The Anniversary

Rating:
Summary: Impressively written thriller
Review: Amy Gutman's impressive first novel, EQUIVOCAL DEATH was a slick polished legal thriller which could have been the start of a series. However, with this second book, it is apparent that she would rather pursue the title of "queen of suspense fiction". THE ANNIVERSARY actually is a strong bid for the title.
Three women are haunted by their past relationship with an executed serial killer, Steven Gage. Gage is reported to have murdered over one hundred women so his trial and subsequent execution made worldwide news. Now, on the fifth anniversary of Gage's execution, the three women receive a note saying "Happy anniversary, I haven't forgotten you." Who is sending the note and what does it mean? Callie Thayer, one of the women, fears the possible danger the note represents, not only to her but to her eleven year old daughter. Her fears prove correct as her life is in imminent danger.
In the years since her first novel, Amy Gutman has polished her writing style impressively. She hits this novel with all cylinders running. The plot is compelling, well paced and has plenty of twists, turns and red herrings to keep any reader at the edge of their seat. Characters are so strongly portrayed that it is remarkable this is only her second opus. Length is a bit excessive but the book has so many positive traits that this can be overlooked. A strong recommendation.

Rating:
Summary: great thriller
Review: He is credited with strangling to death over one hundred women and then having sex with them postmortem. His crimes not only impacted the victims themselves but the victim's families, his lawyer and his girlfriend who was the state's star witness during his trial. On the anniversary of his death five years after Steven Gage was executed by the state of Tennessee, three women receive a note saying "Happy Anniversary, I haven't forgotten you!"

When Callie Thayer receives the note, she immediately knows what it means and is afraid that her new life in Merritt, Massachusetts will be destroyed when the truth comes out. Melanie White, once Steven's lawyer and now practicing in New York City doesn't make the connection until Carrie calls her asking for help. True Crime writer Dianne Massey, whose book about Steven skyrocketed her to fame doesn't take the note seriously. By the time the dust settles one will die, one will be severely injured and the last will fight for her life against a killer who is determined to have his vengeance.

Every once in a while, a book come along that is so exciting and chilling that the reader instinctively knows it will become a bestseller. THE ANNIVERSARY is such a book with its speed of light pacing and its action packed plot focusing on three females in peril. Try as one might, nobody will guess the identity of the killer until the author chooses to reveal the identity.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Three women. Three notes. One fear¿
Review: On the fifth anniversary of the trial and execution of infamous serial killer Steven Gage, three women separately involved in the Gasey case - Callie Thayer, Melanie White, and Diane Massey - each receive an ominous missive that they haven't been forgotten. But almost as quickly as the women can digest the full meaning of the message, the threats leap from the printed page and into reality. Determined to no longer be a passive victim, Callie Thayer commences the battle of her life to expose the personified evil force responsible for so much terror and violence. Nothing prepares her for the entangling web of guilt, suspicion and untruths she will ultimately uncover.

Talented author, Amy Gutman, weaves this gripping psychological courtroom thriller with stunning skill and white-knuckle suspense. Riveting, intense and most definitely addictive, I was feverishly impelled to finish The Anniversary in one sitting...and on the edge of my seat the entire time!