a broad-daylight kidnapping are the account of an eight-year-old girl, some nearly invisible trace evidence and the calling card: a miniature noose left lying on the street. A crime scene this puzzling demands forensic expertise of the highest order. Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs are called in to investigate.

Then the case takes a stranger turn: a recording surfaces of the victim being slowly hanged, his desperate gasps the backdrop to an eerie piece of music. The video is marked as the work of The Composer...

Despite their best efforts, the suspect gets away. So when a similar kidnapping occurs on a dusty road outside Naples, Rhyme and Sachs don't hesitate to rejoin the hunt. But the search is now a complex case of international cooperation - and not all those involved may be who they seem. All they can do is follow the evidence, before their time runs out.

My thoughts…

I am always challenged when a book starts off with so many characters. I have not read this author before, but was keen to when I read the blurb. The characters, however, had a lot of background and I felt there was so much catching up to do. The time it took to get to know and understand them unfortunately took away from the story.

I am sure devoted readers will love the story.

Jeffery Deaver is one of my favourite authors so I was thrilled to read this. It didn't disappoint, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was fast paced and full of twists and turns that kept me guessing right until the end. It was nice to see Rhyme out of his townhouse and in a different location. A great read.

The Burial Hour is the 13th book in the Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs series, which has been offering intriguing murder-mysteries with fascinating forensic details since 1997. In this latest instalment, Sachs and Rhyme are about to get married and are trying to agree on a location for their honeymoon – if Rhyme could only see the point of choosing a romantic setting for this occasion. He is saved from this tedious chore by being asked to help in the investigation into the abduction of a businessman by a sinister perpetrator, who later posts a video online in which the victim is being slowly strangled to the sounds of classical music – which consequently earns him the nickname “The Composer”. The only clue the perpetrator has left behind is a noose, fashioned out of cello string. But before Rhyme and Sachs can close in on their suspect, a similar kidnapping occurs in Naples, Italy, with the same trademark noose left at the scene. So instead of going on their honeymoon, Sachs and Rhyme make their way to Italy to help the Italian authorities with the case – whether they like it or not.

I still remember the excitement of discovering the first book in the Lincoln Rhyme series almost twenty years ago, and the nail biting suspense as Rhyme and Sachs hunt the terrifying Bone Collector. At the time, I was totally enthralled by the forensic details, and protagonists who were so different from the usual fictional police detectives. Then followed a few years of compulsively snapping up everything written by the talented Jeffery Deaver. Now it has been a few years since I picked up a Lincoln Rhyme book, and I thought it would be great revisiting this series. I loved that part of the Burial Hour is set in beautiful Naples, adding a great armchair travel setting and some fresh characters to the story.

Unfortunately, I think that the series may have run its course for me. Apart from the armchair travel component, The Burial Hour did not hold the same fascination for me that I remember from previous books, and to be totally honest, I struggled to get to the end. Perhaps it is the simple fact that the last twenty years have turned me into an old cynic who finds it hard to suspend disbelief. I work in the health industry, which is not much different from law and order when it concerns budget and staff cuts, and I doubt that America is any different from Australia in that regard. So I wasn’t far into the pages when I snorted my first big huff of disbelief when an alleged kidnapping (only witnessed by a child) generates a full investigative team consisting of the top forensic experts in the country, as well as every forensic investigation the lab has to offer – stat! And no expenses spared! And there isn’t even a body in sight anywhere yet. Riiiiight .... nope, I don’t believe it. Ok, let’s cut the author some slack here and keep reading, since my family always remind me when I snort in derision during some medical TV soap when someone has once again shocked asystole: “Mum, it’s FICTION, get over it, OK?” But the story continued in the same vein, without the redeeming features of riveting, nail-biting suspense that may have distracted me from such blatant violations of fact, and I admit – I couldn’t get over it. Petty? Perhaps, but that is me.

I was also somewhat perplexed about the two main protagonists, who I remember as interesting and engaging in earlier novels. What has happened to Sachs and Rhyme in the last few years, to turn these quirky characters into such two-dimensional, boring people? For me, there was absolutely no chemistry between any of the characters, who gravitate around each other like planets around the sun without ever actually touching emotionally. Why Sachs and Rhyme want to get married eludes me – there wasn’t a tender moment or word between them throughout the whole book. The only likeable character for me was the Italian forestry cop Ercole Benelli, who unfortunately gets overshadowed by the complicated and somewhat contrived political plot unfolding in the story later on.

The Burial Hour may appeal to die-hard fans of the series, or readers who prefer a factual, somewhat unemotional read with a political conspiracy theory as the main premise. I, however, am a reader who needs to be able to forge an emotional connection to the characters in order to enjoy the story, and I struggled throughout the book to stay interested. So how do I do justice in rating a book by an author I have long admired and who so obviously can write, but whose novel just didn’t hit the mark for me? Going solely on enjoyment, I would give this book a 2-star rating, rounded up to 2.5 since it is well written, with occasional snippets of dry humour hidden amongst its pages. Sorry, but this one was obviously not the right book for me at this time, and I don’t think I will revisit the series again if it continues along the same trajectory.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free electronic copy of this novel and giving me the opportunity to provide an honest review.

Who doesn't love Lincoln & Amelia? They are back in the thick of things. Will the killer get the better of them this time? The killer is very interested in Greek mythology and he believes that the one god wants him to make her music but there is no one there it is just his mind playing tricks. But his methods are really strange as he kidnaps to different men from complete different backgrounds but he doesn't kill them so what is his end game? He has now crossed the world and he is looking for another victim on foreign soil but why now only? Can Amelia find him before he finishes the game?
She has help and this new guy has made a big impression as he is wants is to be part of the police just maybe this will help him get where he needs to be.
Lincoln just wants to solve the case so that he can take Amelia away so he is getting annoyed as he has a new case to look through and just hopefully he can save a young man's life & future.
Just another wild adventure. I was lucky enough to receive a copy via Netgalley & the publishing house.