Book Review: The Writer by James Patterson and J.D. Barker

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The Writer by James Patterson and J.D. Barker  was published on March 17, 2025. It opens with Detective Declan Shaw at a closed subway station trying to work up the nerve to commit suicide when he receives a call from his partner about a break in and homicide at the home of a true crime author. Shaw makes his way to the crime scene to work the case, and in a turn of events, Declan comes under scrutiny in another case loosely connected to this new case. I received an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of The Writer  from NetGalley and Little , Brown, and Company for free in exchange for my honest review. I'm appreciative that my request for this book was approved. With this story opening with the main character trying to commit suicide, I almost didn't go any further with the book. However, I am glad I stuck with it as it took me on a fantastic ride and had my emotions all over the place. There were so many twists and turns that just when I thought I had it all figured out, there was ...
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Book Review: The Enigma of Room 622 by Joël Dicker

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The Enigma of Room 622 by book review of the enigma of room 622 joël dickerJoël Dicker is a Swiss book that has been translated into English for American audiences, and the expected publication date is September 13, 2022.  The book is about a writer who decides to vacation in the Swiss Alps and stays at the Palace of Verbier where a murder happened several years before and was covered up.  The author stumbles upon the crime and decides to uncover the truth behind room 622.

I'd like to thank NetGalley and HarperVia for the digital copy of the Advanced Readers Copy of The Enigma of Room 622 by Joël Dicker in exchange for my honest review.  I was excited to be selected to review this book ahead of its release in the United States.

Let me begin by saying I had high hopes for Joël Dicker's The Enigma of Room 622, but I found it to be a bit too convoluted and long for my taste.  It could have easily been shorter and still gotten the same point across.  There were times when the transitions between past and present felt a little off, and my interest in the storyline would wane.  Don't get me wrong though, I did enjoy the story quite a bit.

This novel seemed to be somewhat semi-autobiographical with the author using his recently deceased publisher in the story, and the main character is an author having trouble coming up with a storyline after the death of the publisher.  I'd be interested to see if anyone else felt the same way.

I also have to mention that there were quite a few words that I had to look up in a dictionary as I had never heard of those words used in common language, or for that matter, in any other books I've read.  These words included fecundity, anodyne, bis, and attenuating.  I'm all for using synonyms for words, but I don't particularly like it when a word that isn't commonly spoken is utilized when a different, more common word would have sufficed.

All in all, I enjoyed The Enigma of Room 622 by Joël Dicker and didn't see the end coming.  I gave this book three out of five stars and will definitely read some of the author's other works.

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