The Bride Collector

Readers who relish being trapped in a character's mind, in particular the mind of an insane serial killer, should enjoy this overlong thriller by bestseller Dekker (Boneman's Daughters ). Those not so keen on such musings, even within the mind of a good guy like FBI special agent Brad Raines, who spends pages contemplating the nature of love and grief, will be less enthralled. The Denver killer, Quinton Gauld, driven by some mumbo jumbo about beautiful women being the brides of Christ and his giving them to God, likes to super-glue his victims to the wall, then drain their blood into buckets. The most interesting characters are the institutionalized crazy people whose aid Raines enlists, a diverse and funny group. Few surprises and a stock serial killer, not to mention too much internal dialogue, add up to a routine read. 5-city author tour. (Apr.)