The Sleeping Doll: A Novel

Written by Jeffery Deaver

Narrated by Anne Twomey

Lincoln Rhyme is back! The brilliant criminologist returns with his partner and paramour Amelia Sachs, in a blistering bestseller that tests forensic detective work in a brave new world.

When Special Agent Kathryn Dance—a brilliant interrogator and kinesics expert with the California Bureau of Investigation—is sent to question the convicted killer Daniel “Son of Manson” Pell as a suspect in a newly unearthed crime, she feels both trepidation and electrifying intrigue. Pell is serving a life sentence for the brutal murders of the wealthy Croyton family in Carmel years earlier—a crime mirroring those perpetrated by Charles Manson in the 1960s. But Pell and his cult members were sloppy: Not only were they apprehended, they even left behind a survivor—the youngest of the Croyton daughters, who, because she was in bed hidden by her toys that terrible night, was dubbed the Sleeping Doll.

But the girl never spoke about that night, nor did the crime's mastermind. Indeed, Pell has long been both reticent and unrepentant about the crime. And so with the murderer transported from the Capitola superprison to an interrogation room in the Monterey County Courthouse, Dance sees an opportunity to pry a confession from him for the recent murder—and to learn more about the depraved mind of this career criminal who considers himself a master of control, a dark Svengali, forcing people to do what they otherwise would never conceive of doing. In an electrifying psychological jousting match, Dance calls up all her skills as an interrogator and kinesics—body language—expert to get to the truth behind Daniel Pell.

But when Dance's plan goes terribly wrong and Pell escapes, leaving behind a trail of dead and injured, she finds herself in charge of her first-ever manhunt. But far from simply fleeing, Pell turns on his pursuers—and other innocents—for reasons Dance and her colleagues can't discern. As the idyllic Monterey Peninsula is paralyzed by the elusive killer, Dance turns to the past to find the truth about what Daniel Pell is really up to. She tracks down the now teenage Sleeping Doll to learn what really happened that night, and she arranges a reunion of three women who were in his cult at the time of the killings. The lies of the past and the evasions of the present boil up under the relentless probing of Kathryn Dance, but will the truth about Daniel Pell emerge in time to stop him from killing again?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
• Release date: Jun 5, 2007
• ISBN: 9780743566131

Jeffery Deaver

Jeffery Deaver is the No.1 international bestselling author of more than forty novels, three collections of short stories, and a nonfiction law book. His books are sold in 150 countries and translated into twenty-five languages.

Reviews for The Sleeping Doll

[rdurant1217 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

In this novel by Jeffery Deaver, we are brought into the world of Kathryn Dance, albeit a bit slowly. The novel starts off slow and seems to struggle throughout to stay on point and interesting. There are well-written portions, however overall this book could have benefited from some heavy editing - there are many dragging points and Kathryn belabors her life and her choices and it just does get pretty old. The romance angle seems pretty forced as well. Overall, a decent beach reader, but if you have a choice between this and anything by Harlan Coben - pick Coben.

[buffalogr · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Book was a good mystery, but somewhat drawn out. Not sure about the idea of the body language detective. Don't believe that I'll give book two of the series a try.

[pandalibrarian · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Not a Lincoln Rhyme novel - but a great new character. Lots of plot twists and surprises - all the way up to the end. I'm looking forward to reading more books featuring CBI and Dance.

[christinelstanley · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was a book that didn't work for me. Katheryn Dance was not a convincing character, a consultant maybe, but not the lead investigator for the CBI on the hunt for a highly dangerous escaped prisoner. I would give this a 2.5 star rating, but I'll have to round up.

[ctfrench · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

California Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Kathryn Dance is a renowned interrogator with an expertise in kinesics. Kathryn is sent to question prisoner Daniel Pell, known as the “son of Manson” due to his cult activities and the brutal slaying of the wealthy Croyton family in Carmel, mimicking the murders committed by the Manson family years earlier. Pell has recently been linked to another murder and Kathryn hopes to learn more about Pell and his reasons behind the murders. After the interview, Pell manages to escape and begins a murderous rampage, targeting those he feels have maligned him in the past in some way. Kathryn leads the investigation, aided by her good friend Michael O’Neil, chief deputy with the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office, and Winston Kellogg, a cult expert from the FBI. Kathryn turns to the three women who were part of Pell’s family years before, as well as the one victim he left behind when he murdered the Croytons, in hopes they can offer clues as to where Pell may be hiding.This series is a refreshing addition to the mystery genre; exploring the intriguing world of kinesics and the role it plays in criminal investigations as well as everyday life. Kathryn Dance is captivating, an intelligent woman who is now widowed and whose priority is keeping her small family together. As always, Deaver offers his reader plenty of forensics information packed within a suspenseful plot.

[cathyskye · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

First Line: The interrogation began like any other.Special Agent Kathryn Dance, interrogator and kinesics expert with the California Bureau of Investigation, is given the opportunity to interrogate convicted killer Daniel "Son of Manson" Pell. Pell has become the prime suspect in a newly unearthed crime, and the Bureau needs all the information he can give them. All hell breaks loose at the prison where the interrogation is taking place, and Pell manages to escape. It's up to Dance to put all the clues together before the body count begins to rise.Although this is a plot-driven thriller, there was enough information about Dance's character to keep me interested. She's a widow, has two children, and quite the routine to keep herself grounded and her family running smoothly.The information Deaver gives about kinesics (body language) is very interesting and easy to apply to real life, although sometimes too much of the detail was repeated. It was fascinating to follow along with Dance and her rather unorthodox line of thinking ("A to B to X") to see if I could figure out Pell's next moves before he actually made them. I also appreciated the fact that the author didn't fall prey to a line of jeopardy that it would have been all too easy to insert into the plot.As a thriller, this is definitely a cut above, and I have the next Kathryn Dance book, Roadside Crosses on my bookshelves.

[nancyewhite · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I thought that this was okay but not fantastic. I found the descriptions of kinesics very interesting. The villain was a complex and interesting character, but everyone else felt the slightest bit wooden to me. That will probably improve if this develops into a series. The novel did have a couple of unexpected twists that were enjoyable.

[pat1eiu · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The first Jeffery Deaver book I ever read was The Devil's Teardrop. It was amazing, I had found my new favorite author and when about reading everything else he had. Lately, since he has been focusing on the Lincoln Rhymes book, I have thought they have gotten a bit predictable. With The Sleeping Doll, he is definatly back. Lots of twists and turns...definatly enjoyable.

[busyreadin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very good story about a Charles Manson type killer who escapes from prison and the hunt for him.

[bookmarque · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Typically convoluted plot from Deaver. Somewhat predictable in a few scenes, though. Nice manipulation, betrayal and backstabbing. Good chase scene set in Point Lobos, one of my favorite parks. Villians good and nasty, too. A bit too neat, but then, that's Deaver all over.But I don't like Kathryn Dance. I bought this book before reading the last Rhyme novel where Dance is introduced. If I had, I wouldn't have bought this one since I find her touchy-feely crap really annoying. And the kinesic stuff is laid on with a trowel, too, as if Deaver now has to legitimize this 'science' the same way he has done for forensics. Not terrible, but I'm sticking to the Rhyme series.

[phoenixcomet · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A solid suspense novel featuring CBI agent Kathryn Dance in pursuit of killer and cult leader Daniel Pell. A bit of a roller coaster ride, with a couple of good twists and turns. Recommended.

[cloggiedownunder · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Sleeping Doll is the first of Jeffrey Deaver’s Kathryn Dance series. Special Agent Kathryn Dance, a brilliant interrogator and kinesics expert with the California Bureau of Investigation, made a brief appearance in the Lincoln Rhyme novel The Cold Moon. When Kathryn interrogates convicted murderer and cult leader, Daniel Pell, about a newly-discovered crime, she hopes to also learn more about the mass murder for which he was jailed. That case involved the murder of a wealthy family, leaving behind a survivor: the Sleeping Doll of the title. When Pell escapes after the interrogation, Dance finds herself in charge of the ensuing manhunt. What follows is a fast-paced tale with plenty of twists: feints and betrayals abound. Along the way, Dance deals with a clever and charismatic cult leader, his followers and ex-followers, a tenacious author is search of a story, a brave teenager, a less-than-supportive boss, shifts in her own family’s dynamics, a possible love-interest and an FBI expert. Also featured are plastic surgery, disguise, car chases, near misses, gunfights, car-jacking, explosions, murder, theft and a surfeit of liars: this novel has it all. The kinesics angle is interesting without being overdone. Lincoln Rhyme even makes a token appearance. I’d forgotten what a good read a Jeffrey Deaver novel can be: lots of “I didn’t see that coming” moments. I’m looking forward to reading the next Kathryn Dance, Roadside Crosses

[jepeters333 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Daniel Pell, a brutal yet astute murderer, aptly dubbed "The Son of Manson" by the media, has escaped a maximum-security prison. Much like the Manson cult in 1969, Pell terrorized an innocent family, killing them all - except for a young girl who became known as the Sleeping Doll and survived by blending in amongst her dolls. Now, with Pell once again at large, the traumatized girl is in imminent danger. And so is Special Agent Dance, who angered the shrewd serial killer by outsmarting him in an interview - thus leaving Pell utterly infuriated and vengeful.

[permaswooned · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'm a big Jeffrey Deaver fan, so was pleased to get this book from my son for Christmas. I had not read The Cold Moon, which was the predecessor of this book, but it wasn't necessary to understand the plot. I liked the character of Kathryn Dance very much, and was intrigued by her approach as a kinesic specialist for crime solving and negotiating. The story was well told, as always. I especially enjoyed the settings around Monterey. My son attended Cal State Monterey Bay, so the references to the school, Seaside, Sand City, Marina, etc. meant added enjoyment for me..

[she_climber · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Having run out of books to read in Deaver's Lincoln Rhyme series I thought I'd give one a shot and I just couldn't get into it and it seemed to drag on. I have the rest of the series already so I'll give book 2 a chance and see if it picks up.

[njbookgirl · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was my first book by Deaver. I picked up the hardcover edition at a bargain price. I have to say that I have some mixed emotions. Would I say it was great? No. Would I say it was bad? No. The storyline was good, a Charles Manson type killer escapes from prison & agent Katherine Dance must find him before more people die & he disappears forever. The basis of Dance is an interesting one, a human lie detector who can interrogate criminals & know by body language & speech if they are being truthful or not. When she's not working she is the mother of 2 children. I liked Dance with a few exceptions. This woman is hunting down a killer but there are many comments on the shoes she is wearing with big flowers on them. Apparantly she keeps spare sandals in her closet in her office too. When she interrogates people she slips on a pair of black glasses that shows she means business. These are just a few of the small details that started to annoy me & caused me to take her a little less seriously. She is a widow, yet she still has the same last name as her parents, did she not change her name when she was married? Why? This is never touched on. Aside from the main character, the character of the killer, Daniel Pell, is an intriguing one. 95% of the book was interesting enough to keep me reading but no real suspense. The end got a little better, some unexpected twists. I think the main reason I liked the book was because of the "bad guy", Daniel Pell. I'm giving it 4 stars because in the end, overall, I would have to say I enjoyed it. I'm not sure I enjoyed it enough to follow Katherine Dance through future books though.

[schatzi_5 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book started off really well. I was engrossed for the first hundred pages or so, and then things started to lag.The author tended to repeat himself frequently. I understood that Kathryn was a kinesiologist the first time the author mentioned it; I don't need to be told repeatedly. And just when you think that the book is over, the author throws in yet another convoluted plot. It got rather tiresome, especially the last few plots. It seemed like he'd run out of pages, because they all tied together far too neatly.I also didn't like how many unnecessary characters introduced into the story. When I read these types of books, I read for the criminals and the takedown. I don't really care that much about the detectives' private lives, and I certainly don't need to read about Kathryn's mother's suspicions or how much Kathryn's dad loves fishing. I like a tight, compact story, and this thing just sprawled.Still, it wasn't a bad book. With a more strong-handed editor and less "filler," it would have been a very good book

[sallyawolf · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book is about the fact that there is more to a crime than just the persons committing it there are also victims and they are not always obvious. I think that this book is very good it had several unexpected twists.This audio book was bought from Great Escape