Ebook/Fiction/ARC: Well, I have a lot of Netgalley ARCs to read this summer and when I was selected to get The Maze, my fictional boyfriend John Corey jumped ahead of the line. The book doesn't come out for a few months, so hopefully, no spoilers here.
First, let me say that I grew up on LI during the 70s and had school friends who lived on the beach, including Gilgo, and were bussed in every day. The discovery of the murdered women was long after I moved, but I have been keeping up with the story. There seems to be more than just a serial murderer at large with alleged police corruption.
The Maze is a good book with lots of narrative from John in first person. Johnny Boy is his usual snarky self, which I love. The issue I have is that nothing happens but narrative until the last 15% of the book. The maze on the cover hints, obviously, on how the book ends, but there is more than one kind of maze. I found the narrative repeating itself and waiting for John to start his first day of work. The story didn't really cover the "Fire Island" victims and it was more like John wanted something to do than get justice.
If it wasn't for John's comments inside his head that made me laugh and snort, I don't think I would have finished it. I can recommend it for John Corey fans.

Its always a good day for me when i start reading the latest Nelson DeMille novel and a sad day when I finish it because i have to wait to long for his next book. I'm a big fan of his and have read every book and have met him in person a few years ago with a meet/greet/book signing with his son Alex.. His personality is very similar to John Corey with his quick wit, humor, and personality.
This book started off a bit slow with for some to much back story from previous books, but I rather enjoyed it. His old flame Beth appears at his uncles cottage and as they rekindle their relationship she suggests that he interview with Security Solutions to be a private investigator. Not sure why she wants him to get involved he reluctantly interviews and excepts a 2 month position on atrial basis.
Beth who is a detective will not tell him why she wants him to work there until he agrees to do so, then explains what she think is really going on at this business. very quickly he try's to fit in as one of the boys but keep everything he does secret so he can explore the deep dark secrets that he uncovers. From the crazy Thursday night party's, the killing and missing 9 women and so much more.
This may not be the book for everyone but for me it was fantastic and at definite 5 stars.

I thank Mr. DeMille, Scribner and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC and provide a review.

I have enjoyed the John Corey novels in the past, the earlier stories more than the more recent ones. John is in many ways a dinosaur, a man’s man in the age of woke angst. He’s back in Long Island, where the police and politicians are corrupt and the women do the housecleaning.

There’s a lot of re-hashing of his previous adventures, so it’s a pretty slow start. We hear John’s internal monologue (or dialogue) with his man parts. He reconnects with a former flame, and it looks like we’re setting up for marriage #3.

You don’t read John Corey for character development, you read him for deathless lines such as “she’s seen more meat than a Costco butcher.” I am still able to laugh with him, but it seems to be trending toward laughing at him.

There are trademark DeMille action scenes and John manages to triumph against seemingly impossible odds. The twists of “oh shit” as he deals with little problems (like his gun falling out of its holster while he runs for his life) really build the tension. In the end, there are bodies everywhere. But is there evidence that will end these criminal activities? Is there anyone left who is uncorrupted? And our man John is going to have to tapdance through landmines due to a sexual indiscretion. What will he choose to do? I suspect we’ll have a chance to find out in the next novel.

A quibble: this plot seems to be set in “current” time but there’s lots of discussion about VHS tapes and watching DVRs. That was jarring.

A fun diversion, 3 stars.

I love Nelson Demille books. I love John Corey.
I thank NetGalley for an advanced copy.

I couldn’t wait for this book. But I did think the first half of the book dragged. I have always liked the fast pace and tension his stories create. This finally did happen and did not disappoint. Just too awhile to get there. I couldn’t put it down once the action started.

I was unhappy about a couple of things about John. I just didn’t like a few things about his character. But I was happy to read mother John Corey book!

As always, I didn’t want the story to end and now can’t wait for the next one!

Sadly, I have mixed feelings, though I would still give it 3.75 stars.

I love books by Nelson DeMille and eagerly await each one every 2 years. The Maze was delayed by Covid and other editorial reasons so the wait was more like 3-4 years so I was thrilled to get an advance reader copy of it.
Unfortunately, it didn't thrill me as his past books had done.

Way too many "dick" jokes made it seem a bit juvenile or geared towards men who find that funny. One or two would have been fine, but it seemed like every page or two which was annoying. Another peeve was that some of the characters would be referred to by first and last name, several times per page, when there was no one else who had a similar name so why? It would have been just as easy to use the first or last name, but both? Annoying.

The story line is whether there is corruption or not and who could be the one to break the case and was only ok. Past books have been so much better at making you wonder and trying to work through to a solution than this.

I'm glad I finally got to read it, but I won't wait as impatiently for his next book if this is an example of the kind of writing he is doing now. I feel I have moved him down from my favorite author category, which is sad in a way.

Thank you NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest opinion.

Love this book. Kept me looking for more. Would highly recommend. Looking forward to reading more from this author!!!!

My first book by this as author I had no interest in. Seems plodding, uninteresting characters and the plot has no real direction until.more than half through. No depth to the characters and Joe constantly guided by 'little Joe's
Thank you netgalley and the publisher for this arc

"The depths of human depravity are astounding, but the mind is resilient, though the soul is always in danger." Nelson DeMille - where have you been all my life?? I think Plum Island is on my TBR, but The Maze was my first DeMille. And what a freakin' ride! John Corey is funny, irreverent and totally incorrigible - and I love him! At a few points near the end, I actually had to put the book down and walk away, it was so tense, and I was SO nervous that something bad was going to happen...Corey just seemed too confident to be rushing headlong into his (and I don't use that term loosely) mission. The one liners and bon mots do NOT stop. What a terrific read! Highly recommend!

P.S. Thanks to #Netgalley and #edelweissplus for the ARC.

I had a hard time getting into this book. The first fourth of the story was basically a recap of the other books in the series; this seemed to take forever. Then the next part was detailing the characters’ hypotheses regarding the suspects. These ideas get repeated over and over by multiple characters multiple times. Then the action kicked in at the end, but there was nothing surprising about what happened. Most everything had already been predicted by the main characters. John Corey was an interesting character, but he was kind of one-note and his “jokes” got pretty tired, especially when he would tell the reader that he said something shocking/crude and then revealed that he did not actually say those things. The whole book seemed way too long, and the ending just didn’t pay off for me.

Calling all Nelson DeMille fans... John Corey is back!!!!! As a long time DeMille fan I was thrilled to receive an ARC of his new book "The Maze". Many thanks to NetGally and Simon and Schuster for providing an advanced copy in exchange for my review.

The Maze is DeMille's 8th book in his John Corey series and while it rambled a bit it did not disappoint. Corey, a former NYPD cop with a massive ego and macho/sexist personality remains intriguing in this book. He finds himself on the North Shore of Long Island at loose ends and restless after forced retirement from his last gig as a Federal Agent with the Diplomatic Surveillance Group. Enter his ex girlfriend and partner from a previous case who has an assignment for him as a confidential informant in a corrupt private investigations company.

As usual for Corey, he uses his brash (but charming when necessary) persona to wrangle his way into the corrupt company and that's when the action starts. Personally I would have loved an epilogue with this one but hopefully the fact that I'm left guessing means there is more John Corey to come. I hope so anyway.

This book was sent to me for review by Netgalley. This is a talented and gifted author who weaves a cannot put down book. The characters are divers and changeable. The story moves quickly…it is entertaining and thought provoking. Don’t miss this one.

Nelson Demile never fails to draw me in keep me turning the pages.Really enjoyed this is a perfect beach read will be recommending.#netgalley #scribnerbooks.

This is an entertaining mystery that brings John Corey back for another investigation. This one is convoluted with characters and stories twisting around themselves until the truth is unrecognizable.

I'm a fan of this author's work and have loved all of his books, however, this one fell a bit short to me. It seemed to lag and drag, without any real action until the last chapter. There were lots of humorous lines, mostly things John said to himself, but they were very funny with a cop's dark humor. However, they didn't stop the book from dragging. For me, this is 3.5 stars.

Nelson DeMille is an icon for a reason, each book is a rousing adventure and a slam dunk read. I loved having John Corey and the gang back, with the nail-biting success and razor sharp wit. And the title plays such a major part of the book. This would make an excellent movie.

Bring on the next one!

I’ve read all,of Nelson demilles books and have found some more enticing then others. This is a good beach read but probably not his best mysteries as the characters felt a bit recycled. Thanks for the opportunity to read.