Play of Shadows

Dr. Evan Wilding, Book 3

By: Barbara Nickless

Narrated by: Tim Campbell

An ancient creature of Greek mythology drives a killer’s unspeakable motives in a pulse-pounding thriller by the Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Dark of Night.

On a stormy Chicago night, renowned semiotician Dr. Evan Wilding and his brother, River, who’s back from an archaeological dig, reunite in a mystery. A package addressed to both of them contains a hand-drawn maze, an ancient Cretan coin, and a cryptic greeting: Let the game begin.

The opening move is murder.

In a downtown alley, a man has been found nearly cleaved in two, a symbol drawn on his forehead and a savage rip in his throat. Given the clues, Evan sees a parallel to a fearsome Greek myth. Which means his friend Detective Addie Bisset is on the trail of a legendary flesh-eating monster—one terrifyingly human and tumbling a panicked city toward chaos.

Evan, Addie, and River scramble to discover who’s behind the appalling crimes and decipher the baffling motives. The body count is rising. The endgame is nowhere in sight. And the stakes are nothing less than life and death.

©2023 Barbara Nickless (P)2023 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“A brisk and clever whodunit with chills and verve.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Barbara Nickless hits the ball out of the park on this one….This is the third in the series but can be easily read as a standalone.”—Midwest Book Review

“Play of Shadows is an artful mystery, heavily researched…and one that combines a contemporary serial killer with a complex of ancient myths and symbols.”—The Denver Post

Not Again

Fantastic narration.
Pretty fair story.
And…yet again another author unable to resist having the woman peace officer lose control of her gun. Is there a club and that’s the password?

A Fitting End

This final installment in the series provides a fitting end for both our hero and our villain. The addition of Evan’s brother and father brings it all together.

Another winner!

I throughly enjoyed Play of Shadows. The characters are smart and likable and Tim Campbell did an excellent job with narration. . I hope this isn’t the last we have heard from Dr. Evan Wilder!

Mythology and Family

This is book 3 in the Evan Wilding trilogy. Dr. Evan Wilding has a new case involving Greek mythology that is both fascinating and deadly with a clever and dangerous opponent. Fortunately, he has his archaeologist brother River, aide Diana and famed detective Addie Bissette to aid him. This book had a great psychological puzzler in the mythology. I love the focus on family in this book. Both the villain and our hero have complex family dynamics. Evan has learned to deal with his dwarfism and his normal size brother River is a great comfort. Their father is another matter and this is explored moreso than the other books. River finds a romance with Diana and Evan finally comes to terms with his love for detective Addie Bissett. This was my favorite part of the book, Addie and Evan finally talking about their relationship. The ending was different and wonderful. I hope their will be more in the series. Tim Campbell does a stellar job on narration as he did with the other books in the series. This would make a great Netflix series.

Need the next book!

We finally get to know Evan’s brother, River. In the previous two novels, the only glimpses of River were via a phone call. I love how close Evan and River are. So, I’m always concerned when a detective follows up on a lead without a partner or any kind of back up… it’s always a sign that something bad is going to happen. I do hope that this is a fictional mechanism and that this doesn’t actually happen. Note to self: A chair can be used as a weapon, à la WWE. Always appreciate a happy ending with loose ends tied 😉 looking forward to whenever the next book is published.
Part of the Kindle Unlimited catalog.

The characters

What’s not to like Dr. Evan Wilding and Greek mythology! this might be my favorite installment so far in the Evan Wilding series!

Book 3, Best so far

So many good things to say about this story. The puzzle our heros were challeged with is truly entertaining. I am not big on romance if it is the main theme, but the subtle side story of romance with these characters is welcome. Finally, getting to know a little more of Evan's family background is enticing. Great series, wonderful cast of characters, and a good mystery!

Creepy and Outstanding at the same time

The narrator was the best I’ve listened to in ages. It was so refreshing to listen to someone who spoke English, pronounced words properly and paced well. The author gets credit for using proper grammar. The story was creepy but it was intriguing, different and well written. The only part that ruined it was the “schoolhouse definitions” occasionally throughout and listed at the end. If you didn’t know the meanings to start with, the book might be difficult to understand and not very appealing. It also was rather condescending. If someone doesn’t know the meaning of a word in a book Google is always at hand.

Evan, Addie, River and Diana

Love this series and the characters. This was a masterful study of good and evil. The question of whether monsters are created or born is not settled but certainly well addressed. Wonderful narrator.

Great ending!

in my own mind I am a casting director and have every character in this series picked out for a series on Netflix or wherever. Would absolutely be thrilled if Evan and company became something I could binge watch. This is a series I am absolutely captivated by and recommend to my friends.