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Fred Carver #2

by John Lutz

Scorcher, the fourth book in a series that includes Tropical Heat, Flame and Kiss, again features Florida private detective Fred Carver. A serial killer is on the loose, a maniac wielding a homemade flame thrower fashioned from a scuba tank. He has murdered three people - and one of them is Carver's eight-year-old son.

Carver will do anything to find his son's killer and exact a father's revenge. All clues point to the brilliant schizophrenic son of one of Florida's wealthiest families, and when the suspect goes on the run, Carver sets out to hunt him down.

A gripping story of long-buried secrets and burning hate, Scorcher is a taut, explosive and thoroughly unforgettable mystery.

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Detective, Audiobook, Fiction

276 pages, Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Librarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

John Lutz has captivated suspense enthusiasts for over four decades. He has been one of the premier voices in contemporary hard-boiled fiction. His work includes political suspense, private eye novels, urban suspense, humor, occult, crime caper, police procedural, espionage, historical, futuristic, amateur detective, thriller; virtually every mystery sub-genre. John Lutz published his first short story in 1966 in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine and has been publishing regularly ever since. He is the author of more than fifty novels and 250 short stories and articles.

His novels and short fiction have been translated into virtually every language and adapted for almost every medium. He is a past president of both Mystery Writers of America and Private Eye Writers of America. Among his awards are the MWA Edgar, the PWA Shamus, The Trophee 813 Award for best mystery short story collection translated into the French language, the PWA Life Achievement Award, and the Short Mystery Fiction Society's Golden Derringer Lifetime Achievement Award.

He is the author of two private eye series, the Nudger series, set in his home town of St. Louis, and the Carver series, set in Florida, as well as many non-series suspense novels. His SWF SEEKS SAME was made into the hit movie SINGLE WHITE FEMALE, starring Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh, and his novel THE EX was made into the HBO original movie of the same title, for which he co-authored the screenplay.

Lutz and his wife, Barbara, split their time between St. Louis and Sarasota, Florida.

Reviews

[Carolyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very odd... implausible ending, in my opinion, but I like this author and will continue to read him.

[Shirley Hartman-Rozee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a scorcher all right. It sucks you in by nursing Carver’s hatred for the young man everyone thinks of as the murderer and then smacks you full in the face with an ending so surprising and stunning you are left reeling. To make any attempt to explain would spoil the outcome. I really liked the way it ended: Carver not only has a swimming buddy but a surrogate son.

[James S. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not bad writing, but I couldn't buy the book's central premise: that a homicide lieutenant would enlist the help of a vigilante in tracking down a criminal. Since most of the book is predicated on this idea, it didn't work for me.

[Joyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Carvers ex-wife was visiting Florida and their son was murdered. The local cop got Carver to work for the family of the suspect who'd gone to ground. Figured he'd find him and kill him though they told the family he'd find him before the cops did because if the cops found him there would probably be a shootout and he'd be dead.

[Bill Bunn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is not a strong Lutz book. The characters are a little wooden and hard to care for. The classic revenge genre is a little unbelievable here. Buttons too obviously pushed to generate really basic emotions. Carver is profoundly un-investigative in this book. I'm guessing it's simply a dated read. It was work to finish it.

[Carolyn (in SC) C234D · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this in 2000, don't remember details, but noted that it was "very good". Second in the Fred Carver series.

[Sandi · Rating 3 out of 5]

After a horrific crime strikes his family, Florida PI Fred Carver decides to hunt down the villain with or without police help. A pretty good suspense/mystery audio read by a multi-voice cast.

[Laurie (Kwiltreader) · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didn't care for the multiple readers on the audio. May try to read the actual book.

[Eliana]

Keeps you hooked til the very end every time. P.I. thriller/mystery.