Reviews tagging 'Murder'

The Nothing Man by Catherine Ryan Howard

57 reviews

rarasreads's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This was such a gripping and tense thriller that gave me goosebumps late into the night! Here we follow the story of Eve Black, a woman in Ireland whose family was murdered by The Nothing Man when she was twelve. Eve has since published a memoir about him and his heinous crimes with hopes of catching him now twenty years later. Readers learn early on the identity of the Nothing Man so there is no drastic reveal that awaits at the end, but it is the question of whether he is finally identified or not that creates suspense and keeps one engaged. I loved the format the author utilized here about a story within a story as we see Eve’s perspective through her memoir passages as well as the killer’s thought process and reactions through his own reading of Eve’s book. I also appreciated how the author highlights the importance of remembering the victims rather than further fueling fascination with killers themselves. Readers who enjoyed Notes on an Execution or Bright Young Women may thus like this book as well! 

While there weren’t any major twists so to speak, the premise and its execution were fantastic overall! Highly recommend reading this if you can stomach the heavy subject matter discussed including nature of the fictionalized crimes.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gun violence, Murder, Rape, Stalking, and Sexual assault

sofiam19's review

dark sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, Grief, Misogyny, Death, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Rape, Child death, and Suicide

mtnest's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Rape, Grief, Suicide, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Vomit, and Violence

Minor: Gaslighting, Alcohol, Car accident, and Death of parent

chamm_chamm's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence and Murder

krankykat's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Creepy thriller! Do not read at night by yourself!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Violence

stabilesero's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

It has been a LONG time since a Thriller/Crime book has taken my fancy and been able to hold my attention, and there was something about The Nothing Man that finally broke that stint.
A cleverly told story where Howard managed to keep that suspense and mystery going; there were still times where I knew things were going to happen, and they did, but it was written in a way that still held my interest, which is a rarity. A book about a book? With murder? Where the murderer is still at large? Yes please!
 I'll be going back for more of Howard's work to see if they're equally good!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Death of parent, Death, Grief, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, and Blood

Minor: Suicide, Vomit, and Violence

booksojwhi's review against another edition

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? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Murder, Death, Rape, Stalking, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence

Moderate: Child death, Vomit, and Cursing

Minor: Animal cruelty

nadine7's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Murder, and Violence

czoltak's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

“As Dr. Weir had pointed out, the Nothing Man is an exceptionally apt name for a serial killer. "When you find him," she’d said to me, “you'll probably be shocked at just how much of a nothing he really is."”
4.5 ⭐️
This book was brilliant and unlike any other thriller I’ve ever read. The set up of getting to see both the survivor’s and the actual perpetrator’s point of view was so incredibly unique and raised the stakes from page one. Home invasion is one of my number one fears so this book often left me feeling freaked out (especially reading it at night). It’s safe to say the author is good at her job as I definitely won’t be getting much sleep tonight.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Stalking, Murder, and Rape

Minor: Animal cruelty

auscaz's review

mysterious reflective medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Rape