Critical Praise

"Stephen White has always been a rock solid writer. But this book should turn heads. Big, provocative and down right gripping, this is his best yet."--- author Michael Connelly""KILL ME" is that rarest of creations --- a thinking-person's thriller. In this age of the same-old, same-old fiction, White's novel stands dizzyingly above the pack. The concept is unique (and brilliant), the writing is sharp, observant and wry (White's trademark), and every page of this compelling tale is filled with perfectly realized human emotion --- about life, death and family. Superb."--- author Jeffery Deaver"White's latest thriller is an outstanding page-turner that examines quality of life, what it means to be living or dying, and who should make that determination. Although series regular psychologist Alan Gregory (MISSING PERSONS) appears, this book centers on Gregory's patient, an anonymous wealthy white man with the lifestyle of a thrill seeker. After a skiing injury that has him questioning his mortality, he signs on with a shadowy insurance group he calls the "Death Angels," who promise to terminate him should his quality of life drop below a certain threshold. As his health status changes more quickly than our hero expects, he's left not only to fight his medical condition but also the group that has promised to fulfill the contract. White takes a promising premise and fleshes it out with well-rounded characters, plenty of action, and far more insight than appears in most such works. While the ending is somewhat predictable, it doesn't detract from a well-above-average thriller. One of White's best, this is strongly recommended"--- Library Journal, *Starred Review"Bestseller White (MISSING PERSONS) takes an endlessly debatable question - at what point would a decline in your quality of life cause you to want to end your life? - and leverages it into a clever, absorbing thriller. The anonymous narrator is in his prime, a happily married father of a young girl given to high-risk sports. An assortment of grim fates and a near-escape of his own make him consider the question. A shadowy group called Death Angel Inc. contracts to guarantee that if the life of the "insured" should reach a certain agreed-upon level, they will terminate that life. Fascinated and impressed by the Death Angels' knowledge and reach, he eventually negotiates terms with them. This Faustian bargain doesn't take long to reveal its dark side, and White pays almost equal attention to the philosophical and the physical as his hero has to both approach the conditions that would trigger his contract's death clause yet remain healthy enough to fight back. Some finely scripted action scenes build to a telegraphed ending that weakens the book only slightly."--- Publishers Weekly"In this installment of the popular series starring clinical psychologist Dr. Alan Gregory, the setting remains the picturesque Colorado countryside, but White sends Dr. Gregory to the background and instead features one of his patients, an unnamed, happily married businessman with an adventurous streak. After a near-fatal crash during a Canadian skiing expedition, coupled with a friend's accident, our hero begins to question his own mortality and vows never to be a burden to his family. When he gets word of an organization that, for a hefty fee, will end your life should you become "a burden," he rather hastily signs up. But what if you discover you have a slowly ticking time bomb in your head, and while death could come at any moment, it might not be right away? How do you say "not quite yet" to your personal hit men? Can our hero evade the assassins he paid with his own money in time to put his house in order? White unfolds this unusual, twisted story by way of conversations between patient and  psychologist (Dr. Gregory); our "anonymous, rich white guy" divulges information at his own manipulative pace, leaving both doctor and reader wondering how this warped account might come together in the end. Bizarre, thrilling, and oh so much fun."--- Booklist

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