Buried
Veteran journalist Edward “Fitz” Fitzhugh is on the brink of retirement when he catches the ultimate headline: a serial kidnapper dubbed the Gravedigger is taunting the police with twisted riddles. Driven to uncover the predator's hidden motive, Fitz follows an eyewitness lead straight into the shadows of the case. But as the pieces come together, he quickly discovers that his final, career-defining scoop is a dangerous puzzle where nothing is what it seems.
- Edward (Fitz) - Journalist
- Dottie - Senior Content Editor, Fitz’s coworker
- Gravedigger - Serial kidnapper
- Jasper - Kidnapping victim
- Peter - John Heller’s fixer
- Eddie - John Heller’s fixer
- Elly - Businesswoman
- Josh - Elly’s boyfriend
- John Heller - New York governor, presidential
- A kidnapping is called in.
- Police identify the victim as Jasper.
- The Gravedigger leaves a limerick as a clue to Jasper’s location.
- Fitz tracks down the anonymous witness who saw Jasper get kidnapped - Peter - who gives him more details but refuses to speak to police or be identified.
- The limerick is solved and Jasper is found alive.
- Peter shows up at Fitz’s house holding a gas can.
- The prior month: John hits on Elly in a hotel bar, but when she rejects him he kills her.
- Eddie stages Elly’s death to look like a mugging gone bad.
- Present: Peter and Eddie shoot Fitz and set his house on fire, destroying all his notes and files.
- Peter and Eddie are the Gravedigger.
- They created the Gravedigger to give the media something more sensational to focus on than Elly’s death.
- They did not intend for any Gravedigger victims to die.
- When Josh finds out that John was at the same hotel as Elly the night she died, he requests to meet with him. Peter then stages a fatal car accident to get rid of Josh.
- Jasper was kidnapped to prevent the media from focusing on Josh’s death.
- Fitz had figured everything out but didn’t yet have the facts to prove it.
- He e-mailed the information to Dottie minutes before he was killed, asking her to collaborate with him.
- Dottie spends the next week picking up where Fitz left off in the Gravedigger investigation.
- Dottie publishes an article naming John and detailing his crimes - serial kidnapping, homicide and sexual assault.
Buried by Jeffery Deaver is a gripping, 93-page short story that packs several surprising twists into its medium-to-fast pace. At 4.5 stars, it features strong character development for its length, specifically with Fitz, who was incredibly likable and easy to root for. The storyline was solid and led to a very satisfying ending that tied the mystery together perfectly. Beyond the final reveal, there were several surprising moments throughout the book that kept me on edge and constantly questioning what would happen next.
- Kidnapping
- Murder
- Cancer
Publisher: Amazon Original Stories
ASIN: B08BZHRYVK
Publication Date: July 30, 2020
Note: Details are for the original edition. Other formats, editions, and audiobook versions may be available.
