This engrossing tale is told entirely in first-person narrative, from the perspective of Tom Ryan. It is the story of Tom, told by Tom, starring Tom ... you get the idea. It's his world and he's the only important person in it; the other inhabitants of the world -the bit players - only matter if they are of use to Tom. Though not entirely original, Tom's tale is well-paced and suspenseful, with the exception of the last few chapters, which dragged a bit, with unnecessary details and flashbacks that didn't contribute to the story. There were times when I almost gave up and quit reading - I admit that I go overboard pouncing on mistakes I find, from typos to inconsistencies and implausibilities in the story, stubbornly refusing to finish a book over obvious or egregious errors. I caught on to some apparent discrepancies, but plot exposition neatly accounted for most of them. It was tempting to skip to the end as the pace got sluggish (the flashbacks were getting tedious and I just wanted my questions answered), but I didn't, and it was worth the effort to keep reading. The problem with writing a review for this particular story is that I don't want to give away any of the plot twists or revelations. The plot twists are inventive and although I had a general idea of how the mystery was going to turn out, the end still held some surprises. There is some foreshadowing of the final reveal, but the author holds enough back so that even the most astute reader can't guess exactly what's coming, but not enough that a novice reader will feel misled or cheated. Overall, I would recommend this book for its premise, readability and believability, even if it falls short of being perfect.