In this gripping cold case tale, embark on an electrifying journey through time in "The 4th Prisoner," a spine-tingling saga that transcends decades, unearthing forgotten enigmas and thrusting you into the chilling heart of unsolved mysteries. Within these pages, the shadows of history are illuminated, revealing a tale of intrigue, deception, and a town's haunting legacy that refuses to fade.

Step back to a fateful June night in 1962, when the notorious Alcatraz prison became the stage for the most daring escape attempt in American history. Frank Lee Morris, along with brothers John and Clarence Anglin, defied the odds, fleeing the island's clutches under the cloak of darkness, only to seemingly vanish beneath the treacherous tides of San Francisco Bay. Yet, beneath the surface of their infamous escape lies a buried truth waiting to be unearthed.

Beyond the limelight of the infamous trio, there was another—a fourth prisoner—who somehow slipped through the cracks of history and eluded the gaze of time itself. Like the others, his fate, too, remains unknown. Or does it?

Meet Eddie Howard, the enigmatic fourth prisoner whose untold story could be the elusive puzzle piece that binds the past to a perplexing present-day mystery.

November 23, 1963, ushered in a shroud of darkness over Towne, Alabama, as an eruption of rage and brutality forever altered its destiny. Armed with determination, evil swept through the Chatham household, leaving but one survivor to bear witness to the unfathomable slaughter. The gruesome massacre scarred the town's soul—the case a mystery left to gather dust, unsolved and haunting.

Fast forward to the present, where the torch of justice is passed from District Attorney Maggie Gamble's capable hands. As her retirement looms, she entrusts her protégé, Barclay Griffith, with the weight of an unfulfilled promise—the Chatham case.

Barclay, aided by sharp-witted investigators and a seasoned cold-case specialist, embarks on a relentless pursuit through a labyrinth of secrets, unearthing threads that have slumbered far too long, demanding to be unraveled.

“The 4th Prisoner” weaves a mesmerizing tapestry of history, crime, and the pursuit of justice as characters grapple with a whirlwind of emotions, suspense, and revelation. As the secrets of the past are exhumed, the present trembles with the weight of buried truths, setting the stage for an electrifying showdown.

Can the puzzle pieces of two seemingly disconnected events finally expose the full picture? Or will the shadows of the past forever hide the elusive truth? In this riveting tale of determination, justice, and the unyielding quest for answers, brace yourself for a narrative that will keep you fervently turning the pages until the final, shocking revelation.

I really enjoyed this story. I found it to be intriguing and well written.

Review: I thought this might have an element of mystery but we know who it is and why they are doing evilly things. Would have been easy to intill a sense of mystery by merely changing the circumstances of the initial escape. This change would have broadened the scope of the story line and created more depth to the characters.

As per the novels title, the fourth prisoner is Eddie Howard. The author uses the factual names of the original escapees but contrives the name of the fourth. The National Archives for Alcatraz prisoner listings contains no such name. The closest we come to the historical record was a man named Preston Howard. Why not use that name? This was a research fail by the author in my opinion.

As it is, it chugs along a well trodden path of grim instances and narrow escapes prior to the grande finale of justice served. There were abundant continuity errors, as well as scenes that lacked logical progression.

As mentioned, a little mystery was needed as the real escape from Alcatraz continues to evade a definite conclusion.

Rating: 2.0/5