'Hunting Time' is one of Deaver's best crime thrillers yet

"Hunting Time" by internationally bestselling author Jeffery Deaver is an incredibly fast-paced crime novel.

This is the fourth book in his series starring Colton Shaw, a reward seeker and survivalist.

Shaw is hired by eccentric entrepreneur Marty Harmon, head of Harmon Energy Systems, who wants to stop the illegal sale of technical information to a competitor.

After initially altering the industrial espionage effort, Shaw takes on another task, protecting Allison Parker, the creator of the modular reactor device.

Allison and her 16-year-old daughter, Hannah, are on the run, hiding from her alcoholic former husband Jon Merritt, who just got out of prison.

He was an ex-cop accused of abusing Allison; she later testified against him - resulting in his conviction.

Merritt has intensive, raging anger issues against her and others; Shaw's challenging role gets considerably more complicated.

Two other nasty thugs are after her, too. They are seasoned criminals who have more devious, deadly intentions.

Deaver's highly entertaining tale covers a kaleidoscopic range of human emotions. He masterfully shifts character viewpoints and deftly utilizes flashback scenes.

Ingenious plot twists abound as hidden secrets emerge; shifting relationships increase the tension to a feverish level.

Jeffrey Deaver's crime thriller "Hunting Time" is one of his best yet; the multiple award-winning author has written over 40 novels.

Ray Walsh, owner of East Lansing's Curious Book Shop, has reviewed mysteries and Michigan books regularly since 1987. His email address is raywalsh@voyager.net.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Ray Walsh: 'Hunting Time' is one of Deaver's best crime thrillers yet