Book Summary and Reviews of Killer Summer by Ridley Pearson

Killer Summer by Ridley Pearson

Killer Summer

by Ridley Pearson

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  • Jun 2009, 384 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

Sun Valley, Idaho—playground of the wealthy and politically connected—is home to an annual wine auction that attracts high rollers from across the country, and Blaine County Sheriff Walt Fleming is the one who must ensure it goes off without a hitch. The world’s most elite wine connoisseurs have descended on Sun Valley to taste and bid on the world’s best wines, including three bottles claimed to have been a gift from Thomas Jefferson to John Adams. With sky-high prices all but guaranteed for these historic items, it's no wonder a group of thieves is out to steal them. Walt is responsible for all aspects of the glitzy event, from security of the dignitaries to the physical safety of the auction site to the transportation and safeguard of the wines themselves.

Walt is enjoying a rare afternoon of freedom, fly-fishing with his nephew, Kevin, when a passing truck catches his eye— his suspicions throwing him headlong into the discovery of a complicated plan to steal the rare wine. When a bomb detonates just as the auction revs up, the investigation explodes as well, pulling Walt in a dozen different directions. It seems Walt is caught in the middle of a heist of epic proportions—and not the heist he had prepared for—all orchestrated by the ingenious mind of Christopher Cantell, a man who appears to have covered everything, including the way Walt's own sheriff's office will react.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Although his ending is a bit flat ... Pearson serves up steady suspense and a compelling setting in which members of society's underbelly prey on those living above it all." - Booklist

"[E]ven the savviest readers will be fooled as Pearson drags poor Walt and friends through a series of clever twists and turns in this fast-paced nail-biter." - Publishers Weekly

"Despite enormous plot holes, this latest in the best-selling series is entertaining and great fun for anyone who likes a well-written thriller." - Library Journal

"A throwback to the time when plotting and pacing were the detective story's sine qua non; Pearson shows once again how it's done." - Kirkus Reviews

This information about Killer Summer was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

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Author Information

Ridley Pearson Author Biography

Ridley Pearson, born in 1953 in Glen Cove, New York, is a New York Times bestselling author of more than 50 novels, divided between suspense and young adult adventure. Over the years, his work has been published in two dozen languages, and has been adapted by network television and for the Broadway stage. His book Peter and the Starcatchers, written with Dave Barry, was adapted by Rick Elice into a play which went on to Broadway to win 5 Tony Awards.

Ridley was awarded The Raymond Chandler Fulbright fellowship in detective fiction from Oxford University in 1990 and was the Missouri Writer Hall of Fame Quill Award Winner in 2013.

His research has spanned the globe and included everything from the engine room of a cruise liner, to a nighttime visit to Walt Disney World's It's...

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