Heat Rises - Richard Castle

I don't watch a lot of television, so I really wasn't aware of who Richard Castle is. Nathan Fillion portrays this character, who is an author, on the tv show Castle. Now, on this series, Castle is an award winning author with numerous books to his credit. To further promote the television series ABC tv actually published Castle's last three books - all which have landed on the New York Times bestseller lists! Although it is obvious there is a ghost writer, ABC sticks the story that Castle is the author. With me so far?

Anyhow, I chose to listen to my first Castle book in audio format. Heat Rises follows Detective Nikki Heat and her team as they hunt down the killer of a parish priest in New York - in a bondage club. The closer she gets, the more it appears someone doesn't want the case solved - and that someone might be a cop.

Johnny Heller is the reader. Initially I was surprised that a male reader was chosen for what is essentially a female protagonist lead role. He does differentiate between the characters and having gotten quickly used to his tone, I was able to visualize each character. Heller has a distinct gravelly voice that is quite atmospheric and adds much to the book.

The plot of Heat Rises is good, with lots of twists, turns and action. The dialogue is quite humourous - lots of short snappy quips make this a fun book too. And of course a helping of romance. Overall, a very entertaining listen. Listen to an excerpt of Heat Rises. There's even a reading group guide available.

So, I'm working backwards here - I'm going to have to check out the television program now that I've read the books. Definitely an intriguing and very clever premise that works.

You can find author Richard Castle on Facebook and on Twitter.