3 out of 4 stars
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There is a mortician murderer, lurking in the dark, who has already taken three women and embalmed them alive.
Pro author Vincent Zandri has not only created a riveting detective story but also weaved in horrifying twists that a crime thriller like The Embalmer must possess. After three-consequent murders demonstrating the same pattern, Detective Miller needs Steve Jobz (not the super-rich business magnate Jobs) to help him solve the crime. Jobz is a former police, fired from duty due to an untoward incident and as a consequence, a victim of negative publicity. Now he leads a mundane life, with a boring Government job. Miller chooses him because of his honesty and ability to think out-of-the-box.
The story moves very fast and we not only know about three committed murders but also witness the criminal mind hatching his next. While Jobz and Miller rack their brains, we cruise through some nail-biting moments of the cat-and-mouse chase. While Jobz zeroes in on the perpetrator, the latter decides to eliminate this threat. Will Steve Jobz be another embalmed victim or would he be able to make it alive?
The Embalmer is a fascinating book and I like it because of its smooth story-telling. The story does not move back-and-forth while confusing the reader. Interestingly, the ‘stories’ of both the perpetrator and the police move simultaneously, making it an open game for the reader. Although I am a fan of crime shows and an ardent reader of the Sherlock Holmes Series, I could not stop reading until I finished reading this fresh detective novel. The author ensures that there are small windows of comic relief throughout the book. Therefore, it does not turn monotonous at any given point.
However, while reading the book, I felt like the author is giving away the mystery through various small details. Much before Steve Jobz realises who the murderer is, I am able to recognise him due to these tiny specifics, not too difficult for anyone to comprehend. This takes away a little bit from the total experience of reading this book. However, if I consider this as an intentional act, I must say that despite knowing the killer, the chase between the police and the assassin is definitely worth a read.
Apart from the giving away the killer, there are a few grammatical issues in the book too. Therefore, I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. This is a perfect book for those who love crime thrillers, suspense, fiction, detective stories, serial killing stories, etc. However, there are some explicit sexual scenes and gory details of murder, which makes it off-limits for children and teens. This is a kind of story, which keeps the antagonist very real. He is definitely as bad as we think a criminal can be, but he is also a part of the same society that we live in.
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The Embalmer
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