Body Double

This was SO good and creepy. Chores, be damned, I have a book to finish!

Rizzoli and Isles are a great pair and when it looks like Isles was murdered, the horror from her friends was palpable. Luckily, Isles was fine and it was really her....wait, identical twin??? Oh things just keep getting more complicated.

We also have a serial killer who abducts pregnant women and cuts out their babies to sell for cash money. Wait. What? Gods yes, and it gets weirder and worse from there.

The creepy factor starts you off in the Prologue and just keeps going. Super fast paced and kept me guessing (wrongly. Sorry, character that I kept blaming for everything). Tess Gerritsen is one of the best!

When I first picked up The Surgeon - mostly because Amazon recommended that I should read it - I didn't know if I could make it through. The romantic aspect of the story nearly killed it for me - echoing Harlequin romance. With The Apprentice, my gut told me that I was reading the chick lit version a mystery - but I ignored the romance and stuck to the plot (which made it enjoyable). The Sinner nearly killed me because of the triangle that was introduced and Rizzoli's defiance against falling in love with Agent Dean. With Body Double, being the fourth book in the series, I've come to accept the romantic aspect.

Tess Gerritsen's writing is marvelous. She has the power to suck you into the story and not let go. While it took me longer to show more read than I expected - mostly due to other reasons - the book was hard to put down the moment I picked it up (and if i wanted to do any writing, I had to force myself to put it down).

Maura Isles returns from France to find a crime scene near her neighborhood. Her neighbors are shocked to see here. Her friends stare at her as if she's a ghost. Even her friend Father Brophy seems taken aback by the sight of her. Someone was shot and killed in front of her house. She doesn't know why people are acting so surprised to see her standing before them. That is until, the victim is revealed to her. Slumped in a car, a bullet hole against her head, sits Anna Jessop. While Maura has never met Anna before, her face is nevertheless familiar. It's the face she wakes up to every morning - Anna Jessop could be her twin sister.

When DNA confirms it, Maura sets out to learn more about her twin sister, leading her to a family with dark secrets. Secrets that would very much leave her dead.

Unlike the other novels - with the exception of The Surgeon - this one seemed to focus more on Maura Isles than it did on Jane Rizzoli, even though the latter is supposed to be the main character. It's understanding, considering the content of the book - why would something clearly about Isles focus solely on Rizzoli's findings?

The story is gritty and dark. It leads you to believe several things at once, and keeps you guessing. Even though revealing evidence is presented, it doesn't turn out quite the way you expect it. From being misled on who killed Anna Jessop to the pivotal ending, the book is a page turner. Even the most astute probably didn't see the ending coming. I know I suspected the wrong people, and I'm usually good at these sort of things.

Once again, the forbidden desire for Father Brophy (who was introduced in The Sinner) keeps Maura at bay relationship wise. She knows nothing can come of it, even though there are signs that his affection for her is almost mutual. New character, Detective Ballard, on the other hand, gives her hope that she can find love again. Nearly absent character, Gabriel Dean (first introduced in The Apprentice) doesn't play a role in the story at all. He's mentioned to be out on a mission, leaving a pregnant Rizzoli behind.

Gerritsen's voice is resonating. No one before her has captured my attention like this. As I read on, her voice grows more established. She's gone from guilty pleasure to the top of my list. Can't decide if I want to continue on with Vanish or give Moxyland a go before continuing on with Rizzoli & Isles. show less

I thoroughly enjoy the momentum of Gerritsen's writing. Dr Maura Isles returns from Paris to find a dead woman in a car outside her house. The event is not surreal, but the woman seems to be a mirror image of Dr Isles. What follows this amazing coincidence is Maura's discovery of a twin sister, and a path to their biological mother. Gerritsen presents two stories running in tandem, with little connecting the narratives. A heavily pregnant Jane Rizzoli attempts to protect Maura from the villains and the awful truth. Maura 's mind wanders to thought of love, but with unattainable men. The story ends with that infamous discussion of nature versus nurture.

This book is so far outside my normal cup of tea that it's pretty much orange juice, so I don't know if I can really do it justice in a review. (I forgot my book and had to shanghai one of my mom's for the day - I don't normally read "supermarket paperbacks".) This book starts with the murder of a woman outside the house of someone who happens to be her separated-at-adoption identical twin, and moves from there into serial killers of pregnant women. To me, it read like an over-long episode of CSI or L&O:SVU, but I suppose that's just the genre. Suspenseful? A little, but it was never really worrying, since obviously they were going to solve the crime(s) by the end (SPOILER: They do.). The red herrings were not particularly convincing, show more although I didn't figure things out much before the characters did. Overall, I'd say it's probably pretty good for enthusiasts of crime fiction, but it did very little for me; I'd rather spend an hour watching CSI, get the same story, and spend my reading time reading something else. show less

Body Double is the 4th in Tess Gerritsen’s Rizzoli/Isles series. The story starts with Maura Isles arriving home from a conference in Paris, to find the police at her home, called to a shooting. The victim looks uncannily like Maura, so much so that Rizzoli, Frost and co thought it was her. Whilst Maura was an only child, she was adopted, and DNA tests prove that this woman was her twin sister. Maura endures the singular experience of seeing her own body autopsied. As Rizzoli and Frost investigate, Maura learns some horrifying truths about her past. Once again, Gerritsen gives us a fast-paced story with an excellent plot and quite a few twists. And a gutsy victim who decides not to be. Gerristen also provides a bit of humour, some of show more it quite black: the eight-month pregnant Rizzoli “guarding” Isles; Rizzoli giving Isles relationship advice; and Maura, who has never exposed more than her hands and face at work, present as her morgue colleagues, Rizzoli and Frost see a body identical to hers under the knife. Gerritsen also gives us food for thought about “private” adoptions and where those babies come from. Another excellent read. show less

Quick Review
Story Rating: 5 Wine Glasses
Audio Rating: 4 Wine Glasses
Originally Posted on http://www.geekybloggersbookblog.com/201...

This is probably my favorite in this series so far. I really enjoyed all the twists, turns, and swerves that the case took. In true "is it a good mystery" fashion, I did not guess the ending in advance. That being said there was a part about the ending that irked me but it was still done well. The plot and pacing were fantastic. At no point did I think the story stalled or was unbelievable. We got more Isles in this story which is good because up to this point it has been mostly Rizzoli. I am hoping in the future the books are more balanced with both. They really are a good team together: both loving their show more jobs, being good at it, and being women in a male dominated field without it being a big issue.

I would highly recommend this book to fans of thrillers. I don't even think you really have to read them in order as you would only miss a few things and those are not part of the case. show less

The book grabbed me from the first chapter. It honestly was a lot of fun to read, even though this is my first book from this author. So I have no previous knowledge of Jane Rizzoli or her previous adventures, I still enjoyed this book a lot, it does well as an stand-alone work. The kidnapped pregnant mother thing is all the more creepy when you realize just what is going on, and there were a couple of twists I had not anticipated. Still, a very good read.