Review: The List

The List by Steve Berry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and Grand Central for the pre-release copy of Steve Berry's upcoming novel The List. Below is my honest review.

Fans of Steve Berry know that his genre tends to be adventure thriller tied up closely with history - the events of the past having a major impact on the storyline, and lessons about history weaving in and out of the writing. In The List, Berry has stepped out of that genre and into pure thriller, setting up a plot where the company elites are so concerned about the bottom line that they have turned to murder to save corporate funds. While there was one history lesson in this one, it was extremely brief.

I absolutely loved this one. Sadly enough, it was believable, and I wouldn't be surprised if something similar has actually occurred (or is still happening!).

Berry notes in his post-novel details that this is one of the first novels he ever wrote, and he never submitted it for publication all those years ago, that he pulled it out and began tweaking it and tightening it up, and making sure it was up to date with technology and current events. That's really impressive to me because while some of the high quality of the novel might have been because he's much more experienced now, you can tell that even back then, it had the right bones and the right parts to be a great story.

Highly recommended, and it's a standalone so no need to invest in a long series to avoid spoilers or missed information. But I'd still recommend his Cotton Malone series if you end up liking this one!

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