The
Dollmaker
Non-series
Amanda
Stevens
Mira
Books (Mass Market Paperback)
ISBN-10: 0-7783-2428-1 (0778324281)
ISBN-13: 978-0-7783-2428-7 (9780778324287)
Publication Date: March 2007
List Price: $6.99
Synopsis (from
the publisher): In Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana, a terrible secret is
about to be uncovered by a woman whose daughter vanished seven years
ago without a trace ...
And now a new clue has surfaced ... a doll that is the spitting image
of Claire Doucett's missing child, right down to the tiny birthmark on
the girl's left arm. A chance sighting of the eerily lifelike doll in a
New Orleans French Quarter collectibles shop leaves Claire shaken to
her core ... and more determined than ever to find out what happened to
her beloved Ruby.
When the doll is snatched and the store's owner turns up dead, Claire
knows the only person she can turn to is ex-husband Dave Creasy, a
former cop who has spent the past seven years imprisoned by his own
guilt and despair. He let Claire down once when she needed him the
most. Can she make him believe the doll really exists? She'll have to
if they're to survive an encounter with a brutal
psychopath—the dollmaker—who stole their future to
feed an obsession that will never die.
Review:
From the genteel shops lining the French Quarter of New Orleans to the
forbidden bayous in the surrounding parishes, The Dollmaker
by Amanda Stevens is a terrifying thriller that works equally well as
an investigative detective story.
A parents' worst nightmare: their child disappears, apparently the
result of a kidnapping. The first 48 hours are critical: if the child
isn't located within that time frame, the chances of their returning
safely are remote. For Claire Doucett, it's been 7 years since her
daughter Ruby was taken from her, yet she still believes she may be
alive. Then, suddenly, Claire spies a most life-like doll in a store
window, a doll that eerily resembles her daughter. Even the doll's
dress matches what Ruby was wearing when she disappeared. In her haste
to visit the store, Claire is involved in an accident that puts her in
the hospital. But then the doll vanishes, the store owner found
murdered. Convinced the doll is related in some way to Ruby's
kidnapping, Claire turns to her ex-husband, a disgraced NOPD cop who
was involved in the destruction of evidence in the case of a murdered
stripper about the same time their daughter was taken.
The first half of The Dollmaker
is absolutely electrifying, drawing the reader into Claire's torment as
a mother who's lost her daughter but holds out hope that she may be
recovered. The idea that someone has taken a little girl for the
purposes of making a doll is unthinkable, yet Stevens' crisp writing
makes it all too believable.
Then the plot shifts its focus to Claire's ex-husband, Dave. It's here
that the detective story begins, and though the transition is rather
abrupt, there is no loss of continuity. Dave is equally anguished by
events surrounding his daughter's kidnapping and is unexpectedly
presented with an opportunity to redeem himself for past indiscretions.
While the kidnapper's identity is not a surprise (his character's
background is chronicled every few chapters), and the ending is a bit
too theatrical, Stevens cleverly brings everything together in a
satisfying conclusion to this riveting mystery.
Special thanks to Amanda Stevens for providing a copy of The Dollmaker for this review.
Review Copyright © 2007 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
Have you read The Dollmaker? How would you rate it?
Novels by this author …
The Dollmaker
Mira Books (Mass Market Paperback), March 2007
ISBN-10: 0-7783-2428-1 (0778324281)
ISBN-13: 978-0-7783-2428-7 (9780778324287)
The
Devil's Footprints
Mira (Mass Market Paperback), March 2008
ISBN-10: 0-7783-2530-X (077832530X)
ISBN-13: 978-0-7783-2530-7 (9780778325307)
The
Whispering Room
Mira (Mass Market Paperback), March 2009
ISBN-10: 0-7783-2628-4 (0778326284)
ISBN-13: 978-0-7783-2628-1 (9780778326281)
Omnimystery
keywords for The Dollmaker
...
Location(s) referenced: New
Orleans, Louisiana.
