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ingo_lembcke's review against another edition
3.0
Started August 15th, 2013.
Slow going. Read a few reviews before (none with spoilers) and am not sure, what to expect.
Now I am 39% into the book according to the Kindle count. And thinking: too far to abandon it, not far enough to expect the end soon.
As an Atheist, the religious theme together with a serial killer and the devil (?) could have been an interesting change for once.
But the writing style is dull and the main characters (the supposed good ones, being police), while deep and real, not my kind of people. If they where killed at 50% in the book, I would like it better - fat chance of that happening, but here's hoping. Places and the city of Philadelphia are interesting, not NYC, SF, LA, Wasington DC for a change. But the main story-line drags along slow and meandering and broken with another story of the past which is a preamble to the killings, explaining them or the motives, I think. But even more dull than the story in the present. If and when I finish this (hopefully soon to read something more killing and entertaining) it will probably be my last ever book by this writer - unless a twist or something really unexpected happens, like picking up pace on the second half.
Nearly abandoning... yet still forcing myself to read further.
So far 2 Stars for the good description of a City I will never know.
OK, so now I have finished it, some of the different stories where nicely woven together and more or less solved.
For the ending 3 stars, but with a caveat: not recommended, too long and too much backstory for too many characters which was not very entertaining and added nothing for me to the main-story.
A few nice mysteries, one twist I did not see coming (when they open a closet to discover ...) and one that was too obvious: since first entering the story, I suspected one would-be victim and was right. Way too obvious. The whole case lacks a certain pace and drags along.
Would rather give 2.5, but that is not possible, so 3 stars it is. Unless you have a reason, like living in Philadelphia or liking religious crime, stay away from it. There are better books.
For instance: [b:The Rosary Murders|1082168|The Rosary Murders|William X. Kienzle|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1333764514s/1082168.jpg|1068911] filmed with Donald Sutherland.
Slow going. Read a few reviews before (none with spoilers) and am not sure, what to expect.
Now I am 39% into the book according to the Kindle count. And thinking: too far to abandon it, not far enough to expect the end soon.
As an Atheist, the religious theme together with a serial killer and the devil (?) could have been an interesting change for once.
But the writing style is dull and the main characters (the supposed good ones, being police), while deep and real, not my kind of people. If they where killed at 50% in the book, I would like it better - fat chance of that happening, but here's hoping. Places and the city of Philadelphia are interesting, not NYC, SF, LA, Wasington DC for a change. But the main story-line drags along slow and meandering and broken with another story of the past which is a preamble to the killings, explaining them or the motives, I think. But even more dull than the story in the present. If and when I finish this (hopefully soon to read something more killing and entertaining) it will probably be my last ever book by this writer - unless a twist or something really unexpected happens, like picking up pace on the second half.
Nearly abandoning... yet still forcing myself to read further.
So far 2 Stars for the good description of a City I will never know.
OK, so now I have finished it, some of the different stories where nicely woven together and more or less solved.
For the ending 3 stars, but with a caveat: not recommended, too long and too much backstory for too many characters which was not very entertaining and added nothing for me to the main-story.
A few nice mysteries, one twist I did not see coming (when they open a closet to discover ...) and one that was too obvious: since first entering the story, I suspected one would-be victim and was right. Way too obvious. The whole case lacks a certain pace and drags along.
Would rather give 2.5, but that is not possible, so 3 stars it is. Unless you have a reason, like living in Philadelphia or liking religious crime, stay away from it. There are better books.
For instance: [b:The Rosary Murders|1082168|The Rosary Murders|William X. Kienzle|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1333764514s/1082168.jpg|1068911] filmed with Donald Sutherland.
paulabrandon's review against another edition
3.0
Kevin Byrne and Jessica Balzano must track a serial killer who is staging their crime scenes in abandoned churches in Philadelphia. The book's blurb on the back gives away the details of most of the killings! Meanwhile, Kevin has joined a program to act a "big brother" type to underprivileged boy Gabriel Hightower.
I have always been a long fan of the serial killer thriller, really getting into the genre when I started reading Tess Gerritsen and Karin Slaughter. However, as time has worn on, many of them stopped becoming serial killer thrillers, and instead dry, boring police procedurals. Particularly the British ones! They were all the same! However, American offerings seemed to avoid the usual Britsh tropes: characters only existing to discover a dead body, a lead detective with a haunted past, a subordinate or a boss trying to undermine, and a pesky journalist seeking either fame or obsessively trying to crucify the lead detective in the media.
Unfortunately, The Killing Room decided to go with the pesky journalist subplot BIG TIME. A lot of plot space is wasted on Shane Adams, who is following Kevin Byrne around, and attempts to shame him on the news. And, ultimately, this plot doesn't go anywhere. By the end of the book, I couldn't figure out what Shane was doing in the story. He does not serve any purpose! HE DOES NOT NEED TO BE THERE!
I hate the pesky journalist trope. Hate it, hate it, hate it. When it kept cropping up here, I abandoned the book for several days at a time. I was just NOT interested. And persisting with it didn't even pay off. Shane served no purpose to the plot at all.
This is 2.5 rounded up to 3. It's a credit to the book that it still reads well, and the plot is constructed very cleverly. Aside from bloody Shane Adams, several subplots tie into the main action in surprising and suspenseful ways. The killer has an interesting backstory (although the religious mania angle is getting a bit old, and had already been explored in The Rosary Girls, the first book in this series.) Kevin Byrne and Jessica Balzano are smart, likeable protagonists that don't come with the ridiculous backstories that British crime novel protagonists seem to.
If only all of that stupid pesky journalist subplot rubbish had been excised from this, The Killing Room could have been an above average, memorable serial killer thriller.
I have always been a long fan of the serial killer thriller, really getting into the genre when I started reading Tess Gerritsen and Karin Slaughter. However, as time has worn on, many of them stopped becoming serial killer thrillers, and instead dry, boring police procedurals. Particularly the British ones! They were all the same! However, American offerings seemed to avoid the usual Britsh tropes: characters only existing to discover a dead body, a lead detective with a haunted past, a subordinate or a boss trying to undermine, and a pesky journalist seeking either fame or obsessively trying to crucify the lead detective in the media.
Unfortunately, The Killing Room decided to go with the pesky journalist subplot BIG TIME. A lot of plot space is wasted on Shane Adams, who is following Kevin Byrne around, and attempts to shame him on the news. And, ultimately, this plot doesn't go anywhere. By the end of the book, I couldn't figure out what Shane was doing in the story. He does not serve any purpose! HE DOES NOT NEED TO BE THERE!
I hate the pesky journalist trope. Hate it, hate it, hate it. When it kept cropping up here, I abandoned the book for several days at a time. I was just NOT interested. And persisting with it didn't even pay off. Shane served no purpose to the plot at all.
This is 2.5 rounded up to 3. It's a credit to the book that it still reads well, and the plot is constructed very cleverly. Aside from bloody Shane Adams, several subplots tie into the main action in surprising and suspenseful ways. The killer has an interesting backstory (although the religious mania angle is getting a bit old, and had already been explored in The Rosary Girls, the first book in this series.) Kevin Byrne and Jessica Balzano are smart, likeable protagonists that don't come with the ridiculous backstories that British crime novel protagonists seem to.
If only all of that stupid pesky journalist subplot rubbish had been excised from this, The Killing Room could have been an above average, memorable serial killer thriller.
dnemec's review
4.0
I always really enjoy this series, and bought this book solely because of that. Another fast-paced, interesting thriller.
rojo25's review against another edition
4.0
This book kept me guessing until the end. Not the best thriller but it moved well and the characters were terrific. Lots going on in this story but it pulled together well. This was my first Balzano and Byrne book. Didn’t realize it was a series until I finished. All in all enjoyable.
martinej's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
soupysammy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
Without knowing this book is a part of a series involving the two detectives I still loved it. The chemistry of them made it easy to jump into this book and understand they are work partners and knowing I can find more. is wonderful. I really enjoyed the intense mystery of this one
champke's review against another edition
2.0
It was good. Not a fan of religious items being involved.