Even the best-kept secrets eventually rise to the surface...

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	• Dry Ice Stephen White Signet, 2008 - 528 pages average customer review:based on 49 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Even the best-kept secrets eventually rise to the surface...

Dry Ice was a very satisfying read - not one of my "desperate to read in one sitting" ones like Kill Me - but one of few "wish it wouldn't end" ones, like Higher Authority (my favorite so far). Circumstances had me picking Dry Ice up and having to put it down - but, through it all, I was engaged in the story and by the players - which I think is a test for a book. Is it easy to pick up the threads and sink into the plot after a brief respite? A resounding "yes"! After growing to know Dr. Gregory through 5-6 of White's novels, there is a comfortable knowledge of his character, as White is always careful to let us know Alan's innermost thoughts, good and bad. His long-held secret came as a surprise, but then, we all have those secrets, haven't we - and like Alan Gregory, we can't see the wisdom of confession-time if there is nothing to be gained (at least, that's why I'm hanging on to mine!) Lauren has a secret, too, and it comes out very quickly toward the end. It serves to tie up some ends rather sweetly, thank goodness. However, we are left with uncertainties that, no doubt, will lure us into the next chapter of the Gregory saga. It's a difficult task to keep reeling out one really good book after another, but White seems to have the secret to success. Must be that cool, crisp, clean Colorado air!

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Dry Ice is cool

Over the past years, I've read almost all of Stephen White's books about psychologist Alan Gregory. Almost all of them have been pretty good, but admittedly, they're not always that memorable. This is a bit of a problem with White's novel Dry Ice, which alludes to many of his earlier novels and features the return of a villain last seen in the first Gregory novel, Privileged Information. Fortunately, White provides enough detail to make this novel standalone, so even if you have not read his other books (or, like me, it's been a while since his early books), you won't be lost.

The villain in question is Michael McClelland who has escaped from a mental hospital and now has targeted Gregory for a very elaborate revenge. McClelland has, among other things, pointed suspicion at his adversary for the disappearance of a grand jury witness. The grand jury case in question is taking up the time of both Gregory's prosecutor wife, Lauren and his best friend, detective Sam Purdy. All three are governed by various rules of confidentiality that will put a strain on both Gregory's friendship and marriage.

This strain is exacerbated by a secret from Gregory's past, a dark bit of information that he has never revealed and now McClelland has seemingly learned. McClelland's revenge is not limited to Gregory alone; both Lauren and Purdy also fit into the killer's plots, which have less to do with murdering than with destroying lives. For Gregory, the stakes are highest: besides being under suspicion for crimes, his career is at risk after a patient (linked to McClelland) commits suicide and his closest relationships are at peril of falling apart. It is little wonder he is excessively drinking.

In a way, Dry Ice is the culmination of all the Alan Gregory novels, and as such, the stakes are ratcheted up proportionally. The result is one of the best in Stephen White's canon, a constantly suspenseful novel that should be rewarding for White's fans.

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dry reading

This latest Dr. Alan Gregory novel was not one of Stephen White's better books. I found it slow moving and very predictable. It was easy to put it down and come back days later to read more. Save your money for the paperback edition.

Stephen White

I love the series of books by Stephen White. They keep me interested right from the start.

Dry Ice

I am extremely disappointed that Dick Hill is the narrator of Dry Ice or any Alan Gregory audio book. His voice is too east coast and heavy to fit my mental model of Alan Gregory. It's a jarring narration. Hill's voice is suited for the heavyset Sam Purdy -- not Dr. Gregory. Hill's female voices are not suitable for this narration either. I like Hill for heavy murder mysteries where the protagonist is a big macho man with a deep, heavy voice. (Steven Cannell's books) His narration is distracting on Dry Ice. Get a man with a lighter voice. There are pleny of good ones out there.

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reviews: 1, page 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

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