When you want to read a short mystery with fast pace and story, you can grab this Novelas. The characters iswell written and memorable, the plot is interesting enough and fits in short pages number. I don't know if this book is a part of series, but let's we hope.

Thanks Netgalley for my copy.

<i>Reality’s simple. Fiction’s complicated.</i>

A serial bomber or bombers are targeting Middleton. A 911 call alerts the police before it can be detonated. Nearby, a burner phone is found with what looks like a clue - a poem that may reveal the next target. Sloan, the officer in charge of the investigation, decides to call in a professor and expert on poetry to try to interpret it. But this is a short story by Jeffrey Deaver, the master of the plot twist, and, of course, nothing or no one is quite what they seem and both the police and the reader are sent haring of in too many possible and possibly fatal directions

Scheme is a fun fast short story with an interesting and compelling plot that kept me on the edge of my seat. Although the story is mostly tied up satisfactorily, there is enough loose ends to suggest we haven’t seen the end of Sloan, the officer, the bomber, or the poetry expert and I, for one, can’t wait to see where they will lead us in the future.

<i>Thanks to Netgalley and Amazon Original Stories for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review</i>

This short story was fun to read but waaaay too short. It could have been a couple of chapters in a full book and I would have enjoyed that much better. The characters were great & the female lead was not what she appeared. I can only hope there will be another episode from this story.

Thanks to NetGalley & the publisher for the chance to read this story.

A short read, good story. All that you expect from Jeffery Dealer.
I received this book from the publishers via Netgalley for a review.

3★
“Sloan’s patrol-cop father had said on several occasions, ‘Reality’s simple. Fiction’s complicated.’”

Somebody has planted an IED, (an improvised explosive device) in an awkward spot that can’t be reached by the usual robot, which means there’s a guy crawling on his belly to have a look.

“He’d had four IED calls since he’d been on the force. The first was a suspicious package in front of a women’s health clinic (the ‘bomb’) was a sheaf of Christian literature and an alarm clock).”

This one is more tucked away, so it’s up to Kleppe to defuse it . . . he hopes.

“Kleppe was in a bomb suit, a ghastly outfit that weighed nearly a hundred pounds. It protected his head, his chest, torso, legs and arms. But not hands. Officers on this detail knew that if the thing went off they might survive, but their hands would be appendages of the past. Disability payments were now electronic, so one wouldn’t have to worry about signing the checks.”

Grim humour. The story is centred around Detective Sloan and the investigation into who and why. The only clue has been a strange poem which isn’t at all helpful, but he figures someone may be able to interpret it and winkle out a reason.

The search is on for a poetry expert, and the local college has just the woman. She becomes part of the search team and more than that to Sloan.

What begins as a straight-forward police story, with some discussion of “domterrs” (domestic terrorists) and other possible suspects, takes a very different turn as Sloan begins to understand the motive.

“Like everyone else at the first hint of an IED, he’d gotten caught up in the frenzy of the case. Nothing else had existed but figuring out who was behind the plot, how they were going to strike, how to stop them.”

It was a curious premise and I wanted to know what happened. There is a lengthy explanation at the end by way of flashback that I would rather have seen worked into the story somehow, to raise a little tension.

It was interesting enough to finish and the writing is fine, but it’s not one I’d recommend unless you’re a Deaver fan.

Thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for the copy for review.

Deaver can sometimes produce compelling short stories but this was one of his weaker efforts unfortunately. Cliched characters play out an uninteresting conceit before a rather tired explanation is elongated at the end. Definitely not memorable or very entertaining.

Jeffrey Deaver brings us one of his explosive short stories.
An improvised bomb is found and defused in a hospital is small town America by Middleton’s Detective and part-time explosives officer Jake Sloan, and the only clue is a poem. Then another poem is found - but where is the bomb? Sloan asks English Professor Ciara Hawkins for help, and the bomb is found before going off.
But Sloan thinks that something else is going on and he needs to find out what it is before it’s too late.
A great short story that was an easy read.

Renowned thriller writer Jeffery Deaver newly published novella, Scheme is the tale of a poetry loving serial bomber. When a sophisticated incendiary device is discovered outside the local hospital, the only clue left is a cryptic poetry verse. Police Detective Jake Sloan struggles to make headway as a second message is received and the countdown is on. Jake seeks out English Professor Ciara Hawkins to assist. A short sharp tale with the usual Deaver twist and a five star read rating. Hopefully there will be more Sloan adventures with the punchiness of this surprising ending.

This is a short story that will keep you engaged from start to finish. A terrible band wants to attack using bombs and their clues are just terrible and tasteless poetry letters.

When detectives Perez and Sloan are hitting a wall, they ask for help from the college professor Ciara Howkins.

Getting different narratives was really helpful to see what's happening and to make up my theory of who are these criminals.

A fast-paced and suspenseful story, Scheme is a great police procedural thriller that many readers will enjoy.

🆓📖Very grateful to the publisher for my review copy

A bomber, a detective, an English professor and some bad poetry - so more than one bomb! Who am I kidding, I wouldn't know good poetry from bad!

I really need to quit pouncing on these short stories because I usually don't enjoy them much. I guess this one was okay but I doubt if I'll remember it tomorrow. The subject matter isn't something I'd normally search out on purpose so perhaps I'm not the intended audience for this one. Most of the other reviews rate it much higher so don't go by me. It was a fairly quick read and I suspected who the perpetrator was which is highly unusual. Not sure if the ending is a cliffhanger for an upcoming novel or if we're supposed to solve the riddle but, either way, count me out!

My thanks to Amazon Original Stories via Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this novella. All opinions expressed are my own.
Publication Date: April 28, 2022

4 stars

This is a short story about a group who wants to blow up stuff and the police who are trying to catch them. The hang up is that the bombers are sending clues written in the form of bad poetry.

Detectives Perez and Sloan are heading up the case.

Frustrated that neither the local police or the FBI can figure out the “clues,” a professor named Ciara Hawkins from the local college is contacted. She’s a hoot. She is a true crime junkie and fascinated by all that the police are doing, their procedures and so on.

Following two bomb attack attempts and an assassination, our story turns on its head. Sloan receives an interesting letter.

Sloan and his team have been conned in an elaborate … Scheme.

Ah, Mr. Deaver, this story is cunningly brilliant. Had me going right from the start. Well written and plotted as usual with this author’s offerings. More, please, sir.

I want to thank NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for forwarding to me a copy of this delightful little story for me to read, enjoy and review. The opinions expressed here are solely my own.

In the hands of any other author, a scheme would be a story typical of its type. But, Deaver knows just how to deliver a twist or inject pieces of another genre to lead the reader down fruitless paths as they attempt to determine ‘who dunnit.’ It’s a short but good read.

Quick read, with your typical Jeffery Deaver plot twists. I enjoyed the story. Deaver doesn't disappoint.

This is not a big book, quick to read but not as good as other novels this author has written.

Things are not what they seem in this story. Is there a serial bomber on the loose, or is it something else entirely? The ending may surprise you.

#netgalley #scheme publication date 28 April 2022
A Jeffrey Deaver short story and it did not disappoint a bomb at a hospital and that is just the start. Gripping, fast paced and entertaining just wish it could have been a full length Novel 4/5 stars

I like this format of a shorter novel, as it's a fast and easy read. The plot is interesting, the characters are great, and the writing is very good, but there's an open ending that I don't like. And isn't the detective supposed to be the smartest one

Scheme is an another excellent short piece from Jeffery Deaver. A crazed bomber is on the loose, taunting the police with cryptic poems so Detective Sloan is forced to call in special civilian hope, but not is all as it seems. Can’t say more without posting major spoilers, but I must say this is an excellent story with some major twists. My only complaint, I wish it had been longer. Thanks so much to Amazon Original Stories and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of Scheme.

A bomb outside a hospital. But that’s only the beginning…

With the FBI working on one end of the investigation, local Police Detective Jake Sloan brings in an English Professor whose specialty is poetry. Why, you ask? Because the bomber apparently has an artistic side – He leaves poems as clues. The police department is frustrated, unable to decipher the meaning behind these cryptic poems. Hopefully the good professor can help.

Can Detective Sloan and his crew find the bomber before it’s too late?

This was a short story by the very talented Jeffrey Deaver. I’ve read most of his works over the years so this was a fairly simple decision to pick up his latest.

Although short stories aren’t normally my cup of tea, the author did an amazing job of filling the pages with everything you’d want in a high-octane thriller.

I really enjoyed Detective Sloan. We’re provided plenty of background to get a good feel of who this detective was both in his professional and personal life. Perhaps we’ll have a full length book featuring Sloan in the future!🤞

Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories

Excellent short story by Jeffery Deaver: gripping, highly entertaining, and fast paced.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Sadly, this didn't work well with me. It would have been good, but there's too much telling than showing that it made me feel detached to the story and the characters. The main characters, Sloan and Ciara, are interesting, but how they are presented feels too clinical to me. Even how they solved the case feels clinical. It's just too convenient. Reading it felt like the author was such in a hurry to finish the novella.