And The Dead Shall Live is riddled with intrigue and suspense. It is a cat-and-mouse game that will keep you on your toes.
And The Dead Shall Live is a thriller in which the washed-up and severely socially anxious novelist Philip Raymond finds himself edging out of his comfort zone when a grieving mother's statement about her recently deceased daughter piques his interest and gets his hopes up of a smashing comeback. He hires Jesse Carter as his research assistant since he can barely leave his apartment, and pretty soon, Jesse finds herself in the midst of a tightly woven web of lies and cover-ups. Navigating Raymond's plan to reveal the real Lee Fletcher – a dangerous ordeal based on very limited need-to-know information – Jesse advocates for the truth to come out no matter the cost.
This book review was first published on Reedsy Discovery.
His eyes stopped dancing and went utterly blank, and he wore that grin again, half-entertained by her fearlessness, and, she felt, half-amused at the thought what he might do to her, because of her fearlessness. The blankness was his way of taming that violence, allowing him to watch and wait, to multiply options. (Excerpt from And The Dead Shall Liv')
Klein's narrative reminds the reader of current political issues as the rich get away with murder while the poor get prosecuted for the slightest wrongdoings. Jeffrey Epstein comes to mind when reading about Lee Fletcher's activities and the connections he holds dear. And The Dead Shall Live is an excellent interpretation of what might be happening behind the scenes of the rich and famous and how social media influences the news and politics.
From start to finish, And The Dead Shall Live is riddled with intrigue and suspense. The cat-and-mouse game between Jesse Carter and Lee Fletcher keeps you on your toes. David Shawn Klein’s masterful narrative gives you just enough information to keep you pondering who knows what and what the bigger picture is but not enough information to provide you with any real answers until you reach the final chapters. Like Raymond and Carter, you're in the dark, and the only way to find out how this mystery will be brought to a close and whether there will be justice is by reading to the bitter end.
I recommend And The Dead Shall Live because I enjoyed hypothesising what would happen next and whether Jesse and the others involved would survive the investigation. I believe readers who fancy detectives and thrillers will enjoy reading Klein's latest novel. Happy reading.
You can find And The Dead Shall Live here.
