Jeffery Deaver keeps the promise of “The Never Game.”

In the 2019 novel, Deaver introduced a new character Colter Shaw, a man who follows cases offering rewards. For example, if a person is missing and the family offers a reward, Shaw might work the case.

But Shaw is also the type of guy who accepts installment payments for rewards once he’s resolved a case. Or he may even work a case without the benefit of a reward being offered. Or give the entire reward to the family of the wanted person.

And with Shaw, Deaver introduced a new series.

“The Goodbye Man” is the second novel in the Colter Shaw series.

Here, the apparent suicide of a young man wanted for a crime he didn’t commit leads Shaw to a charismatic cult. Shaw goes undercover to find out why the young man took his life and to determine if Master Eli, the cult leader, caused the death.

Deaver knows thrillers and he knows how to create a series.

He is the author of the Lincoln Rhyme books, a series about a paraplegic forensics expert who solves crimes as a police consultant. The Lincoln Rhyme series started several years ago with “The Bone Collector” and has spawned more than a dozen novels.

With Colter Shaw, Deaver presents a contained story arc while building a larger plot involving the disappearance of Shaw’s brother and the death of their father.

“The Goodbye Man” is worth a hello.