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scoutfinch75's review against another edition
5.0
Dr Tony Hill is a clinical psychologist, a profiler and with a serial killer at large he is called in by the police who are desperate to apprehend this violent offender.
This book will shock you, it will have you looking over your shoulder and double checking you've locked your doors at night!
Dr Hill is a damaged man, fallible, but focused, determined, and a genius. As the story twists and turns, as the violence escalates and the fear felt by the community and the police becomes palpable my faith in Tony and detective inspector Carol Jordan grew.
Told from the point of view of the different characters, you see humanity at it's worse but also at it's very best. The torture scenes are graphic, brutal, and incredibly unsettling but necessary to portray the depth of evil displayed by this killer.
There were times that I HAD to put the book down and step away, as I could feel the evil seeping through the pages ( well, it felt like it, I had shivers running down my spine ). Brilliantly written, I am excited to read the rest of the books in this incredible series.
I give The Mermaid Singing five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
(the fact that it disturbed me on such a deep level was proof of the incredible gift the author has in telling a story )
isbn 978-0-00-813476-1
This edition was published in 2015 by Harper Collins
Originally published by Harper Collins in 1995
I won a copy of this book in a goodreads giveway .
This book will shock you, it will have you looking over your shoulder and double checking you've locked your doors at night!
Dr Hill is a damaged man, fallible, but focused, determined, and a genius. As the story twists and turns, as the violence escalates and the fear felt by the community and the police becomes palpable my faith in Tony and detective inspector Carol Jordan grew.
Told from the point of view of the different characters, you see humanity at it's worse but also at it's very best. The torture scenes are graphic, brutal, and incredibly unsettling but necessary to portray the depth of evil displayed by this killer.
There were times that I HAD to put the book down and step away, as I could feel the evil seeping through the pages ( well, it felt like it, I had shivers running down my spine ). Brilliantly written, I am excited to read the rest of the books in this incredible series.
I give The Mermaid Singing five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
(the fact that it disturbed me on such a deep level was proof of the incredible gift the author has in telling a story )
isbn 978-0-00-813476-1
This edition was published in 2015 by Harper Collins
Originally published by Harper Collins in 1995
I won a copy of this book in a goodreads giveway .
billymac1962's review against another edition
5.0
There were a couple of visitors to my site who had recommended this one. Thank you thank you thank you!!!!!
The serial killer sub-genre has certainly been watered down over the years, so I usually take a grain of salt before trying a new one, half-expecting the same old cliches. Almost always I can find some bit of dialogue or a lucky break in a case that makes me roll my eyes but I could find nothing like that in this tale.
This is an entirely believable story, with entirely believable characters, and an entirely believable investigation. It's also one of the very few novels with a killer that genuinely frightened me.
The pacing of the story is very much similar to that of A Philosophical Investigation, by Phillip Kerr, in that each chapter is followed by an entry in the killer's diary.
These entries served to convince me that this person could exist, and that anyone can be a victim. I love novels that feature behavioral
science as criminal profiling, and this is prominent in The Mermaids Singing. A great read. Thank you Val!
The serial killer sub-genre has certainly been watered down over the years, so I usually take a grain of salt before trying a new one, half-expecting the same old cliches. Almost always I can find some bit of dialogue or a lucky break in a case that makes me roll my eyes but I could find nothing like that in this tale.
This is an entirely believable story, with entirely believable characters, and an entirely believable investigation. It's also one of the very few novels with a killer that genuinely frightened me.
The pacing of the story is very much similar to that of A Philosophical Investigation, by Phillip Kerr, in that each chapter is followed by an entry in the killer's diary.
These entries served to convince me that this person could exist, and that anyone can be a victim. I love novels that feature behavioral
science as criminal profiling, and this is prominent in The Mermaids Singing. A great read. Thank you Val!
frithalouise's review against another edition
challenging
dark
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? Yes
2.25
bibliobethreads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
burrowsi1's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
qu33nofbookz's review against another edition
1.0
Pure and utter torture porn down to the last minute detail. Not for the squeamish. Abuse and death of a dog as well as gay bashing, since they are the targets for a change from women. All the characters as a**holes pretty much so you don't care about them. If you are good at puzzles/mysteries you find out who the killer is pretty quick but the details come at the end and might make you mad. Lots of detail of torture as a good portion of the book is spent in the killer's mind.
There have been four killings in the small area of an English town know to be a gay hot spot. The gay bashing, chauvinistic, uber-religious a**hole of a police chief has been trying to stop the announcement of the work of a serial killer. But Tony Hill, a profiler, steps in after a cop is killed and the hunt is on. He works with Carol Jordan, the only female investigator, to catch the torture porn killer before there is another body.
Flat characters (there are quite a few to keep track of you might want to write their names down so you don't forget or get confused at first) you hate and can't connect with, everyone is an a**hole in their own way. Tony had psychological problems of his own that almost rivaled the killers (which in this format of crime books makes them uniquely qualified to get into the mind of the killer but it also makes them the perfect victim, which is another plot point in all crime stories). Carol is a wishy washy character who can't decide what she wants and being the only female detective (thus hated and little respected) MUST fall for the psychologist (or whoever is helping the police) even though she claims she won't or keeps reminding herself not to. Her second in command is a backstabbing weasel who gives up all the inside info and gossip to the intrepid (not so much) reporter.
Besides all the torture porn (yes laid out just like porn for the sexual pleasure of sadists) there is a lot of repetitiveness here.
There have been four killings in the small area of an English town know to be a gay hot spot. The gay bashing, chauvinistic, uber-religious a**hole of a police chief has been trying to stop the announcement of the work of a serial killer. But Tony Hill, a profiler, steps in after a cop is killed and the hunt is on. He works with Carol Jordan, the only female investigator, to catch the torture porn killer before there is another body.
Flat characters (there are quite a few to keep track of you might want to write their names down so you don't forget or get confused at first) you hate and can't connect with, everyone is an a**hole in their own way. Tony had psychological problems of his own that almost rivaled the killers (which in this format of crime books makes them uniquely qualified to get into the mind of the killer but it also makes them the perfect victim, which is another plot point in all crime stories). Carol is a wishy washy character who can't decide what she wants and being the only female detective (thus hated and little respected) MUST fall for the psychologist (or whoever is helping the police) even though she claims she won't or keeps reminding herself not to. Her second in command is a backstabbing weasel who gives up all the inside info and gossip to the intrepid (not so much) reporter.
Besides all the torture porn (yes laid out just like porn for the sexual pleasure of sadists) there is a lot of repetitiveness here.
helenreak1's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
moiramacfarlane's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.0
'Brandon wist niet veel van computers. Maar er was één motto blijven hangen: als je er rotzooi instopt, krijg je er rotzooi uit.'
shirlee2024's review against another edition
4.0
Although I guessed at some of the plot twists, they weren't too obvious, and I'll be looking for more in this series.
balletbookworm's review against another edition
4.0
I really liked "Wire in the Blood" when it aired on BBC America (before I ditched my overpriced cable package, an extra 100$/mo isn't worth one television channel, I don't care how good the programming) but I'd never read the McDermid series. I figured a bit of creepy serial killers and profiling would be a good kick-off to October.
The book is very interesting, Tony Hill and Carol Jordan are very well-developed characters and unique in their backgrounds/motivations (at least to me, since I don't read a lot of crime fiction). I thought the plot was paced very well with good intercutting between the serial killer's diary and the action of the book. It makes for a good addition to my "Criminal Minds" obsession. Profiling wackos makes for good entertainment (sadly enough, it can't even remotely be entertaining in real life, just sickening and terrifying).
The book is very interesting, Tony Hill and Carol Jordan are very well-developed characters and unique in their backgrounds/motivations (at least to me, since I don't read a lot of crime fiction). I thought the plot was paced very well with good intercutting between the serial killer's diary and the action of the book. It makes for a good addition to my "Criminal Minds" obsession. Profiling wackos makes for good entertainment (sadly enough, it can't even remotely be entertaining in real life, just sickening and terrifying).