Product Description

The beautiful woman appears to be just another corpse in the morgue. But when medical examiner Maura Isles looks down at the body, she gets the fright of her life. The corpse opens its eyes. Now very much alive, the woman is rushed to the hospital, where she murders a security guard and seizes hostages, one of whom is the heavily pregnant homicide detective Jane Rizzoli. But who is this woman, and what does she want? Only Jane can solve the mystery - if she survives the night.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9385 in Books
• Published on: 2007-01-15
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 464 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Tess Gerritsen’s Vanish sports precisely those qualities that her much-acclaimed Body Double had in profusion: razor-sharp plotting, tight and economical characterisation and (most of all) the inexorable capture of the reader’s attention as her grim plot disturbingly unfolds.

Of course, none of this will come as a surprise to long-term Gerritsen fans (an ever-growing legion)--The Surgeon rang some fascinating changes on the serial killer theme, with a threat from the grave terrifying a doctor, and )--The Apprentice, with its killer utilising medical acumen, took no prisoners. But Body Double was the ace in the hole, with resourceful cop Jane Rizzoli tracking down the murderer of her doppelganger. Jane Rizzoli, readers will be glad to hear, is back in Vanish.

Medical examiner Maura Isles is looking at another body in a slab. Not a new experience for her, but she’s in for another shock when the body opens its eyes and proves to be alive. And violence swiftly follows, as the mystery woman--strikingly beautiful--kills a security guard in the hospital she’s taken to, before capturing a group of hostages. One of them is a pregnant woman--Detective Jane Rizzoli, no less. And if Jane can find out what this lethal abductor wants, she may be able to save her own life--and those of the other hostages. But the clock is ticking.

One might argue that Gerritsen has played safe with this scenario in terms of ratcheting up the tension. After all, a hostage situation is always surefire, with its constant threat of impending violence. But the author (as ever) studiously avoid clichés, and ensures a palm-sweating experience for the reader. A good notion, too, to make Jane Rizzoli more vulnerable in this outing.

--Barry Forshaw

From the Publisher
Heavily pregnant homicide detective Jane Rizzoli finds herself on the wrong side of a hostage crisis in Tess Gerritsen's terrifying new bestseller.

From the Inside Flap
A blessed event becomes a nightmare for pregnant homicide detective Jane Rizzoli when she finds herself on the wrong side of a hostage crisis.

The nameless and beautiful woman appears to be just another corpse in the morgue. But when medical examiner Maura Isles unzips the body bag and looks down at what she’s been told is an apparent suicide, she gets the fright of her life.

The corpse opens its eyes.

Now very much alive, the ‘dead’ woman is rushed to the hospital where her next action shocks everyone. With cool precision, she murders a security guard and seizes hostages. One of those hostages is a very pregnant patient: Jane Rizzoli.

Who is this mysterious hostage-taker, and what does she want? As tense hours tick by, Maura joins forces with Jane’s husband, FBI agent Gabriel Dean, to track down the nameless woman’s identity.

But only Jane, trapped with the armed madwoman, holds the key to the mystery. And only she can solve it – if she survives the night.

Customer Reviews

A must read!
This is the first book i have read from Tess Gerritsen..and it certainly WILL NOT be the last! I read this book in less then a day because i just simply couldn't put it down. I'm a BIG fan of Lisa Gardner (recommend her books completely!) and must say i was a bit wiery about buying a Gerritsen book, but i am SO glad i did. Since then i have purchased another 3 books written by Gerritsen and i am looking forward to reading them. I advise anybody who enjoys tense/thrilling books to purchase this. You will not be dissapointed. What i like most about this book is that it actually made my heart beat double time; it's that effective. I must add though that i wasn't entirley impressed by the ending, i felt as if the whole book was a huge climax - but then it got to the ending, possibly a bit rushed? But still a must read!! 4/5 Deservadly. Brilliant book.

Enjoyable
I'm a big fan of Tess Gerritsen and her stories with medical examiner Maura Isles, and Detective Jane Rizzoli. In this story, Dr. Isles discovers a 'corpse' which is still breathing, and then later escapes. It turns out that this lady has a mysterious history, and the quest to discover her true identity and her story begins.

This all occurs at the same time as Rizzoli is pregnant and going into labor. For me, using a mother who had literally just given birth as the lead detective chasing the bad guys was a little unbelievable, and was a major weakness of the plot. At one point, she is in pursuit of the killer whilst holding her 2 week old baby in her arms, which is pretty silly I think. Also, the story is kinda rushed at the end, which is disappointing after a good build-up.

Overall, it is still an enjoyable book to read, and one Tess Gerritsen fans should read.

A+ - just what you'd expect from Tess Gerritsen
A book that describes the coming back to life of a corpse....its not the usual plot to the start of a crime thriller that's for sure. But then again Tess Gerritsen isn't like any other crime thriller writer. She's a rare breed who manages to ruffle the ahris on the back of my neck just by the simple ace of putting pen to paper. Vanish is no difference.

Detective Jane Rizzoli is 9mths pregnant and at the hospital for a routine check-up when things go awry. Along with others Jane finds herself being held hostage by a woman who came back from the dead. While Jane tries to keep things calm on her side her husband Gabe is doing all he can to resolve the situation on the outside of the hospital. It leads to the usual Gerritsen intrigue and suspense and fans of the series won't be disappointed. If you've not read any of the series and you're a crime thriller fan then Tess Gerritsen is an author you MUST read.