Mortal Fear

If you like psychological suspense and you're familiar with the Internet (of course you are; you're here, aren't you? ) you will eat this novel! Harper Cole runs EROS, an online sex chatroom service, and begins to suspect foul play when women customers begin to disappear from the service but haven't cancelled their expensive subscriptions. He discovers one of the women has been brutally murdered and suspects the killer is also an EROS client.

The dialogue is excellent, the storyline makes it almost impossible to put down, and the characters are well defined. And some of his descriptions of emotions and human nature were enough to make me stop and marvel at how good this guy is.

Harper Cole's job as a systems administrator for a private on-line service leads him to realize a serial killer is hunting amongst the service's users. When he contacts the New Orleans police with the information, Cole unwittingly focuses police and FBI attention on himself. To help catch the killer, Cole decides to create the perfect victim, sharing his darkest secret in the process, to draw the killer's attention. However, his success brings the killer straight to his own front door with disastrous consequences. While the computer technology dates the plot, Iles has written an intense thriller with an interesting, thought-provoking subplot. Short flashes from the killer's point of view enhance the tension while Cole's character is show more believably and fully developed. show less

Harper Cole, a sysop for EROS, an on-line service for explicit sex, is questioned by local police and the FBI about the murders of several female EROS clients. In an effort to prove his innocence and identify and trap the actual murderer, Cole and a fellow sysop try to lure the murderer into an online relationship using very personal family information.

Mortal Fear is a story which captures the reader's interest right from the start. Cole’s relationships and emotions in dealing with the various characters, especially the evasive and intelligent fellow sysop Miles, can be truly felt. The suspense builds throughout the novel, drawing the reader speedily along to its thrilling, although somewhat hard-to-follow, conclusion.

Could have been trimmed by a hundred pages (no, I don't need to hear every detail of the protagonist's rocky marriage) and the over-the-top villain is a comic book caricature who makes Hannibal Lecter look like a boy scout with a nasty appetite, but the writing is solid and the climax is a great mix of suspense and horror. And those retro computer tech references were...quaint.

A twisty thriller. Written in 1990s the computer aspects which underlie the story are dated but stilll work.
The male protagonist is a synopsis for a computer service called Eros where people go for virtual sexual experiences with others. He discovers several of the women clients have been murdered and reports that triggering a man hunt for the killer. It comes to involve him, his wife and his wife’s sister. The villan is a brilliant, clearly evil man. He provokes the mortal fear of the title. He is trying to perform pineal transplants to reverse aging. Set in Mississippi it truly brings mortal fear to many characters. The climax is cleverly plotted. The author demonstrates a lot of computer technical knowledge and medical knowledge show more incorporating it smoothly into the plot. Weird to bring Kleinfelter’s syndrome into a thriller. show less

I liked the last one [Dead Sleep] so much, I had to have another one. That's why I call them Twinkies. So, yep, another hit. Graphic violent deaths of upper crust females traipsing around the EROS cyber-sex site. The catch is that it is so exclusive (expensive), that ladies of fame and fortune feel safe carousing among like-minded romantics or pervs and letting it ALL hang out. Well, lo and behold, a brain surgeon (one would have to be, you'd think) got a hold of the master list of clientelle and their pertinent and very personal information. So Doc and his exotic Asian super-freaky killer Mrs. are running around the country wooing and brutally slaying the rich and famous lust vessels. Good buds Miles the brain (and creator of said show more site) and Harper (the nice guy who's married to a great OBG/YN), are two main sys ops and overseers of EROS. Hence, they are FBI"s faves for suspects. To save themselves and EROS they concoct an elaborate plan to trap the killer, but in the process they make themselves and their loved ones bait for psycho killer. Elaborte and suspenceful this is a major nailbiter. show less

Explosive, complex and unique. Hannibal Lechter merges with technology

One of Greg's earlier stories which takes place during the days of dialup modems and CompuServe, he's created characters and a plot that evolve with each chapter. Driven by a theme of Trust, two best friends involved in an a digital 'erotic' meeting place for the affluent play detective in order to track down a serial killer, who's reminiscent of Lechter, yet far more devious. Subplots of incest, family, and loyalty spin as the frantic momentum builds.

Having read nearly ALL of Greg's stories, this one took me by surprise given how early in his career it was written. A thriller in all respects, as the reader nears the 'finish line', the pace quickens to the point show more where you're panting with each page turned. Greg's mysteries rank equally with the likes of Baldacci, Patterson, Grisham and others, though his diversity is far above. Well researched, paced and immersive, he's one of the best crime/mystery writers today and THIS is one of his best! show less