Tess Gerritsen
Author of The Surgeon
About the Author
Tess Gerritsen was born on June 12, 1953 in San Diego, California. She received a bachelor's degree from Stanford University and a M.D. from the University of California, San Francisco. While on maternity leave from her work as a physician, she began to write fiction. Her first novel, Call After show more Midnight was published in 1987. It was followed by eight more romantic suspense novels. She also wrote the screenplay, Adrift, which aired as a 1993 CBS Movie of the Week starring Kate Jackson. Her first medical thriller, Harvest, was published in 1996. She is the author of the Rizzoli and Isles series, which was adapted into a television show. She has won several awards including the Nero Wolfe Award for Vanish and the Rita Award for The Surgeon. She retired from the medical field and writes full-time. Her other novels include Presumed Guilty, Harvest, Gravity, The Bone Garden, and Playing with Fire. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Series
Works by Tess Gerritsen
Keeping the Dead 16 copies
The Surgeon / The Sinner 4 copies
SOS Title Unknown 3 copies
Gece Gelen 2 copies
Tragische Ruhe 1 copy
Grabesstimme 1 copy
Gölgesizlerin Tutkulu Dansi 1 copy
Vanish 1 copy
Proje: Ölümcül Virüs 1 copy
Gece Yarisindan Sonra 1 copy
Kayip Kizlar 1 copy
Gefährliche Begegnung 1 copy
Frica 1 copy
The Surgeon / Vanish 1 copy
Great Plains 1 copy
Rizzoli & Isles: Books 1-7 1 copy
Shadow Friends 1 copy
Stella Cameron 1 copy
Milczaca dziewczyna 1 copy
Mumia 1 copy
Sobowtor 1 copy
Associated Works
In the Shadow of the Master: Classic Tales by Edgar Allan Poe (2009) — Cover artist — 204 copies, 3 reviews
Hint Fiction: An Anthology of Stories in 25 Words or Fewer (2010) — Contributor — 147 copies, 26 reviews
Reader's Digest Condensed Books 1996 v06: Moonlight Becomes You / The Outsider / Harvest /The Falconer (1996) — Author — 28 copies
Reader's Digest Select Editions: The Bombmaker • Julie and Romeo • Gravity • The Colour of Hope (2001) — Author — 8 copies
Livros Condensados: Colheita Macabra | A Dama Misteriosa de Florença | Meia-Noite e Cinco | Alice (1998) — Author — 5 copies
Select Editions: The Silent Girl / The Little Village School / Buried Secrets / Dark Matter (2011) — Author — 4 copies
Reader's Digest Select Editions: The Bone Garden • Final Theory • I Heard That Song Before • Frangipani (2007) 3 copies
Det Bästas bokval. Volym 197. Donator okänd/ Oanade möjligheter/ Minnets labyrinter/ De urgamla bergen log — Author — 3 copies
Reader's Digest Select Editions: Icon • Notorious • Harvest • In the Shadow of a Rainbow — Author — 1 copy
Válogatott könyvek 2013/6 Tess Gerritsen - A néma lány; Erica James - Az újrakezdés királynője; Henning Mankell - Piramis; Sarah Jio - A bungaló (2013) — Author — 1 copy
Morrer Duas Vezes; Billy e Eu; Em Terra Alheia; E Todas as Fases da Lua (2019) — Contributor — 1 copy
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Gerritsen, Tess
- Legal name
- Gerritsen, Teresa
- Other names
- Gerritsen, Terry
- Birthdate
- 1953-06-12
- Gender
- female
- Education
- Stanford University (BA|Anthropology|1975)
University of California, Berkeley (MD|1979) - Occupations
- author
physician
mystery novelist
historical novelist
screenwriter - Awards and honors
- Romantic Times Career Achievement Award (Female Sleuth, 2006)
- Short biography
- Tess Gerritsen left a successful practice as an internist to raise her children and concentrate on her writing. She gained nationwide acclaim for her first novel of suspense, the 1996 New York Times bestseller Harvest. Subsequently, she wrote three bestselling medical thrillers, Life Support (1997), Bloodstream (1998), and Gravity (1999). Her first crime thriller, The Surgeon (2001) introduced the character of homicide detective Jane Rizzoli, who then became the focus of a series of novels that paired her with medical examiner Dr. Maura Isles. The books were adapted into the television series Rizzoli & Isles.
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- San Diego, California, USA
- Places of residence
- San Diego, California, USA
Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
Camden, Maine, USA - Map Location
- California, USA
Members
Discussions
An Author Interview with Tess Gerritsen in Talk about LibraryThing (March 2025)
Reviews
A psychopath is picking off targets one by one in Tess Gerritsen's stunning novel, "I Know a Secret." Twenty-six year old Cassandra Coyle was a filmmaker whose assailant murdered and mutilated her, but left no visible injuries. Detective Jane Rizzoli of the Boston PD and her partner, Barry Frost, are assigned to the case. Medical examiner Maura Iles conducts the autopsy, but cannot, at first, determine the cause of death. When another murder occurs with eerie similarities to the first one, show more Maura again conducts the postmortem. This time, she cleverly figures out how the perpetrator is dispatching his victims.
The author juggles a variety of plots and subplots adroitly, inserts passages of grim humor, horrifies us with backstories of disturbed people behaving brutally, and explores such controversial themes as the reliability of children's repressed memories. We revisit Jane's beleaguered mother, Angela, who rashly took her husband back after he cheated on her. In addition, Maura reconsiders her decision to cut off contact with the man she loves. As if this were not enough to hold our attention, we are confronted with a first-person narrator who is a cold-hearted sociopath, cunning liar, and unabashed narcissist.
"I Know a Secret" mesmerizes us from its absorbing opening chapter through its chilling finale. Gerritsen wastes no words, delineates key characters with deft strokes, enlivens each scene with vivid figurative language, and moves her well-crafted story along swiftly and satisfyingly. In addition, she does not pacify us with feel-good solutions. This tale of cruelty, heartache, and deceit demonstrates that, at its worst, life can be messy, painful, and grossly unjust. Jane and Maura are dedicated and tenacious professionals; they do everything possible to see that the bad guys are punished. If they fail, and they sometimes do, it is not for lack of trying. "I Know a Secret" is a must-read for thriller fans and one of the best works by Tess Gerritsen to date. show less
The author juggles a variety of plots and subplots adroitly, inserts passages of grim humor, horrifies us with backstories of disturbed people behaving brutally, and explores such controversial themes as the reliability of children's repressed memories. We revisit Jane's beleaguered mother, Angela, who rashly took her husband back after he cheated on her. In addition, Maura reconsiders her decision to cut off contact with the man she loves. As if this were not enough to hold our attention, we are confronted with a first-person narrator who is a cold-hearted sociopath, cunning liar, and unabashed narcissist.
"I Know a Secret" mesmerizes us from its absorbing opening chapter through its chilling finale. Gerritsen wastes no words, delineates key characters with deft strokes, enlivens each scene with vivid figurative language, and moves her well-crafted story along swiftly and satisfyingly. In addition, she does not pacify us with feel-good solutions. This tale of cruelty, heartache, and deceit demonstrates that, at its worst, life can be messy, painful, and grossly unjust. Jane and Maura are dedicated and tenacious professionals; they do everything possible to see that the bad guys are punished. If they fail, and they sometimes do, it is not for lack of trying. "I Know a Secret" is a must-read for thriller fans and one of the best works by Tess Gerritsen to date. show less
‘The Summer Guests' is the second book in Tess Gerittsen’s new series about retired CIA agents trying to live a quiet life in the small town of Purity in rural Maine.
The plot of the first book, ‘The Spy Coast‘ was driven by the things that Maggie Bird, a spy turned chicken farmer, had done before she retired. Her past catches up with her with deadly results and she and her friends have to come out of retirement to keep Maggie alive long enough for her to find out who is trying to show more kill her and why. It was a good spy thriller, told in two timelines, that shared the traumatic events that led to Maggie leaving the service and retiring to Purity while establishing that she and the rest of the Martini Club are still people to be reckoned with, even in their retirement. The first book also introduced Jo Thibodeau, Purity's acting Police Chief. She realises that Maggie and her 'book club' are more than they seem to be as they are constantly at least one step ahead of her in working out what's going on.
‘The Summer Guests‘ took a different tack. It was a thriller about an investigation looking for a missing girl that Maggie et al got involved with because Maggie’s neighbour is suspected of abducting and harming the girl. What followed was a clever mystery with themes about family secrets, rich versus poor, summer people versus locals and the corrosive effects of sibling rivalry. It was a good mystery that was made richer by the discovery of possible historical links to the CIA's covert mind control experiments in Project MKUltra.
I had a good time with the book. I enjoyed the mystery and the growing relationship between the oldsters in the Martini Club and Jo Thibodeau. Within the context of an entertaining mystery, I thought the book had some interesting things to say about the abuse of power, the mindset of powerful people who have never been held to account and how family loyalties can become toxic
I’ll be looking out for the third book, ‘The Shadow Friends‘ when it comes out in January 2027. show less
The plot of the first book, ‘The Spy Coast‘ was driven by the things that Maggie Bird, a spy turned chicken farmer, had done before she retired. Her past catches up with her with deadly results and she and her friends have to come out of retirement to keep Maggie alive long enough for her to find out who is trying to show more kill her and why. It was a good spy thriller, told in two timelines, that shared the traumatic events that led to Maggie leaving the service and retiring to Purity while establishing that she and the rest of the Martini Club are still people to be reckoned with, even in their retirement. The first book also introduced Jo Thibodeau, Purity's acting Police Chief. She realises that Maggie and her 'book club' are more than they seem to be as they are constantly at least one step ahead of her in working out what's going on.
‘The Summer Guests‘ took a different tack. It was a thriller about an investigation looking for a missing girl that Maggie et al got involved with because Maggie’s neighbour is suspected of abducting and harming the girl. What followed was a clever mystery with themes about family secrets, rich versus poor, summer people versus locals and the corrosive effects of sibling rivalry. It was a good mystery that was made richer by the discovery of possible historical links to the CIA's covert mind control experiments in Project MKUltra.
I had a good time with the book. I enjoyed the mystery and the growing relationship between the oldsters in the Martini Club and Jo Thibodeau. Within the context of an entertaining mystery, I thought the book had some interesting things to say about the abuse of power, the mindset of powerful people who have never been held to account and how family loyalties can become toxic
I’ll be looking out for the third book, ‘The Shadow Friends‘ when it comes out in January 2027. show less
‘The Spy Coast‘ surprised me. I knew it was about retired spies. I expected a borderline cosy story, with older folks showing they still have enough tricks up their sleeves to deal with problems. What I got was a proper spy thriller spanning decades and continents with nothing particularly cosy about it. There were execution-style killings, betrayals, kidnapping, a significant body count and a rising sense of threat.
The story starts with Maggie Bird in her guise as a retiree who has show more moved to rural Maine and taken up chicken farming. It then cuts back decades to when Maggie was a CIA operative.
As the plot moves between the two timelines, it reveals how Maggie came to be in Maine, the price she paid for her former career and why someone now seems determined to kill her.
It was a solid, character-driven spy thriller with some touches of humour, mostly generated by how Maggie and her 'book club' friends (who are also ex-CIA) run rings around the earnest and resourceful local sheriff.
Age is a factor for Maggie and the other ex-spies. They are all in their sixties and seventies. It's not just that they are less agile and have less stamina than when they were in the field. It's also that their perspective has changed. When Maggie resigned from the CIA, she was tired and disillusioned. She no longer believed that she was changing the world for the better. She had suffered losses and wanted to leave that world behind her. Some of her Book Club friends miss the opportunity to practice the skills that made them valuable to the CIA but all of them are looking for a quiet life in Maine. I think the story was stronger because Maggie was looking back on what she'd done and seeing it through older eyes that were more conscious of consequences and less certain about the value of victories.
I liked that, while the story stands up as a spy thriller in both timelines, its main focus was on exploring Maggie's journey to becoming the current version of herself. Along the way, as well as travelling the world to discover who is behind the threat to her life, confronting assassins and trying to decide who, if anyone, she can trust, Maggie tries to reconcile her past with her present. She recognises that she can't leave her past behind but that she doesn't want it to be the only thing that defines her future.
I found Maggie and her friends engaging. I want to see more of them. I'd also like to see how the bright but out-gunned local Sheriff will adapt to having a group of ex-spies in her small town. I already have the sequel, ‘The Summer Guests‘(2025) on my shelves and I hope to get to it soon.
I recommend the audiobook version of 'The Spy Coast', narrated by Hillary Huber and Brittany Pressley, one narrating the chapters written from Maggie's point of view and one narrating the chapters written from the Sherrif's point of view. Click on the YouTube link below to hear a sample.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ona2Oz6pDqI show less
The story starts with Maggie Bird in her guise as a retiree who has show more moved to rural Maine and taken up chicken farming. It then cuts back decades to when Maggie was a CIA operative.
As the plot moves between the two timelines, it reveals how Maggie came to be in Maine, the price she paid for her former career and why someone now seems determined to kill her.
It was a solid, character-driven spy thriller with some touches of humour, mostly generated by how Maggie and her 'book club' friends (who are also ex-CIA) run rings around the earnest and resourceful local sheriff.
Age is a factor for Maggie and the other ex-spies. They are all in their sixties and seventies. It's not just that they are less agile and have less stamina than when they were in the field. It's also that their perspective has changed. When Maggie resigned from the CIA, she was tired and disillusioned. She no longer believed that she was changing the world for the better. She had suffered losses and wanted to leave that world behind her. Some of her Book Club friends miss the opportunity to practice the skills that made them valuable to the CIA but all of them are looking for a quiet life in Maine. I think the story was stronger because Maggie was looking back on what she'd done and seeing it through older eyes that were more conscious of consequences and less certain about the value of victories.
I liked that, while the story stands up as a spy thriller in both timelines, its main focus was on exploring Maggie's journey to becoming the current version of herself. Along the way, as well as travelling the world to discover who is behind the threat to her life, confronting assassins and trying to decide who, if anyone, she can trust, Maggie tries to reconcile her past with her present. She recognises that she can't leave her past behind but that she doesn't want it to be the only thing that defines her future.
I found Maggie and her friends engaging. I want to see more of them. I'd also like to see how the bright but out-gunned local Sheriff will adapt to having a group of ex-spies in her small town. I already have the sequel, ‘The Summer Guests‘(2025) on my shelves and I hope to get to it soon.
I recommend the audiobook version of 'The Spy Coast', narrated by Hillary Huber and Brittany Pressley, one narrating the chapters written from Maggie's point of view and one narrating the chapters written from the Sherrif's point of view. Click on the YouTube link below to hear a sample.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ona2Oz6pDqI show less
“Die Again,” the latest Rizzoli and Isles novel by Tess Gerritsen, packs a wallop of suspense and edge-of-your-seat intrigue into a superbly executed and plotted crime thriller. Gerritsen is truly at the pinnacle of her literary and storytelling abilities. The plot is compelling, intricate, and impeccably executed. The characters are finely developed. And as always, the author takes considerable time to explore and develop the emotional and psychological landscape of the series’ two show more main characters; little-by-little, from each book to the next, we learn more about what makes Rizzoli and Isles succeed despite the many obstacles that life has thrown in their paths.
What’s particularly exciting about this book is that nearly a third is set in Africa within the Okavango Delta of Botswana. To read this tense and taut thriller is to experience what it might feel like to set off on the safari vacation of a lifetime only to discover that this same vacation was going to cost you your life. Not only are you surrounded by an immense wilderness full of powerful wild predators, but it slowly becomes clear that the worst predator of all is sitting beside you at the campfire: he’s your wildlife expert and you’re terrified to realize that you may be his next prey. Since these sections are written in the first person from the point of view of the safari’s only survivor, you’ll be unable to escape their terrifying emotional impact.
As with all other Rizzoli and Isles crime thrillers, the rest of the book is set in and around Boston where most of the tale’s brilliant detective, forensic, and autopsy work takes place.
The book opens in Boston with a grisly murder. A world-class wildlife hunter and taxidermist, Leon Gott, is found nude, hung upside-down from the rafters of his garage, gutted and dressed like game. Clues lead Rizzoli and Isles to another very different homicide not far away. Eventually other clues lead to more eerily similar murders in distant remote wilderness locations across the country. The critical clue, however, leads back to Botswana--back to the African safari group that disappeared six years ago in the Okavango Delta. The safari’s sole survivor, Millie Jacobson, claims that their safari guide was responsible for all the deaths. Ever since her rescue, she’s been living in abject fear that he will return to hunt her down and finish the job. After all, she’s the one that got away.
Gerritsen writes intelligent crime thrillers for smart readers who love intrigue. Her characters are authentic and fascinating; the forensic, medical, and detective work flawless and convincing. The plot moves at a consistent brisk pace. Gerritsen is a master at employing creative plot devices to keep the reader moving from one chapter to the next. The book is full of atmospheric depth in every twist and turn.
This thriller will definitely please Gerritsen’s fans as well as anyone else who might be interested in reading this shrewd and skillful novelist for the first time. show less
What’s particularly exciting about this book is that nearly a third is set in Africa within the Okavango Delta of Botswana. To read this tense and taut thriller is to experience what it might feel like to set off on the safari vacation of a lifetime only to discover that this same vacation was going to cost you your life. Not only are you surrounded by an immense wilderness full of powerful wild predators, but it slowly becomes clear that the worst predator of all is sitting beside you at the campfire: he’s your wildlife expert and you’re terrified to realize that you may be his next prey. Since these sections are written in the first person from the point of view of the safari’s only survivor, you’ll be unable to escape their terrifying emotional impact.
As with all other Rizzoli and Isles crime thrillers, the rest of the book is set in and around Boston where most of the tale’s brilliant detective, forensic, and autopsy work takes place.
The book opens in Boston with a grisly murder. A world-class wildlife hunter and taxidermist, Leon Gott, is found nude, hung upside-down from the rafters of his garage, gutted and dressed like game. Clues lead Rizzoli and Isles to another very different homicide not far away. Eventually other clues lead to more eerily similar murders in distant remote wilderness locations across the country. The critical clue, however, leads back to Botswana--back to the African safari group that disappeared six years ago in the Okavango Delta. The safari’s sole survivor, Millie Jacobson, claims that their safari guide was responsible for all the deaths. Ever since her rescue, she’s been living in abject fear that he will return to hunt her down and finish the job. After all, she’s the one that got away.
Gerritsen writes intelligent crime thrillers for smart readers who love intrigue. Her characters are authentic and fascinating; the forensic, medical, and detective work flawless and convincing. The plot moves at a consistent brisk pace. Gerritsen is a master at employing creative plot devices to keep the reader moving from one chapter to the next. The book is full of atmospheric depth in every twist and turn.
This thriller will definitely please Gerritsen’s fans as well as anyone else who might be interested in reading this shrewd and skillful novelist for the first time. show less
Lists
Winter Books (1)
Cults (1)
Unread books (1)
READ in 2023 (1)
Books Read 2026 (1)
Read in 2007 (1)
Awards
You May Also Like
Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 142
- Also by
- 27
- Members
- 54,261
- Popularity
- #279
- Rating
- 3.8
- Reviews
- 1,775
- ISBNs
- 1,960
- Languages
- 29
- Favorited
- 149
