The Spire: A Novel

Mark Darrow leaves his small town, moves to Boston and becomes a successful lawyer. At the request of his mentor, he returns to Wayne, Ohio and soon becomes the president of Caldwell College, and embrolied in issues that become entangled in a 16 year old strangulation murder for which his best friend was convicted.

I have to admit that I had a pretty good idea who the murderer might be early on, but Patterson did a great job making it look like someone else.

This tale began a little slow and I felt there was a tad too much time spent in people's heads, especially the protagonists, but this is a psychological thriller and thus the author stayed true to the genre.

Except for a couple places where information already presented was repeated and unnecessary clarification provided, it was an enjoyable read. ( )

If this only Richard North Patterson book I've read is typical, then the guy must be a pulp factory. The story grabs you slightly from the beginning, but as it goes on it becomes less and less satisfying as the flaws become clear. Here are the flaws: First, each character seems to have exactly the same personality and way of communicating. Each converses in the same glib fashion. Each tries to be funny and clever in conversation, but falls short. (Example: a recovering alcoholic is asked by a waiter what he wants to drink. "Chateau Perrier", he responds. "I hear May was a good month."

Second, the characters act in unbelievable ways. Without giving anything away, the lead character, Mark, is a lawyer who asks personally and clearly damaging questions of people he hasn't seen in years as he works to unravel the core mystery. Rather than tell him to take a flying leap, as would be there right to do, they give detailed and potentially incriminating responses with no adequate motivation.

Third, It becomes clear early on that the author is following the mystery genre formula of hinting at one suspect before bringing in the actual suspect from left field. So, as a reader who has seen this formula over and over and over again in books and on TV and movies, you look for the least obvious person and expect that he/she will be the one. In this case, only one person fits that description and so you see before the book is half finished where it is going to end up.

Fourth, the author at the 4/5 mark seems to have become bored with his own story and so just rushes the reader through a path of implausibles to finish things up. And the finish is very unsatisfying.

I will never read another book by this author. He compares very unfavorably with the likes of John Grisham and Ken Follet who are much more adept at believable character and plot development in the same genre.

I must say, I'm astounded by the number of positive reviews, particularly since most agree with some of my criticisms, namely thet the solution to the mystery is obvious from the start. I can only conclude that these reviewers do not have high enough standards or expectations and would urge them to read some other authors in the genre to see how well it really can be done. ( )

Loved this book. I haven't read Richard North Patterson for a while, but I'm glad I picked this up.

Mark Darrow is given a scholarship to play football in college via Lionel Farr, a professor at the college who for some reason, takes it upon himself to act as the boy's mentor. Mark agrees if Lionel can possibly arrange to extend a scholarship to his best friend, Steve, whose family he has been living with the past few years.

Mark gets the education he has only dreamed of and has planned to go on to law school. Shortly before he and Steve are about to finish college, a girl is found murdered and his friend goes to prison for the crime.

Years have passed and Mark returns to the college to take up the position of president per Lionel's request. Mark has never accepted that his friend is a killer and begins to investigate the murder for which his friend has already served 15 years.

I found the characters and plot interesting--in fact, I downed this book in about a day. ( )

The story itself is good, but I knew after 5 chapters where it was going. ( )

Mark, a boy from a poor upbringing is given an opportunity for a football scholarship at a local midwestern college. At the end of his senior year, he finds the body of another scholarship winner, Angela, a young black woman. He had last seen this woman leaving a party celebrating his final college football achievement on the arm of his best friend, Steve. As Mark leaves for Ivy-league law school, Steve is taken to jail. As Mark becomes a rich attorney, Steve is convicted of murder.

Years pass. Mark loses his wife and unborn child to an accident. He returns to the college that gave him his start to help the college recover from the recent embezzlement of a great deal of money from the alumni trust fund. He goes to visit Steve, then starts to think again about the night Angela died. He begins asking questions.

Well-done thriller, if a bit predictable. ( )