The Apprentice by Tess Gerritsen, A Book Review

The Apprentice is another killer thriller by Tess Gerritsen.

In Tess Gerritsen’s first Rizzoli and Isles novel The Surgeon, we meet Jane Rizzoli, a tough as nails detective in the Boston Police Department.  She has to be tough; she’s built her reputation on it by being the only female detective in the department.  Fortunately, she is responsible for bringing “the surgeon,” a serial killer rampantly running around the dark streets of Boston, to justice.

A year later, The Apprentice has Rizzoli and her team stumbling into another murder spree with disturbing similarities to those of the Surgeon case.  With a new suspect dubbed “the Dominator,” Jane finds herself in the lead detective role.  As if the mountain of physical and emotional scars left behind by the Surgeon were not enough, tight-lipped FBI agent Gabriel Dean shows up in the middle of her investigation.  Jane’s suspicions of Dean’s involvement grow tense as he seems to know much more than he’s willing to share, even guiding them down specific trails as if he already knows where the evidence will lead them.  The plot heats up when Dean goes behind Jane’s back to have her removed from the case just as the Surgeon escapes from jail.  Before long it seems that the Surgeon and the Dominator have hooked up.  As Jane and Dean put their animosity for each other aside, they work together to track down the two diabolical killers that remain loose in the city streets of Boston.  
     
The Apprentice is a well-written book that gives us insight into Jane the person, not just Rizzoli the cop.  The characters are well developed and I was excited to be introduced to detective Vince Korsak and medical examiner Maura Isles.  Being a fan of the television series, it felt the family had been reunited.  Tess Gerritsen’s background as a physician gives us the clinical terminology but also helps us to understand its verbiage.  Her attention to detail keeps this story full of twists and turns and had me sitting on the edge of my seat at times.  It’s the perfect sequel to The Surgeon, yet a great standalone read as well.  If you are a fan of the thriller genre, this book is for you.  I can't wait to dive into the third Rizzoli and Isles installment, The Sinner.