ELEVATOR PITCH is exactly the good, fast-paced, well-developed mystery we expect from Linwood Barclay. Mysterious elevator accidents are occurring in Manhattan, But are they accidents or acts of terrorism and if they are acts of terrorism, who is behind it? Barbara Matheson, journalist and thorn in the Mayor's side, wants to know. But the more she investigates, the murkier things get. and it doesn't he;lp that her daughter has gone to works for the very man Barbara most despises - the Mayor. great writing, fun characters and a mystery you won't figure out until the end - ELEVATOR PITCH has it all.

"Actions have consequences. Maybe not overnight. Maybe not in a week, or a month or even a decade...Eventually, things have a way of balancing out."

Things become anything but normal in New York when there are 3 separate incidents involving elevators located inside Manhattan skyscrapers that result in deaths. The city's residents are mildly interested and guess there's some sort of connection between these events but total panic really ensues when Mayor Richard Wilson Headley orders that all of them be put out of service until they can be checked. In a vertical city, this can lead to disaster. But that's not the only concern of Detectives Jerry Bourque and Lois Delgado -- they're wondering if these engineered elevator episodes are targeted murders or if they're related to a domestic extremist group known as the "Flyovers." Homeland security is investigating as a possible act of terrorism. But no one claims responsibility. And might the elevator tampering be related to the death of a man found bludgeoned and without fingertips on the High Line? Or how about that taxi bombing?

It's a very complicated scenario affecting many jurisdictions and the situational response is being followed very closely by journalist and reporter, Barbara Matheson. She has her own personal reasons for examining all the players and especially those in the Mayor's office. Who is doing this, and why? NO SPOILERS.

What a wild ride of suspense! I could barely stop reading once I opened the book. The narrative is told in alternating points of view, but the motives are only slowly revealed with red herrings that caused my guessing talent to flounder several times. The characters are well-developed and engaging with enough historical detail to make them relatable -- even the ones you won't like so much. The writing is excellent and I've long been a Barclay fan. There are plenty of grisly descriptions and enough deaths to make this a thriller while also serving as a bit of a morals directive. There are twists and surprises. I enjoyed it immensely and fans will be clamoring to get their hands on this one.

Thank you to HarperCollins Publishers for the e-book ARC to read and review. This jumped to the top of my extensive TBR list as soon as I received it.

PS If you have any elevator phobia, this will likely exacerbate. Take the stairs!

This story of random elevators all across Manhattan boobytrapped in such a way that the occupants of said elevators plunge to their death an a freight train (or elevator) headed straight to hell freaked me out. I was once trapped in an elevator in Dallas that dropped six floors before the brake kicked in and I still have nightmares about it. Barclay is good at capitalizing on our everyday fears and kicking them up about ten notches