Jeffery Deaver is a brilliant storyteller, irrespective of the length of the story, and Dead Ends, a collection of Deaver's thirteen short stories, is a testament to his prodigious talent. Set in diverse periods and locations, each of these stories has crisply etched characters, racing plots, and, for the most part, satisfactory endings.

Ninth and Nowhere has several intriguing characters, each with its own backstory, converging towards a tense climax. Hard to Get is an espionage story that is as amusing as thrilling. The Writers' Conference, Selfie, Unlikely Partners, and A Significant Find have clever turns at the end and are a lot of fun. Forgotten and Where the Evidence Lies, featuring Colter Shaw and Lincoln Rhyme, respectively, are in the same vein as the series of novels featuring the two of Deaver’s exceptional creations. A Matter of Blood, set in Victorian London, is dark, gritty, and engrossing. An Acceptable Sacrifice, an assassination tale set in Mexico, is cleverly plotted and entertaining. Deaver pays homage to the Sherlock Holmes series with The Adventure of the Laughing Fisherman – but with a twist. The Babysitter and A Woman of Mystery feel somewhat unsatisfactory despite being engaging.

I had a terrific time savouring these delectable pieces of fiction by the master and am grateful to HarperCollins UK for the Digital Review Copy of Dead Ends through NetGalley.

Deaver novels are my guilty pleasure so I was interested to see how his short stories would fare. I’m pleased to report that they were great. I had my favourites and there were a few I’d have loved to see as a longer story. Definitely a hit.

My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley. This review was written voluntarily and is entirely my own unbiased opinion.

There are thirteen stories in this collection from the author of the hugely successful Lincoln Rhyme series, and more recently the excellent Colter Shaw thrillers. As with all collections the standard varies but is remarkably high overall, with some real standout stories. Deaver gives us murder and spies, stalkers and serial killers, heroes and villains, twists galore and quite a lot of humour. His admiration for the Holmes stories comes through in a couple of the stories where he lightly pastiches the master or references the originals. Of course there’s the obligatory take on a novel solution to the Jack the Ripper case – is there any crime writer worth his salt who hasn’t had a go at that? Deaver’s version is very good and quite original, although his attempts at Victorian English are inadvertently full of Americanisms which made me laugh at unintended points. Some of the stories are short, relying on a simple twist for their effect and can occasionally feel a bit insubstantial, but others are long enough to allow for some excellent scene-setting and characterisation. Oddly, the stories involving Rhyme and Shaw – one apiece – were amongst the weakest in the collection for me; perhaps both these characters need more room to work their magic.

As always, here’s a brief idea of some of my favourites…

Hard to Get – When a secret agent has an accident just before a crucial mission, the normally desk-bound Lessing is sent in his place, tasked with making contact with a Russian spymaster in Poland. Lessing has visions of himself as the new James Bond (the American version) but things don’t go quite according to plan. Lots of fun and humour in this one and a couple of good twists – very enjoyable.

The Writers’ Conference – Cop Jim Handle is detailed to look after security at a writers’ conference – cue lots of humour about crime writers, their egos and idiosyncrasies, and the desperate competition among them to win awards. When one of the writers is murdered, Jim has to work out whodunit and why. There’s a major twist in the tail of this one which, even though I kinda saw it coming, still makes it highly entertaining.

A Significant Find – An archaeologist couple want what is known in the trade as a ‘significant find’, which would boost their profile and their earning potential. They’re at a conference in Lascaux when the husband is approached by a man who tells him he’s heard a rumour of an undiscovered cave, complete with paintings. The couple set off to find the cave… This is a great little story, full of twists, revenge and moral ambiguity, and the ending means this one wouldn’t be out of place in a horror anthology!

Selfie – This one is so twisty it would be too easy to give spoilers, so briefly – a man is concerned when he sees someone has left a bunch of flowers at his girlfriend’s door. He’s spotted a man before in the background of several selfies she’s posted to Facebook and he thinks someone may be stalking her. All I’ll say is, all is not as it seems. A dark story with quite a creepy end.

Ninth and Nowhere – One of the most substantial stories and, for me, the star of the show. It takes the form of seven short chapters introducing seven separate and seemingly unconnected characters and then culminates with their lives all intersecting for one moment during a violent crime at a local Quik Mart. Each character is brilliantly developed in a short space – a boy buying a gun from a gangster, a man planning to bribe a witness in a court case, a woman going to meet her lover, a vet trying to beg money for wine, etc. Each of their lives will be changed in some way by the central event, and happily the good guys win and the bad guys lose, making it a very satisfying story for those of us who love that feeling of everything turning out right in the end.

So lots of variety and range, all the way from lighthearted and feel-good to dark and twisted. Of the thirteen stories, I gave eight the full five-stars and no story rated lower than 2½, which makes this a very highly rated collection overall. A treat for Deaver fans, but because only two of the stories involve characters from his novels, it would be just as enjoyable for newcomers to his work.

Having read and liked both Deaver’s Lincoln Rhyme and Colter Shaw series, and with both these characters featuring in this collection of short stories, I had to give it a try.

The short stories are great, full of misdirection and twists, that Deaver is known for. There is a variety of interesting plots, and characters involved in each story. The modern-day Sherlock Holmes story in particular was very good with unexpected twists.

I’m generally not a massive short story fan, however it was an enjoyable read, with each story offering something different.

Many thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

4 Stars.

I have read a lot of Jeffery Deaver's work and always look forward to the next installment of Lincoln Rhyme's adventures.
I am not an avid short-story reader but I thought I would give this book a try and I was not disappointed. As a Jeffery Deaver tasting platter certainly but as a main course, I am not so sure.

I’m very familiar with Jeffery Deaver’s writing through the Lincoln Rhyme series. I was very pleased to be able to get to know Colter Shaw through this collection.

From a readers perspective. Short stories are perfect for those times when we don’t have hours to read, when you need to dip in and out of a book.

Short story collections must be quite challenging to write, I imagine. To be able to develop characters, build tension and draw the reader in, in so few words, is impressive. The author wrote 13 wonderful stories, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Jeffrey Deaver is a favorite author of mine. I chose this because I am a fan of his earlier collection, Twisted. This one is also a collection of short stories all written with Deaver's usual flair. There will be something for everyone in these pages.

I am not the biggest fan of short story collections. However, I did enjoy this and there is a reason why the prolific Deaver has sold so many books, he knows what he is doing and does it very well.

For me a solid 3.5/5 rounded up to 4/5. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

#DeadEnds #NetGalley I love Jeffrey Deaver books so was excited to read this collection of short stories by him. I loved the stories featuring Lincoln Rhyme and Colter Shaw but the others not as much. Maybe because I knew so much of the background to the Rhyme and Shaw stories, it made them more enjoyable, because, for me, there was too much description and not enough action in the other stories ,although I do appreciate the need to give a decent explanation as to what is happening! Nevertheless a good read and I look forward to more by this author.

Yet another excellent book by Jeffery Deaver. His attention to detail and his ability to have you hooked from the beginning are second to none. Story telling at its best.

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this book

its full of short stories and novellas from this author and though i am not a lover of them this one isnt so bad...there are a few goods one in there....

happy reading

A collection of short stories by author Jeffery Deaver.

Jeffery Deaver is one of the best at writing short stories, a great storyteller who manages to fit so much detail and substance into fewer pages. This book contains thirteen stories with some featuring familiar characters from the authors other novels. In my opinion it was quite a mixed bag, some very clever, some interesting and others just ok. I tend to read a book in one or two sittings so I found it difficult to engage in this book for a large amount of time so dipped in and out. Well written as you would expect from Jeffery Deaver and plenty of twists.

I much prefer full length novels so perhaps I am not the best to judge this book. An entertaining read in small bite size chunks.

I would like to thank both Netgalley and Harper Collins UK for supplying a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not normally a fan of short stories as they always feel quite rushed, but I like Jeffery Deaver as an author so I thought I would give this a go.

As you might expect, there is a mix of great stories and some which are average. However, all are a perfect length for a quick read and, actually, none of the stories felt rushed to me. A real mix of characters I knew, and others I didn't - or had been created (I think) just for these stories. I particularly liked the Colter Shaw story and the different take on Jack the Ripper. All in all, a range of enjoyable stories that you can get through easily when you only have a short reading slot!

Plenty of thrills and chills in this gripping collection of 13 short crime stories. Each tense tale has an unexpected twist. I could not stop reading.

There are, what could be considered to be, an unlucky thirteen short stories in this collection from HarperCollins. Unlucky, I think, only for the various victims in the stories. Certainly not for us as readers as we are treated to the real breadth of mysteries that Mr Deaver is capable of delivering. From short stories featuring series favourites Lincoln Rhyme and Colter Shaw, to historical fiction and a story set in a world that Mr D knows very well - the competitive landscape of a 'Writer's Conference", there really is a little bit of something for everyone, whether you are a fan of brain teasing puzzles, or more intense action. Heck, there is even a case where the good guy comes goo more by luck than judgment, a story that really did make me smile by it's conclusion, even if at one stage I thought our poor hero was toast.

I loved how Jeffery Deaver is always capable of delivering the unexpected. Even in the world of short stories he can switch up the story, so much so that the bad guy, or gal, is often hidden in plain sight. A good example of this would be The Babysitter, a story which grows in intensity and threat as quickly as you turn each page but which, by its conclusion, had me smiling and nodding in appreciation. Not what I was expecting, but absolutely the ending I never knew I wanted. And in both The Writer's Conference and A Woman of Mystery he proves that the pen is mightier than the sword - at least when it comes as an inspiration for murder.

Many of the stories i could easily see being turned into a series of TV mini specials, a kind of murder mystery collective, because the author is so adept at scene setting that whether in New York or Milan, you feel you are there with the characters in the heart of teh action. Not an easy thing to do in a fraction of the words of a longer length novel without losing the impetus of the story, but barely seeming a challenge for this particular author. There is a good reason he sells so many books.

This is the perfect collection to fit in around work lunch breaks, or even where you have a few moments to kill of an evening or weekend. Of varying length, some take a little longer to finish than others but none really longer than an hour, with some of the longer ones being broken down into mini chapters or scenes making it easy to leave and pick up where you left off. If you like short stories and love a varied collection of crimes, with a little bit of humour too, this will be the perfect book for you. Definitely recommended.

A great collection of short stories which I enjoyed. It makes a change to read short stories whi how I don't do very often. I love this author so it wasn't a hard read. My thanks to netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

Dead Ends by Jeffery Deaver is a brilliant collection of thirteen short stories from the master of misdirection, and featuring appearances from Lincoln Rhyme and Colter Shaw. This book was just what I needed to a long train journey - Brilliant short stories with great twists and turn in each one that will keep me entertained and a great start to my holiday back to my home town.

I loved it. Jeffery Deaver's books never disappoint.

Big thank you to HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction for the advance copy of this ebook.

I really enjoyed this collection of short stories - I don't normally gravitate towards them, but I had to give them a go.
There was a few standout ones and a few I didn't like as much - but I still loved them all.
They all kept the writers style and kept me wanting more.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

It is difficult to review a series of short stories, however, this book was excellent and the stories were all fantastic and easy to read. Recommended.

I'm a Jeffrey Deaver fan having read many of the Lincoln Rhyme novels and some of his other one-offs as well as some of the Colter Shaw books more recently.

This one was a bit of a mixed bag of short stories from different eras and of different lengths (one up to 9 'chapters'). I must admit I didn't particularly enjoy or now remember the first half of the book. Those stories I found a bit forgettable in all honesty. But the book grew in the middle with a particularly enjoyable Sherlock Holmes story, a Jack the Ripper-themed story and a good short involving Lincoln Rhyme being the highlights.

This has something for everyone though asking as you don't mind a Dead end.

4 stars from me.