The Ten Worst People in New York by Matt Plass
3/18/25; 320 pages
Crooked Lane Books
The Ten Worst People in New York by Matt Plass is a recommended investigative thriller.
After viewers of Ricky Talon's late night TV show are asked to vote
for their choices, he shares a list of their chosen ten worst people in
New York. It's all fun and games until two of the people on the list
turn up dead. Their deaths appear to be by their own hand but recently widowed Special
FBI Agent Alex Bedford suspects foul play. She is joined by her partner Pat Coombs in the investigation as they search for clues and connections.
At the same time, Jacob Felle, a British filmmaker, arrives in New York at the invitation of his brother-in-law, explorer Floyd Shaw. Jacob wants to connect with his estranged sister, Elizabeth, and to reconcile a long-buried family trauma. He learns that Elizabeth is going through one of her bad times and that she has dissolved her partnership in New Frontiers, an adventurers’ club she founded. Soon Jacobs search for his sister is on the same trajectory as Alex's search for the killer.
The writing is a bit uneven in this investigative thriller, however, the overall premise is intriguing, which is what kept me reading. There are some twists along the way, but the pacing is slow with a few bursts of action. One issue for me was a few details in the novel made it feel strangely dated now which leads to my caution to authors to leave social/political views on contemporary topics to themselves and out of books to extend the longevity of the novel.
I appreciated Alex and Jacob as characters. Alex had personal struggles, but tenaciously and
insightfully pursued her investigative. Jacob was determined to find
and uncover what was up with Elizabeth. Both of these characters, one
professional and one amateur, are searching for the same answers about
why target people on the list and who will be next.
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