The Never Game

Colter Shaw, Book 1

By: Jeffery Deaver

Narrated by: Kaleo Griffith

No.1 international bestseller Jeffery Deaver returns with a stunning thriller – the first in an exciting series featuring enigmatic investigator Colter Shaw.Escape or die trying…

Three people are kidnapped across California.

Sophie is locked inside a derelict warehouse.

Henry is abandoned in remote woodland.

Elizabeth is trapped inside a sinking ship.

They are alive, but don’t have much time to live…

Only one man can save them: unique investigator Colter Shaw. He’s an expert tracker with a forensic mind, but this will be a test even for him.

Because this killer isn’t following the rules; he’s changing them. One murder at a time…

‘No one in the world does this kind of thing better than Deaver’ Lee Child

Deaver’s most riveting, most twisty, most unputdownable novel yet’ Karin Slaughter

‘Deaver grips from the very first line and never lets up’ Peter James

‘The very definition of a page-turner’ Ian Rankin

‘Lightning-fast and loaded with twists’ Harlan Coben

‘With The Never Game you know you are in the hands of a master’ Peter Robinson

©2019 Jeffery Deaver (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Critic reviews

‘The Never Game is the very definition of a page-turner’ Ian Rankin

‘Terrific writing, vivid and raw, Deaver grips from the very first line and never lets up. He is, hands-down, one of the finest thriller writers of our time’ Peter James

‘Nailbiting’ Guardian

‘Deaver is a masterful storyteller and he’s on top form with The Never Game’ Daily Express

‘As always, Deaver gets you in his stealthy grip on page one, and then takes you on a wild and inventive ride …

this time with new star character Colter Shaw. No one in the world does this kind of thing better than Deaver’ Lee Child

‘Masterful storytelling — The Never Game is Deaver’s most riveting, most twisty, most unputdownable novel yet’ Karin Slaughter

‘Lightning-fast and loaded with twists, The Never Game is a thrill a minute from one of the best. Don’t miss it’ Harlan Coben

‘Jeffery Deaver scores yet again with a fascinating new detective, Colter Shaw, and a plot as full of thrills and twists and turns as you would expect from him. With The Never Game you know you are in the hands of a master. But be warned—don’t start this too late in the evening because sleep would be an annoying interruption once you’ve started reading!’ Peter Robinson

‘A twisty “keep you up all night” page-turner of a book with a wonderfully human core. A fantastic read’ Kate Hamer, bestselling author of The Girl in the Red Coat

‘A superb thriller. Twisty, ingenious and totally gripping. Colter Shaw is a fascinating, complex new character. Excellent’ Will Dean

‘A fascinating new character in the methodical Colter Shaw. Nothing is predictable in the case, and like a curvy mountain road, the twists are intense’ Associated Press

Disappointing and Confusing Story

I am a fan of Deaver's books featuring Lincoln Rhyme and Kathryn Dance, but Never Game was a big disappointment. I was looking forward to a new character, but Shaw is a an odd duck with an strange background. Deaver reveals some of his earlier life, but too much is held back for future books. There are too many seemingly unrelated stories with no hints at how they might be connected until viola...now they kind of make sense. The opening scene is a good example because it pops up throughout the story but takes a long time to fit with the rest. SPOILER - Deaver leaves the major mystery unresolved. He leaves it as an unsatisfying cliff hanger to get the reader to buy the next book. This reader will not buy it unless Deaver returns to his Dance and Rhyme characters.

Kaleo Griffith was devoid of any emotions while delivering the story