A short story, not even a novella. The only positive was the return of Quincy & Rainie, the FBI Profilers, who Gardner has ignored since 2008, although their new novel was released yesterday. Boston Detective DD Warren is reviewing cold cases: this one is the 10-year old strangulation Jaylin Banks in the stairwell of a Boston college library. For unexplained reasons, the profilers are brought in to interview suspects, eventually solving the murder by determining the killer's unusual motive. Don't bother with this one. ( )

This is a short story combining several of my favorite Lisa Gardner characters. Sgt. D.D. Warren is working a 10-year old cold case of a college woman who was found strangled in the library stairwell. She contacts Pierce Quincy and Rainie Connor for their expertise. They interview 3 suspects of the 60 that were on the original list, and then one of the suspects mentions the 4th man. After interviewing the 4th man, they determine who the killer is.
Quick read, enjoyable. Based on an actual murder!
#the4thMan #LisaGardner ( )

FBI Profiler Pierce Quincy and Officer Rainer are invited by Detective D. D. Warren to consult on a cold case. Gardner is the novelist of over eighteen successful novels. This Kindle Single again proves she is solid in her storytelling.
This review can also be read on: Le Coeur de l'Artiste http://www.djadamson.com/le-coeur-de-lartiste ( )

Five years after a college student was found strangled in the library stairwell, a cold case squad has narrowed the list of suspects down to three--and a possible fourth unknown man.

Gardner is really good at writing short stories that are great mysteries in their own right. The concept for this one was really interesting, especially that the detectives had figured out a lie each suspect had told all those years ago, and were about to confront them with it.

The ending to the mystery was merely good, not great. It was based off a true story, but it felt like within the short story context, the ending was rushed. The story might have benefited from being fleshed out more.

At forty-seven pages, this is a quick read, and an interesting mystery. Pick it up if you have an hour or so. ( )

The 4th Man by Lisa Gardner is An FBI Profiler/Detective D.D. Warren Story. Sergeant Detective D.D. Warren is a Boston homicide detective working cold cases. Her latest case is the murder of Jaylin Banks that occurred at a local Boston college ten years ago. Jaylin had been found in one of the stairwells by a campus security guard. The police have no physical evidence of the killer and there was little violence involved. The only thing that was missing was Jaylin’s dirty white keds. Their only hope is getting a confession from one of their suspects. Warren has brought in the top three suspects to be questioned by profiling expert, Pierce Quincy and his wife, Officer Rainie Connor. If one of these three men did not commit the crime, then it is the unknown fourth man. Will they finally get justice for Jaylin Banks by identifying her killer?

The 4th Man is well-written, has a good pace, and is very easy to read. I appreciate the characters and their method of interrogation and investigation. The 4th Man is a very (extremely) short story that can be finished in about 30 to 45 minutes (depending on how fast you read). The mystery is interesting (unique) and most people will be surprised the killer’s identity. I give The 4th Man 4 out of 5 stars. I wish the story had been just a little longer. I felt that the whole story was too rushed. A preview of Lisa Gardner’s next book is included (and it is very good). ( )