I am usually very skeptical about books which are turned into movies or television shows. Where I am disappointed is when I like the book and the show turns out nothing like what I have read. Now I will give a nod to "Game of Thrones", the Harry Potter movies, Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. But normally they fare so-so at best.
So.....
Being a big Castle fan (the television show or maybe it is just Nathan Fillion), I had been reluctant to try the books that the show is based on. Or is it the books that the show is based on the books being written on the show?
Anyway, needing something to read (like a hole in my head), I picked up this paperback, figuring I would give it a try. This is book number 4 in the series and the main character is Nikki Heat which in the TV show Kate Beckett is based on. Or rather Kate Beckett is the person Nikki Heat in the books is based on. Confusing, I know. And that was my problem throughout the book. I kept getting the book and the TV show confused, but not in a bad way. It just kept flashing through my mind as I was reading. (And Nathan Fillion flashing through your mind is definitely not a bad thing!)
Despite having deja vu while reading and despite starting with book four in the series, this was a great read. In fact, I would caution anyone reading the book not to get to the last 100 pages or so and have it be near their bedtime. They are going to stay awake until it's finished and then be up longer with an adrenaline rush. Remembering to breath is also a requirement as you find yourself holding it because you can't read fast enough.
Much like Kate in the TV show, Nikki's mother was murdered 10 years earlier. And now a murder of a French national in New York has ties to that murder. Not only does Nikki have to unravel two murders at the same time, but with each clue she learns things about her mother she never knew. Her piano teaching mother had been on the edge of a concert career and gave it up, but why?
From New York to Boston to Paris and back, Nikki Heat and Jameson Rook team up to solve the murders. Jameson, like Richard Castle on the TV show, is a writer and is a pseudo-partner with Nikki. His prodding helps unfold decade old answers to questions and the ending is just the beginning of another question.
By only problem with the book....now I have to go get books 1-3 and wait for the next one to come out.
