Choose Me by Tess Gerritsen and Gary Braver

Author: Tess Gerritsen / Gary Braver

Title: Choose me 

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer

Published: 2021

Pages: 333

Genre: Mystery Thriller 

     Taryn Moore is young, beautiful, and brilliant…so why would she kill herself? When Detective Frankie Loomis arrives on the scene to investigate the girl’s fatal plunge from her apartment balcony, she knows in her gut there’s more to the story. Her instincts are confirmed when surprise information is revealed that could have been reason enough for Taryn’s suicide―or a motive for her murder. To English professor Jack Dorian, Taryn was the ultimate fantasy: intelligent, adoring, and completely off-limits. But there was also a dark side to Taryn, a dangerous streak that threatened those she turned her affections to―including Jack. And now that she’s dead, his problems are just beginning. After Frankie uncovers a trove of sordid secrets, it becomes clear that Jack may know the truth. He is guilty of deception, but is he capable of cold-blooded murder?

     Tess Gerritsen is an author I have long been a fan of. Her previous books have given me many an enjoyable hour spent hiding away. But when it came to Gary Braver, he was an author who I had never had the pleasure of reading before. But you know how it is when one of your favorites writes works with another author its kind of a gentle nudge saying this one's alright. With that said I was still looking forward to seeing how these two played together. The scrawl on the back seemed intriguing, we've all heard the stories of the college professor and one of his students.  It never seems to end well for the naive student. To late learning that despite the words hanging on his lip they are rarely the first and he will in fact never leave his wife. To much the worry that his affairs will become public, he will lose everything and that must never happen. So what path would this narrative take after all Taryn is already dead so now we must play catch up and find out what nefarious plan was set in motion to lead us to this most bloody end? And who is ultimately responsible for the life that will never be lived. 

      Between these two great authors, our cast of heroes is spread wide, each stepping up to the podium to give us their own perspective of events. But this affair is very much a game of chess, each player trying to outmaneuver the next. And whilst it is clear they are lying to each other which is doing so to us. It is best to keep our head straight and our sights firmly on the target to keep track of events. All the while being pushed back and forth between past and present timelines. One minute you may think you have a handle on motives and with the stroke of a pen, we are sent careening back across the universe these two have created. Their collective characters are great and each of them plays to their own strengths. I liked that no one we come into contact with is wasted and each has a very important part to play. But unlike some novels, it is hard to place them in more iron-clad frames of good and bad. Questionable behavior runs rife with this lot and at times and I found myself shaking my head questioning how they could be quite so stupid. But I guess when you don't use your head to think these sorts of things are bound to come up. 

     When it comes to the narrative as a whole it is hard to find fault. Had I not known that this was the work of two authors then I would have been none the wiser. They flow in one seamless train of thought. Although I suspect that this took a great deal of work to actually achieve., which is kudos to them. It is a tightly plotted novel that kept me on my toes from the very start. Each twist and turn adds up to a captivating and perilous conclusion. How could it not as these two build their very own tower of babble. We've all heard the story before, you know it's all going to come crashing down it's just trying to work out what was the final straw that broke this affairs back. To me it all felt very real, there were no sudden jumps but rather a slow building of blocks. As with affairs in real life they seldom happen at first sight but rather a slow eroding of lines crossed until you are left questioning which way is up. the switching between timelines goes a long way to help with this as we get to see a much more direct form of cause and effect. It was interesting to see this intoxicating swirl of taboo lust rapidly become something so much more toxic. Eating away at their very beings and causing their inner demons to come out and play. 

     I must say I enjoyed how these two wrote together, I was a little concerned that Tess's work would stick out more as it was hers I was familiar with but to be honest they created something so captivating that the thought slipped my mind after just a few chapters. This is a book that I feel would work for fans of ether and for that matter for someone who has never read either. Maybe this helps by being a stand-alone from either of theirs work. It allows for something entirely new. Either way if you like a robust and gripping thriller this is most definitely the book for you.