Title: Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay
Publisher: William Morrow
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 464 pages
Book Rating: B+
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through Edelweiss
Summary:
The New York Times bestselling author of A Noise Downstairs and No Time for Goodbye returns with an edge-of-your-seat thriller that does for elevators what Psycho did for showers and Jaws did for the beach—a heart-pounding tale in which a series of disasters paralyzes New York City with fear.
It all begins on a Monday, when four people board an elevator in a Manhattan office tower. Each presses a button for their floor, but the elevator proceeds, non-stop, to the top. Once there, it stops for a few seconds, and then plummets.
Right to the bottom of the shaft.
It appears to be a horrific, random tragedy. But then, on Tuesday, it happens again, in a different Manhattan skyscraper. And when Wednesday brings yet another high-rise catastrophe, one of the most vertical cities in the world—and the nation’s capital of media, finance, and entertainment—is plunged into chaos.
Clearly, this is anything but random. This is a cold, calculated bid to terrorize the city. And it’s working. Fearing for their lives, thousands of men in women working in offices across the city refuse leave their homes. Commerce has slowed to a trickle. Emergency calls to the top floors of apartment buildings go unanswered.
Who is behind this? Why are they doing it? What do these deadly acts of sabotage have to do with the fingerless body found on the High Line? Two seasoned New York detectives and a straight-shooting journalist must race against time to find the answers before the city’s newest, and tallest, residential tower has its ribbon-cutting on Thursday.
With each diabolical twist, Linwood Barclay ratchets up the suspense, building to a shattering finale. Pulsating with tension, Elevator Pitch is a riveting tale of psychological suspense that is all too plausible . . . and will chill readers to the bone.
Review:
Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay is an absolutely riveting mystery with an ingenious storyline.
New Yorkers are soon in the grip of fear during a series of deadly elevator mishaps and a spate of bombings. At the same time, Detectives Jerry Bourque and Lois Delgado are investigating the beating death of a hard to identity victim. Are these three seemingly random acts of violence connected?
Mayor Richard Headley is in a quandary about how to handle the elevator deaths when hard-hitting questions from reporter Barbara Matheson force his hand. She is certainly no fan of the Mayor and she wants answers about the elevator accident that led to the death of someone she knows. Barbara thinks she might have discovered what links the accidents, but will anyone take her theory seriously?
Equally troubling is the series of bombings that appear to be linked to the Flyovers, an alt-right group. The founder of the group, Eugene Clement, is currently in New York on an anniversary trip with his wife. But as the bombings continue, suspicions arise the trip might be a cover for his involvement. There is also growing concern the Flyovers might be involved with the elevator deaths. But why would the group use two very different methods of creating chaos?
Bourque and Delgado are finally making progress on identifying their victim but they are having difficulty uncovering a reason for the murder. The information they discover is not exactly providing a motive for the crime or a suspect. Their investigation soon takes a rather stunning turn, but will they figure out if the murder is connected to the elevator deaths and bombings?
Elevator Pitch is a fast-paced and compelling mystery that is quite suspenseful. The storyline is intriguing and the main characters are interesting. Linwood Barclay keeps the perpetrator(s) identity and motive for the crimes cleverly under wraps until the novel’s explosive finale. An outstanding mystery I absolutely loved and highly recommend.
