"Desert Places: A Novel of Terror" ~ Blake Crouch

I was so impressed by the "The Pines" that I bought "Desert Places" almost the next day. I did not enjoy it nearly as much.  This is Crouch's first book and I can see where he wanted to go, he just didn't get there for me.  I'm again reminded of Dean Koontz.  Koontz is one of my favorite writers, but I'm not a fan of all his books.  In fact there's about 1/3 that I think are brilliant, 1/3 that are good, and a 1/3 that I just don't like.

Desert Places starts with a bang. Successful mystery writer Andrew Thomas is living the good life.  Career, money, friends, then one day he gets a letter telling him there is a dead body buried on his property.  That she has his blood on her and the murder weapon is a missing knife from his kitchen. If he goes to the police, the killer will let the police know where more bodies can be found on Andrew's property.  The killer is looking to make a connection with Andrew. 

The why and the who are interesting, but lack a substantial back story.  It is supposed to be a story about survival and what makes us tick.  What can push us over the edge and can we come back.  I just don't think Crouch ever really answers his own questions.  There are moments when I see the potential that will come in future books like "The Pines".  I bought the second one in the Andrew Thomas series at the same time I bought the first.  I will read it and see how it goes.  I might just need to stick with his later books.