Books : Spider Mountain: A Novel

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Author name: P. T. Deutermann

: Spider Mountain: A Novel
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Type of bind: Mass Market Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN num: 9780312945930
ISBN number: 0312945930
Label: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 416
Printing Date: June 03, 2008
Publishing house: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Release Date: June 03, 2008
Sale Popularity Level: 99407
Studio: St. Martin's Paperbacks



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Ex-cop Cam Richter agrees to do a favor for a park ranger: investigate the assault of a young woman in a remote area of Appalachia. Since he knows the terrain better than anyone, the victim’s family is hoping that Cam can break a case that local cops can’t—or maybe don’t want to—solve.



Cam has no idea how dangerous his search will become. Because in these parts, Grinny Creigh and her extended clan destroy those who intrude into their web. The Creighs run a smuggling ring, and control just about every thing and one in their neck of the woods. But they also operate a much worse enterprise—one that threatens to harm anyone who comes too close to unleashing the dark secrets of…Spider Mountain





Customer Reviews
User popularity level: out of 5 stars

Rated by buyers 2 out of 5 stars - One Man's Red Meat Is Another Man's Poison
"Spider Mountain," (2006), is another in the series about Cam Richter, ex-cop, now private eye, by P.T. Deutermann, who retired from a 26-year career in government service, and now must be considered a veteran author, as he has 11 previous suspense novels in print. Deutermann is said by the book jacket to live with his wife on a family farm in North Carolina, where "Spider Mountain," and, apparently many, if not most, of his other works are set: at least the Cam Richter novels are apparently set (the teaser at the end of this one, from "The Moonpool," is apparently also set in North Carolina, in Wilmington, where I now live, on the Cape Fear River/Eastern Coast.)

It appears our man Richter was employed as a North Carolina cop before quitting: "Spider Mountain" opens with his having been called to the beautiful Great Smokey Mountains, actually part of the Appalachian Mountain chain, in the West of the State. He agrees to do a favor for a park ranger with whom he'd had dealings in a previous case: one of her young female probationary officers has been severely assaulted and left for dead. Residents of Appalachia are, for sure, widely considered to be poor, poorly educated, and dangerous, and Richter soon tangles with Grinny Creigh, fat and evil matriarch of a criminal clan: she runs enterprises in moonshining, meth-producing, smuggling, whatever.

Deutermann writes very well about the landscape, and gives it its due. His plot is reasonably complex; the blue meat action moves along fast, and must be said to be exciting. But, oh my. My mystery book club has read a whole bunch of women's mysteries recently, and I've been complaining: where's the beef. They have all been hardly mysteries, all about relationships. I've gotten my comeuppance. This is the most bloodthirsty book I can ever remember reading: it's not safe for man nor beast in this little slice of Appalachia. Man, woman, child, animal: all are cruelly abused, beaten and killed. It reminds me of that old song by Arlo Guthrie, "Alice's Restaurant:" remember the line about his being surrounded by mother rapers and father stabbers in the county jail? Some of these villains would make mother rapers and father stabbers look good. This book is most definitely not for everybody, and not for me.



Rated by buyers 3 out of 5 stars - It was a'right
Spider Mountain is the sequel to cat dancers and stars Cam, a former cop, who now owns his own detective agency. I like Cam and his dogs, but I found this story kind of boring. It was a little too farfetched. The 'mystery' was easy to figure out, and his dogs were a bit out of control in this one. It seems like every other scene, Cam is sending his dogs after people or the dogs are attacking and fighting other dogs. (One time one of his dogs savages another dog and carries its amputated leg back into his hotel room to chew on). I found it very surprising the dogs weren't shot dead half a dozen times.

What's this story about? Well, it starts with a rape of a park ranger and then segues into some nastiness involving a inbred hillbilly Mafia ran by a woman named Granny Cree.The rape issue is promptly dropped in favor of investigating the actions of the hillbillies and their other criminal activities. Another love interest for Richter is introduced as well as a couple of other minor characters such as the Bigs and an ex-homicide cop turned trail guide. (I apologize if I mispell any names, I listened to the audio version of this book). There is also some familiar themes from his previous book, such as a character commiting suicide, a woman getting kidnapped, etc.

This was an okay story, but it wasn't that action-packed and I was bored with the hillbillies by the time I was a quarter through. I would pick up the sequel to find out what happens to Richter and the dogs but I thought this was just an average listen.


Rated by buyers 5 out of 5 stars - Deutermann Spins Another Thriller On Spider Mountain
P.T.Deutermann continues to be one of the premier writers in the suspense/action/thriller genre and "Spider Mountain" does not disappoint. Following his exploits in "Cat Dancers," Cam Richter, now heading a PI firm, answers a distress call from Mary Ellen Goode, the federal park ranger with whom he shared his previous adventure. She wants him to investigate the rape and beating of an intern in an isolated area in the Smoky Mountains.

Cam discovers a veritable alphabet soup of law enforcement agents in the area, SBI, DEA, local sheriffs, etc. but none seem too keen to take on the local inbred, malevolent mountain clan headed by the evil villainess, Grinny Creigh. While the Creigh clan is suspected in many criminal activities in the area, there is strong suspicion they are behind a massive meth lab and distribution network; however, what they are really involved in will ultimately leave the reader gasping.

Deutermann weaves strong characterizations and a strong sense of "being there" into a tight, well-paced plot filled with taut action and suspense. Along the way, the reader encounters crooked cops, evil villains, a pack of wild flesh hungry dogs, inter-agency infighting among law enforcement, and crimes that boggle the mind.

I appreciated how Cam can successfully operate in gray areas even though his morality nags at him. Equally interesting is his handling of the once promising relationship with the still traumatized Mary Ellen. Once again, Frick and Frack, Cam's two lovable German Shepherds, play significant roles in his investigation. Cam Richter's adventures are worth the read just to experience his interaction with his four-legged buddies. Both "Cat Dancers" and "Spider Mountain" are highly recommended.


Rated by buyers 3 out of 5 stars - Stretches the Boundaries of Belief
The book has an excellent premise, and is told in an interesting setting. Cam Richter and Carrie Harper are likeable characters. Frick & Frack, Richter's dogs, as featured secondary characters, add uniqueness and humour to the story. The concept of a clan like the Creigh's controlling the law and the politics in a rural county probably has many real-life comparisons.

All that aside, the book ultimately falls short in many areas. The plot essentially repeated itself over & over with a half dozen or more failed attempts by Richter & Harper to infiltrate the Creigh compound. After about the third or fourth failed attempt, the reader is left wondering why and how Richter, Harper, and the dogs are still alive. The book just never provides a good enough explanation as to why they are allowed to survive. Beyond the dogs, the secondary characters are under-developed.

The author surrounds the plot with a heavy dose of governmental blue tape, which is likely quite accurate. The 'surprise' at the end was not really a surprise at all and handled clumsily. Unveiled earlier in the story, I think the twist would have been more powerful and allowed the story to develop greater depth. In summary, I think the story relies too much on the shock value of the topic and falls short in other areas.






Rated by buyers 3 out of 5 stars - good escapism
I picked this book up in my local library, encouraged by my enjoyment of several others of Mr. Deutermann's novels. I would rank this the lowest of all of those, with Scorpion in the Sea at the top. Spider Mountain is just good escapist reading, similar to the old James Bond novels. You can't take a lot of it very seriously because many scenes and characters are unrealistic. Still, I must admit that it held my attention quite well, with the suspense drawn skillfully. What I particularly enjoyed was the unusual aspect of the main character's two companion dogs, very highly trained German Shepherds who watched his back. The author used that device to enjoyable dramatic effect in many scenes.

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