I received this book from Netgalley as an ARC.
This was my first book by Mr. DeMille, and it will be my last.
My review and opinion of the book are not good.
The 'humor' is humorless and the descriptions of his former
female partners are crass and demeaning.
After several chapters in there is still no meat to the story,
mostly only reminisces of his former relationships.

I couldn’t wait to read this book, one of my favorite authors, one of my favorite characters John Corey,, and my obsession with the murdered girls on Long Island, couldn’t get any better than this, Right, no wrong.
I was totally disappointed in this book..I don’t if it was me. Knowing too much, about the girls who were killed and yes, it was committed by a crooked policeman and, everyone who lives on the Island knows this..
But I found John to be a little more self center and immature. I guess if you are a fan, get this book, read it and decide for yourself..

The Maze by Nelson DeMille is brimming with intrigue.
The book opens well, with characters that held my attention throughout the entire novel.
This is a novel that thrills and engages while possessing a clever plot that will keep the most astute reader guessing right up to the stunning climax.
My first book ever by DeMille and it was a good time.

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

Scribner,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Make sure you read "Plum Island" before reading "The Maze". Previous knowledge of John Corey's personality is important to enjoying the book. Without prior knowledge and likability, John Corey will come off as sarcastic, obnoxious and misogynistic. He is all that but when you like the guy you are more willing to enjoy and forgive the ridiculous things that come out of his mouth. This is a fun summer beach read with some laugh out-loud moments. While it didn't keep me up late into the night, it did keep my interest and most importantly I would have purchased this book had I not been given an advanced copy.

John Corey returns, he’s been forced into retirement, but he’s got itchy feet and an itchy trigger finger. He observes a suspicious boat cruising past his family home on Long Island and when he gets a plea for help from former colleague and lover, detective Beth Penrose for help tracking down a serial killer, he makes a connection between the boat and the killer. DeMille based the killer on some real, and as yet unsolved murders. Readers who have read other John Corey novels may find the character much changed and I have read many reviews that are unhappy with those changes. While I’m not a fab of the many bad “dad jokes” sprinkled throughout the book, I see Corey’s changes a natural progression of a character who has aged realistically

The Maze is the new John Corey novel by Nelson DeMille. It is told in the first person, including humorous, politically incorrect humor asides which are thought but not voiced.
Readers of Stuart Wood, Janet Evanovich, and James Patterson will enjoy this quick, entertaining crime novel.

John Corey has retired, or so he thinks. He can't continue in his prior careers, and his body is showing a lot of wear and tear. Now he sits on a Long Island porch that belongs to his uncle, watching a cabin cruiser that seems a little suspicious as it maneuvers offshore. He picks up his Glock and has it ready if the boat is part of an attack on him.

He's made a lot of enemies in his life, and they didn't retire when he did.

A noise in the kitchen causes him to turn, gun ready, only to see an old acquaintance who doesn't want to kill him...does she? She's actually got a job offer for him. A serial killer is stalking prostitutes, and nobody can catch him. Does he want to have a try at it?

He's never considered working as a private investigator before. Is that the direction he wants to go?

Corey still dishes out a steady diet of sarcastic one-liners like a comedy club performer working a police precinct. It's a chance to revisit a popular DeMille character, perhaps in his last appearance in the pages of a mystery, one based on a real unsolved case.

This story was not for me. The humor in it was not funny at all to me. Kinda gross. I just wasn’t a fan.

I want to preface this review by saying I waited for this new Nelson DeMille novel with great anticipation. I have been an ardent fan since 1985's Word of Honor. Unfortunately, I didn't think The Maze was what I was expecting. I think I was just as skeptical about the plot as John Corey. And to compound my sense of unease, I found the level of crude humor a bit too much. Needless to say I was disappointed.

This was a wonderfully done mystery novel, it had a great suspenseful and tense atmosphere. The plot was beautifully done and I really enjoyed trying to solve it myself. The characters were interesting and I enjoyed getting to go on the case with them. Nelson DeMille has a great way of writing a mystery novel and keeping me invested in what was going on.

"But that didn’t answer the real question of why I was here, rather than a better PI agency in the city. I added, “Also, Chief Maxwell convinced me that I needed a lifestyle change. Less stress, and maybe a permanent move out of the city to this quiet piece of the world.”

As much as I like Nelson DeMille's novels, I never saw John Corey as being as obnoxious as he is in The Maze. The constant lame jokes, bragging, and endless talk of his penis just became too much. The story was so slow in starting that one focused on Corey's cockiness waiting for something to actually happen. Once it did, the story was interesting and worth reading. The soft porn turned me off.
Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I have read all of the John Corey books, so I excited to read this one. Unfortunately, it was just OK and not what I expected. I would give it 2.5 stars. It's not action packed at all. It's the exact opposite. I admit Radiant Angel was not one of my favorites and I don't remember much of what happened. The book was so slow moving and nothing, absolutely nothing happens until the very end. It took half the book, to find out the reason why Beth and Max were pushing John to join Security Solutions. The ending was terrible. Nothing was resolved, nothing was revealed. There's just a lot of dead bodies, no evidence and no one broke down and revealed the truth about anything. I wouldn't call this much of a mystery/thriller. I hated the relationship between John and Beth. It seemed fake. She keeps telling him that she loves him. Seriously??? They dated a short time, years and years and years ago. He left her for Kate. I still don't get the Kate estrangement. It really doesn't fit. John and Kate were great together. Better suited than Beth and John. Beth only wanted John so he could bring down Security Solutions. If John is such a great detective how did he not see all of this from the beginning. I didn't enjoy his sarcasm in this book. It was so over the top. He was definitely a pig. He's so in love with Beth, but his interaction with Amy tells otherwise. Thirsty Thursdays at Security Solutions was not your usual employee get together(Bring Your Own Broad, Stag Night, Exotic Dancers.) Those upstairs rooms need to be sanitized.

If you are a John Corey fan, I recommend reading the book. Hopefully there's another book that will clear up everything that happened in this book. Maybe John will come to his senses, see Beth for who she really is(not in love with John) and get back together with Kate. Look forward to reading more books by the author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Scribner through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I just couldn't get through this book. I love Nelson Delmille Books, but I was in over 60 percent and still waiting for something to happen. I used to love Joh Corey.but he was just too obnoxious in this book. DNF at around 60 %

Thank you NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the opportunity to read and give an honest review of this book.

I have always been a fan of DeMille, having read many of his series. The John Corey series has always been a good one.

In this book John re-unites with a couple of characters from his past and they convince him to go undercover in what appears to be a crooked private investigation business.

As he is snooping and investigating the PI firm, he gets tripped up and a battle ensues. Corey is clever and capable enough to take care of himself. That is a good thing.

I don’t ever remember Corey being such a snarky, crass character as he was in this book. The book seemed long and drawn out for such a small plot. There was a lot of dialog, but it did not seem necessary to move the story along. This is not the best book in this series.

I loved Nelson DeMille but this was a struggle. It really felt like nothing happened in the story. It was mostly John Corey being kind of a jerk to the people in his life. I wanted more of the story about murders, I feel like it just left things open.

It’s been a while since DeMille’s previous John Corey book, 2015 to be exact (or was it 2012?). No matter. Corey can be summed up simply – world class homicide detective for NYPD – piss of his bosses – then work for NY Joint Terrorism Task Force – piss off his bosses – then work for the feds in the Diplomatic Surveillance Group – piss off his bosses – get married to a lawyer – piss off wife #1 – remarry a different lawyer – piss off wife #2 and she moves to DC with an FBI coworker of John – along the way, he thinks more with his little head than his big head bedding (or fanaticizing about) various lady cops – gets shot a few times – may or may not have a GRU or Islamic shooter looking for him - smart ass jerk with a never ending stream of insults/swears/tirades/put downs that sometimes are warranted, other times, maybe not.

All in all. John Corey is a hoot, and a helluva ballsy cop.

He’s back out on the far eastern end of Long Island (again). He’s been shipped out by the feds on a ¾ disability and is recovering in a house owned by an uncle. One of the local cops he knows from an earlier adventure, Max, alerts him that a local private investigative company is looking, and Max thinks Corey is a good match. The office, a converted farmhouse, sits in the rural outlying area where the primary landmark is a next door corn maze.

So does Beth Penrose, Max’s subordinate homicide detective and former paramour to Corey. Corey doesn’t think the PI business (wayward husbands, stakeouts, tracking down missed alimony payments, etc.) is too interesting. But he needs something seeing as how his uncle has rented the house and Beth Penrose not only is trying to help John find a job, but she’s also willing to take him in to be more than a roommate.

John’s not interested in the job, but he is interested in Beth so he agrees to an interview. The boss PI, Steve Landowski, is a former vice cop from NYC. On the payroll are two other former cops as PIs, a slew of freelancers, a disbarred lawyer, a deviously hot receptionist, and a couple of middle-aged bookkeepers/file clerks. Landowski wants to hire Corey to use Corey’s notoriety to snare new and bigger paying clients and maybe do a little actual PI work. Besides, Landowski offers some enticing perks like invites to Landowski’s ledgendary parties and his weekly Thirsty Thursdays (exotic dancers one week, Date night the 2nd week, open bar and poker the third week, party girls/all-bets-are-off the fourth week-attendance by invitation only).

The invitation list for the 4th week is a who’s who of Long Island and New York law enforcement bosses, defense and district attorneys, judges, politicos and other elected officials. And being no fool, Landowski has the entire office space covered with cameras. Anything that happens on the Island that might help or hurt the business can be handled with a little arm twisting and video evidence.

What Landowski wants from Corey differs from what Beth and Max want from him. They have some long-standing cold cases. Nine ‘working’ women have been found in various shallow graves on the outer reaches of the island. A part-time PI committed suicide. A reporter hasn’t been heard from for a couple years. And for reasons not initially apparent to John, the local cops don’t seem too keen to do much investigation. Max and Beth want John to go undercover to learn what he can learn.Everybody want something from John.

John, Max, and Beth spend an inordinate amount of time playing the ‘maybe’, ‘what if’, ‘why’, ‘or’ game as they try to piece together just what the hell is going on in that farmhouse, who might be involved, who benefits, who kills.

I’ve read many of DeMille books, all of which are top shelf. DeMille also wrote what I still consider to be the best espionage book I’ve ever read, The Charm School. With that at the top of my DeMille pile, the John Corey books are right behind. Written for a male audience (ya think?), most any guy with an ounce of testosterone who likes police mysteries will find a friend in John Corey. If he’s a new character to you, start with Plum Island and work your way forward. Each book can be a standalone, but Corey’s work/relationship history will be clearer by reading them in order. There’s 7 or 8 as I recall.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance reviewer opportunity. The Maze will be released on October 11.

This is the eighth in the series, but the first one that I have read. This book was a major disappointment. The main character has the hormones and mindset of a high school male. It rare that various references to sex were not included within a page or two throughout the novel. The storyline was also weak as far as believability making it a real slog to get through. I came close to giving up reading a couple of times, but managed to plow through it. I am sure that this book will be a hit with some, but it was an utter waste of time for me.

I received a free ARC copy of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazon and my nonfiction book review blog.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

I have read and enjoyed many of Nelson DeMille's books, including his John Corey novels.

While I liked the basic premise of this story and the characters, I found that much of the dialogue was repetitious. Since the story is told in the first person, the reader is privy to John's thought processes. This is usually terrific in DeMille's books. Unfortunately, in this case, the writing just seemed to ramble on and on.

It was interesting to see how the author merged the still-unsolved Gilgo Beach murders into this narrative.

I am glad that I read this latest DeMille novel and look forward to future novels.

I was issued this book by NetGalley for my honest review.

This was the first book I have read in the John Corey series. It won't be my last!

Corey is a combination of ego, good sense of humor, bit of arrogance, some self denigration. Just a very interesting character. Not to mention a good detective and a "hell with it" attitude.

The maze is a well written page turner with lots of twists and turns.

Will be reading more by Nelson DeMille.

This item won’t likely make the agenda of your typical suburban book circle, mostly for its regular forays into objectivizing of the female characters, however woman-appreciating these moments purport to be. The book is all red-blooded tough guy/chick-magnet self-assertion, a throwback to the so-called ‘men’s fiction’ of the fifties and sixties, and a sure bet to capture a big chunk of today’s dwindling male-reader fiction marketplace.

The book has its merits, for sure: a brilliantly readable narrative rhythm that underscores the suspenseful forward movement of events that promise a blazing climax. At the same time it steals some momentum from the narrator’s incessant first-person fixations and strident self-awareness. Some readers might find this element repetitively annoying; others will be snared into the welcome trap of ingeniously structured character portraits—and chapter breaks-- that pull one on and make the book ‘unputdownable’.

Not every reader will be seduced by these elements. Still, it’s a commendable effort that deserves a big splash debut.