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emilye33's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
cgilmo05's review against another edition
dark
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
rachxedge's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
alexsaunders's review
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
victory03's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
paisleypikachu's review
5.0
Well. Last week when I found out about Steve Mosby, I was a little afraid that maybe these older books wouldn’t hit the same as the Alex North books.
I was wrong. Two in a row that I couldn’t put down. Officially a favorite author now.
I’ve decided that the reason I have a hard time loving thrillers the way I did this one, Cry for Help, and both Alex North books, is because they are rarely this character driven. I read Mosby’s books because I know I’m going to fall for his characters every. single. time.
I’m also not crazy about focus being mainly on the “whodunnit”, and this book delivered so much more for me. Yes, there was a big whodunnit mystery, but I felt that the how and why questions were just as, if not more, important. Plus the way Mosby set it all up for the mystery to really come together in the end was so very satisfying.
Anyways, I loved this book and I’m off to read the rest of the Steve Mosby catalog now.
(While Mosby/North’s other books that I read haven’t been as explicitly violent on the page, this one did have some tough subject matter and got a little more graphic. Check trigger warnings if you feel you need to.)
I was wrong. Two in a row that I couldn’t put down. Officially a favorite author now.
I’ve decided that the reason I have a hard time loving thrillers the way I did this one, Cry for Help, and both Alex North books, is because they are rarely this character driven. I read Mosby’s books because I know I’m going to fall for his characters every. single. time.
I’m also not crazy about focus being mainly on the “whodunnit”, and this book delivered so much more for me. Yes, there was a big whodunnit mystery, but I felt that the how and why questions were just as, if not more, important. Plus the way Mosby set it all up for the mystery to really come together in the end was so very satisfying.
Anyways, I loved this book and I’m off to read the rest of the Steve Mosby catalog now.
(While Mosby/North’s other books that I read haven’t been as explicitly violent on the page, this one did have some tough subject matter and got a little more graphic. Check trigger warnings if you feel you need to.)
lauren_ofs's review
3.0
Fast paced at the start and the end, it kept me on the edge of my seat through those bits constantly. a bit of a dry patch in the middle but stick with it, I recommend (But I recommend being 13+ )
raven88's review
4.0
With an opening chapter that contains enough of a fright to scare even the most hardened crime reader, The Nightmare Place, is the latest offering from Steve Mosby. A stalker- The Creeper- is breaking into women’s homes and attacking them, with very little for the police to go on, and leaving little clue into how the victims are selected and who will be next…
Although not consistently exhibiting the usual deep-seated and unflinching focus on the human psyche so readily displayed in Mosby’s previous book, The Dark Room (which now ranks among my favourite crime reads of all time) there is still plenty to entertain and perplex the reader. With a feisty and solidly characterised female detective protagonist, DI Zoe Dolan, Mosby has constructed a tense and chilling crime thriller that unfailingly captures the fear and suspicion wrought by a killer at large and the failing of the police to bring him to justice. In a nifty subplot, the killer, exhibiting his twisted mentality, makes contact with a local helpline, and there is an interesting exploration of the bounds of confidentiality in such a scenario. As Mosby ramps up the tension through the escalating behaviour of The Creeper, suspects come and go, and annoyingly I had my eye on one guy as the bad guy and I was right. A total creep in all senses of the word!
The central investigation folds out satisfyingly, but by the same token not really stretching the boundaries of the serial killer thriller genre per se. The real strength of the piece lies in Mosby’s innate handling of characterisation and DI Dolan is a case in point. During her interaction with her now retired boss John Carlton, who has exerted a great influence on both her personal and professional life, the reader gets a real insight into her journey from an unsettled adolescence to her current career. From a fledgling propensity for bad behaviour and her upbringing on the wrong side of the tracks, her relationship with Carlton has proved a hugely significant influence in her life, and I loved the shift in narrative throughout the book that captured the importance of this relationship and the pathos-filled depiction of the potential loss of this friendship. This is where Mosby excels, delving deeper into the finer and more emotional aspects of the human condition, and aside from a very touching interlude focusing on another character’s short-lived harmonic relationship with an aspect of the natural world, Dolan is the main conduit for this authorial skill. As I said, the main plot was intriguing enough, but these little vignettes of human experience really lift the piece from the realms of a bog-standard police procedural.
As a firm fan of Mosby, I did detect a little dip in quality from his usual fare, but not enough to seriously impact on me recommending this as a good read. With little glimpses of the more thoughtful and introspective qualities readily apparent in his previous books, and a plot that creeped me out almost as much as the TV crime drama, The Fall, The Nightmare Place, ticked most of the boxes overall. A crime thriller that will leave you suspicious of your bedroom and who may be lurking uninvited within…
Although not consistently exhibiting the usual deep-seated and unflinching focus on the human psyche so readily displayed in Mosby’s previous book, The Dark Room (which now ranks among my favourite crime reads of all time) there is still plenty to entertain and perplex the reader. With a feisty and solidly characterised female detective protagonist, DI Zoe Dolan, Mosby has constructed a tense and chilling crime thriller that unfailingly captures the fear and suspicion wrought by a killer at large and the failing of the police to bring him to justice. In a nifty subplot, the killer, exhibiting his twisted mentality, makes contact with a local helpline, and there is an interesting exploration of the bounds of confidentiality in such a scenario. As Mosby ramps up the tension through the escalating behaviour of The Creeper, suspects come and go, and annoyingly I had my eye on one guy as the bad guy and I was right. A total creep in all senses of the word!
The central investigation folds out satisfyingly, but by the same token not really stretching the boundaries of the serial killer thriller genre per se. The real strength of the piece lies in Mosby’s innate handling of characterisation and DI Dolan is a case in point. During her interaction with her now retired boss John Carlton, who has exerted a great influence on both her personal and professional life, the reader gets a real insight into her journey from an unsettled adolescence to her current career. From a fledgling propensity for bad behaviour and her upbringing on the wrong side of the tracks, her relationship with Carlton has proved a hugely significant influence in her life, and I loved the shift in narrative throughout the book that captured the importance of this relationship and the pathos-filled depiction of the potential loss of this friendship. This is where Mosby excels, delving deeper into the finer and more emotional aspects of the human condition, and aside from a very touching interlude focusing on another character’s short-lived harmonic relationship with an aspect of the natural world, Dolan is the main conduit for this authorial skill. As I said, the main plot was intriguing enough, but these little vignettes of human experience really lift the piece from the realms of a bog-standard police procedural.
As a firm fan of Mosby, I did detect a little dip in quality from his usual fare, but not enough to seriously impact on me recommending this as a good read. With little glimpses of the more thoughtful and introspective qualities readily apparent in his previous books, and a plot that creeped me out almost as much as the TV crime drama, The Fall, The Nightmare Place, ticked most of the boxes overall. A crime thriller that will leave you suspicious of your bedroom and who may be lurking uninvited within…
4nnalouise's review
3.0
I liked it but I wasn’t in love with it. I expected more after reading a previous Steve mosby book and wasn’t delivered the same OMG feeling after this one