The Never Game (A Colter Shaw Novel)

Robert Ludlum once wrote, that if you write a book and have a real restaurant as a setting, and the character comes out of the place and turns down an alley next door, there better be a real alley next to it. Deaver must not have read Ludlum. Having lived in the Silicon Valley since 76', the locations, directions in this book are laughable. To add insult to injury he states the water temperature to be 30 degrees and the main character is in danger of hypothermia. Anyone in the Bay Area knows the temp rarely is below 50 degrees in both the bay and the ocean.As if this wasn't enough to kick me out of the story, the plot was lame. Colter comes across as a Jack Reacher wannabe.The story lacks twists or turns that make a thriller gripping.As I turned the last page, I went what?This one gets one star, and that is being generous.

Jeffery Deaver’s latest novel, THE NEVER GAME, introduces a new series character, Colter Shaw. Colter is a home-schooled loner whose dad was an academic and part prophet, part survivalist. He is presented as having been paranoid, but with the proviso that sometimes people are really out to get the (putatively) paranoid. Colter makes his living by (among other things) finding missing persons. He is not a PI and he is not a skip-tracer for bail bondsmen. He is a helpful guy drawn to good causes and he is willing to accept rewards on the installment plan. This is a tad far-fetched, given the financial uncertainties of the job and the uglier forms of competition that Colter will encounter, but this gives him a vagabond, Jack Reacherist quality that many readers will appreciate. Unlike Jack Reacher (but like Brett Battles’ characters), he has individuals a phone call or email away who can search databases, find new jobs, and so on. He does not hitchhike, but rides around on a dirt bike which he tows on the back of his Winnebago. Yes: a crime solver who drives a Winnebago.Colter is drawn into the story of a young woman who has been abducted and forced to play a real-life role in a popular video game. The person is trapped, has five items which can be used to aid in his/her escape and must then either free him or herself or ‘die with dignity’. Set in Silicon Valley (whose blandness JD nails), this is a story ‘about’ video gaming—its banalities, its attractions, its possible benefits and its definite negatives. Gamers will probably enjoy it. Deaver (as expected) knows all of its finer details, while his protagonist is skeptical of its ‘world’ and its social impact.The plot is strong and the subsidiary characters interesting. While the protagonist seeks the characters caught in the video game scenarios he is also pursuing a mystery concerning his father. Thus, the personal and the professional intersect in interesting ways. There is the usual Deaver mystification and the reversals upon reversals. The novel held my interest throughout. I prefer the Lincoln Rhyme concept/character but I will look forward to future novels concerning Colter Shaw. The ending clearly opens the door to a sequel; this is not a standalone (or certainly doesn’t look or feel like one). JD remains one of the most skilled and informed writers of our time.

I am conflicted about how I feel about this book. I usually devour Deaver’s books about Lincoln Rhymes (with the exception of the Italian clunker). But I had trouble getting into this new character, didn’t really understand his motivations and kinda resented disclosures near the end (scene spoiler) thatColton’s actually wealthy, and that his phone contact is female. We never find out who this Margot is that he thinks about from time to time. The book should have ended as Maddie Poole drove away and with the offer of another job. Instead it added in Rodent, something vague about Colton’s father and the left us hanging. It was like a poorly written lead in to the next book. (Reminded me of the Blacklist with the never ending search for the FBI agent’s father which got so ridiculous I stopped watching). This book was confusing. I actually had to scroll back to understand why our second victim was murdered. I don’t mind confusion that gradually sorts itself out over the course of a book but hate seeing everything wrapped up with a shiny bow when I have to scroll back to find out how or why it got wrapped up. Dealer has done better

I only managed to get through about 2 chapters. He should go back to writing what he's been successful with for a lot of years.

I tried 3 times to get into this story. Kept thinking it had to get better, clearer, more interesting, make more sense, etc. It never did. It was disjointed and confusing. Plus more importantly - dull and boring. No more Colter Shaw for me.

I've always enjoyed Jeffery Deaver's books, especially the Lincoln Rhyme series. But this new series by him is off to a great start.Colter Shaw grew up in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, living on his family's compound. His father was a paranoid schizophrenic and trained all three of his children in all aspects of being survivalist. He and his siblings were also all homeschooled by their parents.Colter is an excellent tracker and marksman and he uses these talents to find lost people - dead and alive. He calls himself a rewardist - collecting money after he finds the missing people. He lives in an RV and travels to where the job is.His latest job brings him to the more downtrodden side of the Silicon Valley and gets him involved in tech companies and the gaming industry.Colter Shaw is one of my new favorite characters. He's tough but has an innocent side since he grew up in the wilderness away from TV, mp3 players, videos, movies, cell phones. As he makes his way through this story he keeps finding out about technologies he's never seen or used before.I highly recommend this new thriller by Deaver.

I've read almost everything written by Jeffery Deaver and, certainly, all of his long-form books. In that pantheon, the vast majority is excellent stuff; better than other authors; a small number are poor to terrible and a few are so good as to warrant a special 'Deaver Class' of excellence. 'The Never Game' is Deaver at his best.As this book is intended to be the first in a new series, featuring a new hero, perhaps it will be revealed later but, for me, I could see very little relevance in the title; 'The Never Game' seems to be a line of dialogue randomly selected from the text which, for JD, is unusual as his titles are often subtly poignant ('A Maiden's Grave' being a good example; there is no maiden and it's all about a deaf girl lip reading). But that's it; the only criticism. Everything else about this book expresses why JD is at the very top of the thriller writer tree.The new hero introduced here, Colter Shaw, is a fantastic character with facets that can (and will) be explored ever deeper as this series unfolds. Even at the end of the book, when the reader thinks that they have a good grasp of who Shaw is, there are further revelations that show that there's more to this man than the reader thought. And one of Colter Shaw's greatest strengths is that he can be wrong! He isn't a genius; he isn't a martial artist, he isn't a cold-hearted automaton; it's what Colter Shaw isn't that makes him a really engaging main character.Of course, as in all of Deaver's best works, other characters too can be surprising. In this case, even the identity of Shaw's office buddy, Mack, comes as a surprise.Deaver's USP is always his misdirection; his ability to steer the mind of the reader in a direction that, many pages later, turns out to be false. Not only does he achieve that wonderfully in 'The Never Game', but, as the deceptions are peeled away, the plot grows bigger and bigger like a tiny piece of folded paper unfolding into a huge sheet. Foolishly, I always like to think that I can spot the real villain hidden within a JD story but, inevitably, I never can and I didn't see this one coming either. JD's other trademark device is employed to great effect here in that, just when you think that the story has reached conclusion, you find that it hasn't; there's another story in there. And another!As a book intended to introduce a new series, this works brilliantly. The ending sets up the progression of the story line solidly and, of course, with Colter Shaw at a metaphorical crossroads with the reader not knowing which path he'll take. The result is that I want to read the next in this series right now please! If the intention was to hook me in to these stories, then job done; I'm hooked!This may not be my very favourite Deaver novel, but, for me, it fits very comfortably in that 'Deaver Class' of excellence that other authors just can't reach.

It is quite some time since I have read a book by Mr Deaver, and had actually forgotten about him. I came across this through "recommendation for you" by Amazon, and I have to say I was hugely disappointed. I could not visualise our hero, or any of the other characters, and the plot was simply absurd. Absolute drivel.

well as an avid fan all I can say is how disappointing. This novel and the last have gone down in quality and suspense and the ending... shallow at best maybe a rest from writing is needed.

A thrilling story that had me hooked from the first page. The main character is a puzzle that adds to the build up of the plot which is increasingly tense and scary. As a basic computer user I found the descriptions about them added to the tension but were explained very cleverly . There are highs and lows and increasingly drama on all sides. I absolutely loved it.

I am a fan of Jeffrey Deaver. His books are always very interesting, the story line captivating, the twist and turn happen on every page. This book introduces a new "investigator" Colter Shaw , an expert tracker with a forensic mind perfect for solving the most unusual cases. The murders and abductions are all based on the structure of specific video games where an investigator can find the clues to solve the cases he is investigating. The story line is very good but it would be appreciated more if the reader had an interest for video games. I don't so a few times I had to go back and re-read the explanation of how certain video games operate to make sense of the action taking place in the story.I hope Colter Shaw will come back to investigate in a book without so much "Internet".