Think of a Number

Think of a Number
by John Verdon

Mark Mellery receives an anonymous note from someone in his past that challenges him to think of a number up to 1000. The writer claims that he knows Mellery so well that he can guess the number. Mellery plays the game and thinks of the number 658. He opens the second envelope to find out the sender's guess. Staring back at him in red ink is the number 658. The note implies that Mellery had wronged this person in the past. Mellery racks his brains trying to recall this person. It must have been someone he knew during his drinking days when he worked on Wall Street. What had he done in alcoholic haze? At his wit's end, Mellery turns to his old college classmate, Dave Gurney. Gurney, a retired NYPD detective, has settled into a comfortable life with his wife in the Catskills and he has little desire to look into these mysterious notes. Instead, he recommends that Mellery contact the local police. Mellery is loath to do so because it will bring unwanted publicity to himself and his retreat for the wealthy, the Institute for Spiritual Renewal. Gurney reluctantly agrees to look into matter. This suspenseful, well-plotted debut novel leads the reader down twisted roads to a killer bent on revenge. [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the Alex McKnight series by Steve Hamilton and the Inspector Gamache series by Louise Penny.] -- recommended by Donna G. - Virtual Services Department

[Also available in downloadable E-book format.]

[ Publisher's official website for both John Verdon and this book ]

Have you read this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide web site. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month.