Title: Life and Death
Author: Michael Robotham
ISBN: 978 0316 2520 34
Publisher: Mulholland Books
Pages: 448
Source: Private Copy
Why would a man serving a long prison sentence escape the day before he’s due to be released?
Audie Palmer has spent ten years in a Texas prison after pleading guilty to a robbery in which four people died and seven million dollars went missing. During that time he has suffered repeated beatings, stabbings and threats by inmates and guards, all desperate to answer the same question: where’s the money?
On the day before Audie is due to be released, he suddenly vanishes. Now everybody is searching for him – the police, FBI, gangsters and other powerful figures – but Audie isn’t running to save his own life. Instead, he’s trying to save someone else’s.
Michael Robotham has created the ultimate underdog hero, an honorable criminal shrouded in mystery and ready to lead readers on a remarkable chase.
Official Summary
23 November 2022
I have always found myself loving this author’s books. I am not even sure where I got this one, but it’s been hiding in my TBR pile for a while and it was time for me to read it. Sadly this is the first time this year I have read anything by Michael Robotham and what a brilliant read this was proved to be. When you reach for this book you will fall in love with the character and find yourself rooting for him.
Michael Robotham is a brilliant storyteller. He creates villains and underdogs who crawl into your heart. I find I am quickly engrossed in his writing. He unfolds his tales in a gripping manner, making it impossible to walk away before you have read the very last word.
Audie Palmer escaping from prison the night before he is due to be released leaves everyone amazed. Why would he do that? It just does not make sense. While everyone is looking for Audie, you join him in looking over his shoulder. Surely it is just a matter of time before someone catches up with him – but he seems to be running towards the danger instead of away from it – leaving you baffled – until you discover who Audie is trying to save….
Audie Palmer will steal your heart. This escaped convict is not who he appears to be. As the story unfolds you realise just how deceiving appearance can be. Audie Palmer is keeping more than one secret, and as the pieces of this puzzle fit together you are shown a man you never expected to find. I love this guy!
Michael Robotham always leaves me amazed by his creativity. This book was a fabulous read that is full of surprises. I could not race through this one fast enough. Another brilliant addition to my loved list for 2022.
If you love a twisty, edge-of-your-seat tale that will leave you rooting for the underdog then you will not go wrong reaching for this book. I cannot recommend this one highly enough. You will not be disappointed with any of this author’s work – he is a brilliant writer that you simply must add to your TBR.
Also By Michael Robotham
About the Author
Author bio from the author’s site
Two-times Gold Dagger winner (2015 and 2020), twice Edgar best novel finalist (2016 and 2020) and winner of the Ian Fleming Steel Dagger (2021), Michael Robotham was born in Australia in November 1960 and grew up in small country towns that had more dogs than people and more flies than dogs. He escaped became a cadet journalist on an afternoon newspaper in Sydney.
For the next fourteen years he worked for newspapers and magazines in Australia, Europe, Africa and America. As a senior feature writer for the UK’s Mail on Sunday he was among the first people to view the letters and diaries of Czar Nicholas II and his wife Empress Alexandra, unearthed in the Moscow State Archives in 1991. He also gained access to Stalin’s Hitler files, which had been missing for nearly fifty years until a cleaner stumbled upon a cardboard box that had been misplaced and misfiled.
In 1993 he quit journalism to become a ghostwriter, collaborating with politicians, pop stars, psychologists, adventurers and showbusiness personalities to write their autobiographies. Twelve of these non-fiction titles have been bestsellers with combined sales of more than 2 million copies.
His first novel ‘THE SUSPECT’, a psychological thriller, was chosen by the world’s largest consortium of book clubs as only the fifth “International Book of the Month”, making it the top recommendation to 28 million book club members in fifteen countries.
Since then, Michael’s psychological thrillers have been translated into twenty-five languages and his Joe O’Loughlin series is are currently in development for TV by World Productions. A six-part TV series based upon his standalone novel THE SECRETS SHE KEEPS was aired on BBC1 in 2020, and a second series begins filming in 2021.
Michael lives in Sydney with his wife and a diminishing number of dependent daughters
Thank you for visiting the blog and reading my review. I know you will love this book as much as I did. What is your favourite Robotham book? Leave a comment below. Until next time…Happy Reading!
