The envelope drops through the mail slot like any other piece of post. But for the nine complete strangers who receive it - each of them recognising just one name, their own, on the enclosed list - it will be the most life altering letter they ever receive. It could also be the last, as one by one, they start to meet their end. All random. No one knows who the other names belong to. Or for that matter, why their own name is on that list. And trust me folks…this is one list you don’t want to be on! i'm not gonna talk about the plot, i'm just gonna talk about my reaction to the motive, and i'm going to be as courteous as possible, so i don't spill too many beans. The book moves around and around among the POVs of all nine potential victims, plus Sam Hamilton, who is not on the list. I thought this approach had pros and cons. The pros were that Swanson was able to paint a little portrait of each of them. The con was that the narrative bounces around a lot and ends up being just one person being murdered after the other.

His ninth and most recent novel, The Kind Worth Saving, a sequel to The Kind Worth Killing, was released in March 2023. [2] Part of the reason I probably liked this book was because I really didn't like his previous book and I thought this one was much better in comparison. Another reason was that it is a semi-homage to And Then There Were None which I consider to be one of the most brilliantly written mysteries ever. DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Faber and Faber Limited via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Nine Lives by Peter Swanson for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions. P.S. I love idioms and hardly a review escapes me without using one. So just for fun, an alternate title with a nod to the chapter numerations and familiar sayings: She frowned and pressed the sheet of paper flat onto the coffee table, telling herself that she'd show it to Jonathan. A shiver went over her skin, and she shook out her limbs to make it stop. There was something vaguely threatening about receiving a list of names with no explanation.

A sheet of paper listing 9 seemingly unrelated names. Mailed to 8 -and hand delivered to just 1-the first to be killed. Abigail Baskin never thought she would fall in love with a millionaire. Then she met Bruce Lamb. He’s a good guy, stable, level-headed, kind—a refreshing change from her previous relationships.

Shortly after he arrives, Harry meets a mysterious young woman named Grace McGowan. Though she claims to be new to the area, Harry begins to suspect that Grace may not be a complete stranger to his family. But she isn’t the only attractive woman taking an interest in Harry. The sensual Alice is also growing closer, coming on to him in an enticing, clearly sexual way. The next section is EIGHT- The FBI gets the case when one of their own, Jessica Winslow from the Albany field office finds out she is one of the NINE…what are the others doing when they are told? This is a fast-paced, entertaining story that kept me intrigued from start to finish. I enjoyed some of the characters and enjoyed hating other characters. The mystery itself is intriguing, and Swanson does a fantastic job balancing multiple POVs and keeping the reader hooked from one short chapter to the next. Peter Swanson (born May 26, 1968) is an American author, best known for his psychological suspense novels The Kind Worth Killing and Her Every Fear. [1] But when they meet the neighbors next door, that calm begins to erode as she spots a familiar object displayed on the husband’s office shelf. The sports trophy looks exactly like one that went missing from the home of a young man who was killed two years ago. Hen knows because she’s long had a fascination with this unsolved murder—an obsession she doesn’t talk about anymore, but can’t fully shake either.Have you read this? Are you a Swanson fan? I’m going to read The Kind Worth Killing, as everyone seems to love that one! Local police forces along with the FBI become involved seeking to protect the dwindling members of the list, which includes FBI agent Jessica Winslow. A] smartly entertaining reimagining of Agatha Christie’s classic And Then There Were None… Swanson cunningly plays with readers’ heads as we hope so-and-so gets it next.”— Washington Post MY THOUGHTS: Gripping and fascinating. An avid Christie fan, I have to admit that I greatly prefer Swanson's Nine Lives to Christie's And Then There Were None, which is made reference to often.

Most of the people are likable, though flawed, although one clearly would leave the world a better place if he wasn't on it. There is even a FBI agent on the list so she is involved in the investigation of the murders. Once the pattern of deaths to members on the list becomes clear, the remaining list members are provided protection but that doesn't stop the murders. Whoever is committing the murders seems to be a fan of Agatha Christie and if you are familiar with her work, especially one of her most famous stories, you know all nine of these people are doomed. But why does the list have just nine people, why not a nice round number of ten, like her book? Things that didn’t work: (some of these sound a bit critical I’m sure but, I would be more lenient had this been an ARC. These are rough draft mistakes.) I am definitely hit or miss with Swanson’s works. ‘The Kind Worth Killing’ was incredible and I keep giving Swanson chances looking for that gold mine again. I found ‘Nine Lives’ by Peter Swanson a brilliant whodunnit with an ingenious twisty plot that had me glued to my e-reader for the duration. A frightening pattern is emerging, but what do these nine people have in common? Could there be some dark secret that binds them all together? Or is this the work of a murderous madman? As the mysterious sender stalks these nine strangers, they find themselves constantly looking over their shoulders, wondering who will be crossed off next….I enjoyed the many literary references, the most prominent being Christie’s And Then There Were None. There is also some enjoyable tongue-in-cheek commentary. The characters didn’t do much for me, but the mystery held my interest--I was determined to solve it, but sadly I failed as I overlooked some key clues.