REVIEWS OF THE NEXT ONE TO FALL

Publishers Weekly: “Davidson’s exciting follow-up to her debut, 2010’s The Damage Done, takes travel journalist Lily Moore, who’s still reeling from her sister’s death in The Damage Done, to Peru... The rich history and geography of Peru add depth to an engrossing mystery that constantly keeps the reader guessing.” — December 12, 2011

Library Journal: “Davidson's follow-up to her Anthony Award-winning debut (The Damage Done) will leave you breathless, and not just because of the Andes’ high altitude. Her determined young travel writer propels the exciting plot like a rocket. Think Jamie Freveletti’s thrillers (Running From the Devil) for no-holds-barred action and the single-mindedness of the protagonist.” — February 1, 2012

Kirkus Reviews: “An attempt to overcome grief with a trip to fascinating Machu Picchu leads to even more wild intrigue... Lily’s feelings for her sister ring painfully true, and Davidson’s rendering of Machu Picchu and Cusco would merit a pisco sour toast even from the great Jan Morris.” — January 1, 2012

Booklist: “Adrenaline surges at the end, and mutually supportive Lily and Jesse, both of whom lost both parents to murder and suicide when in their teens, are damaged but appealing characters.” — Michele Leber, January 12, 2012

The Maine Suspect: “The Next One to Fall is the sequel to author Hilary Davidson’s stellar debut, The Damage Done, and it’s quite simply a fantastic read.  Equal parts action-adventure thriller and classic paranoia tale (with a touch of Peruvian travelogue thrown in for good measure), Davidson’s latest is an intelligent, atmospheric, heart-stopping tour-de-force, guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat.  The prose is graceful, the pace is electric, and the mystery will keep you guessing until the very end.” — Katrina Niidas Holm, January 28, 2012

Mystery Scene: “I have never been to Peru nor have I tasted coca tea. But I had just read Anthony Award winner Hilary Davidson's The Next One to Fall, which is so wonderfully steeped in the scenery of Peru that I could picture the country as if I had been there. Davidson shows the reader Peru's geography, its politics, its violence and its people in ways that most travel articles do not.” — Oline Cogdill, January 29, 2012

MysteryPeople: “Davidson is a master at character. She skillfully ties the plot to having Lily confront what she’s running from. It’s exciting to watch her find her inner strength in her darkest moments. She understands that pace is more than moving through plot points and twists as fast as you can. She allows her characters to breath, such as in a wonderful passage where Jesse discusses his homosexuality and Christian faith. It’s Davidson’s play between light and dark that make her books so fresh and prove that she is an author to keep watching and reading.” — Scott Montgomery, February 1, 2012 (The Next One to Fall is MysteryPeople’s Pick of the Month for February)

Jen’s Book Thoughts: “Lily and Jesse suffered hardships and still have open wounds that can be easily re-opened. But their core strengths still guide them day to day. Jesse still exudes wit and charm; Lily is still thoughtful and introspective. And the relationship between the two is still shaping up to be one of the greatest in crime fiction.” — Jen Forbus, February 7, 2012

Criminal Element: “In The Next One to Fall, Davidson doesn’t just tell you of her heroine’s sorrow—she gives it substance, form, and volition, taking full advantage of its presence in a way I’ve not quite seen before. It’s effective, unique, and thoroughly compelling, and I, for one, can’t wait to see what else Ms. Davidson has up her literary sleeve.” — Katrina Niidas Holm, February 11, 2012

Ransom Notes (Barnes & Noble Mystery Blog): “If you know Hilary, you know that nothing is gonna be quite what it first appears. That's what I like about Davidson, her gifts for setting and character and narrative ultimately serve her mastery of manipulation. She has spooky insight into her readers' expectations — by page, by scene, by book — and an uncanny knack for dodging and subverting them only to meet and exceed them at the moment of her choosing.” — Jedidiah Ayres, February 13, 2012

Book Reviews by Elizabeth A. White: “Davidson makes the locale a character unto itself, and does so in a way that balances both the beauty and the danger that await foreigners who travel to such an exotic location. Similarly, Davidson’s handling of the grief haunting Lily is nothing short of masterful... As the story progresses, however, Davidson allows Lily to use that grief to propel her in a positive way, taking its energy and turning it outward into a productive, rather than destructive, force. It’s an amazing transformation, one which is a genuine pleasure to watch unfold over the course of events. The supporting cast members are no less psychologically complex, with Davidson deftly pacing the twists and reveals to build maximum suspense and mystery... It was hard to imagine when I named The Damage Done one of my Top 10 Reads of 2010 that Davidson would be able to top it, but I’ll be damned if she hasn’t.” — Elizabeth A. White, February 14, 2012

Lesa’s Book Critiques: “Read this book for the mystery, and the exotic setting of Peru. But, the character of Lily Moore is the best reason to read The Next One to Fall. Davidson took a woman, manipulated by her mother and sister, lost and alone in the world, and threw her into the path of a family worse than her own. Lily's descriptions of her own feelings break your heart. She was scared, haunted by her feelings for her sister, and her feelings of loneliness. ‘Now that I was completely rootless, lacking family or a real home, I seemed to be standing at the edge of an abyss, ready for a fall of my own.’ Lily had choices. She saw mirrors in other people who had faced loss. Jesse faced it, and chose to go on with a positive attitude. Len Wolven and his family chose an entirely different direction. Even one of Len's protectors faced loss. Lily could choose to continue to drift through life, or she could find a reason to live, to fight for her own life.” — Lesa Holstine, February 14, 2012

ADVANCE PRAISE FOR THE NEXT ONE TO FALL

“Lily Moore is one of the most appealing ‘amateur’ sleuths I’ve encountered in years. The vivid sense of place — Peru, in this case — is everything one would expect from a seasoned travel journalist like Hilary Davidson, the story is deliciously twisty, the characters engaging. I know I can’t be the only reader looking forward to more Moore.” — Laura Lippman, author of I’D KNOW YOU ANYWHERE

“An atmospheric mystery with an ending that packs a punch. Lily Moore is a passionate and tenacious heroine.” — Meg Gardiner, author of THE NIGHTMARE THIEF

“With THE NEXT ONE TO FALL, Hilary Davidson knocks it out of the park. Driven by her grief and guilt, Lily Moore seeks relief and distraction in an exotic locale. What she gets instead is a mysterious redhead, Machu Picchu, and murder. If this book doesn’t get your motor running, have someone check you for a pulse.” — Reed Farrel Coleman, three-time Shamus Award-winning author of HURT MACHINE

MORE ABOUT THE BOOK

THE NEXT ONE TO FALL (ISBN 978-0765326980) was published in the US and Canada on February 14, 2012. It is available from your favorite independent bookstore, as well as from Macmillan, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, IndieBound, Powell’s, and — in Canada — Indigo/Chapters.

Photographs: Photos of Hilary Davidson in Peru, no credit; cover of The Next One to Fall, courtesy of Forge.