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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
Lars Kepler delivers another page-turner with STALKER, the fifth book in the Joona Linna series. Not only is a serial killer on the loose, but they’re also taunting the police with an up close and personal video of the victim. The authors do a masterful job ratcheting up the creepiness of the stalking and the victims’ fear.
Back again is hypnotist Eric Maria Bark, who must utilize all his skills to figure out who the killer is before it is too late.
Back again is hypnotist Eric Maria Bark, who must utilize all his skills to figure out who the killer is before it is too late.
I gave up on this one after getting through 350 pages. I couldn’t connect with the characters, and I felt like there were a lot of side plots that didn’t contribute to the main story...this book does not need to be 500+ pages.
I was really excited about this story at the beginning and then slowly lost interest.
I was really excited about this story at the beginning and then slowly lost interest.
"The word stalker has existed since the early 1700s. In those days it meant a tracker or poacher."
Earlier this year, the fourth book in the Joona Linna series written by married couple Lars Kepler was a smashing success here in the US. You couldn't log onto book related social media and not see it, which of course made me nervous going into it. Typically, once a book has been hyped to high heavens, it almost always feels like a bit of a disappointment, as it is terribly difficult for anything to hold up to such lofty expectations. I was so nervous that I did not even pick up The Sandman until two months AFTER publication because I was so terrified of being the oddball. For once, the hype didn't live up to the actual book; it was SO much better than I had anticipated. After such a winning experience with these characters and a smooth translation that reads like soft butter, I knew I had to read Stalker the moment I got my hands on it, which is exactly what I did.
"Today a stalker is someone who suffers from obsessive fixations, or an unhealthy obsession with monitoring another individual's activities."
If you haven't read The Sandman yet, I would highly suggest doing so before picking this one up. While the first three novels in the series aren't crucial to the following of this one, Sandman has a bit of a continuing storyline that is tied up in Stalker and would make it difficult to go back and read Sandman after the fact due to spoilers. Following in the same vein as its predecessors, Stalker exudes a high stakes tension that drips with violence, erotic sexuality, and emotion. These books are extremely graphic in many ways, and I would caution the more sensitive reader to research a bit further before picking up this series. If gripping thrillers that feature gore and experimental subject matter appeal to you, as they do to me, then you'll find this one worthy of your time.
"Almost ten percent of the population will be subjected to some form of stalking in the course of their lifetime."
We see many beloved, reoccurring characters here, ones from early on in the series and some we are just getting acquainted to. I think this is partially where Kepler's success comes from; the ability to rotate around a beautifully flawed cast that keeps the series from growing stale or predictable. There is so much detail and description to give these books the atmospheric decadence that readers adore in this genre, but each installment stays fast paced and compulsive from beginning to end. I don't want to spoil anything with the actual case being solved, but I will state that I had not figured out who the killer was and found myself completely satisfied with how the case wrapped up. Be ready for a gut-wrenching cliffhanger my friends! Highly recommended, and another winner for the authors.
"Just as clouds rolling between areas of high and low pressure can turn into a tornado, a stalker's emotional swings between worship and hatred can suddenly become extremely violent."
*Review copy furnished via the publisher.
Earlier this year, the fourth book in the Joona Linna series written by married couple Lars Kepler was a smashing success here in the US. You couldn't log onto book related social media and not see it, which of course made me nervous going into it. Typically, once a book has been hyped to high heavens, it almost always feels like a bit of a disappointment, as it is terribly difficult for anything to hold up to such lofty expectations. I was so nervous that I did not even pick up The Sandman until two months AFTER publication because I was so terrified of being the oddball. For once, the hype didn't live up to the actual book; it was SO much better than I had anticipated. After such a winning experience with these characters and a smooth translation that reads like soft butter, I knew I had to read Stalker the moment I got my hands on it, which is exactly what I did.
"Today a stalker is someone who suffers from obsessive fixations, or an unhealthy obsession with monitoring another individual's activities."
If you haven't read The Sandman yet, I would highly suggest doing so before picking this one up. While the first three novels in the series aren't crucial to the following of this one, Sandman has a bit of a continuing storyline that is tied up in Stalker and would make it difficult to go back and read Sandman after the fact due to spoilers. Following in the same vein as its predecessors, Stalker exudes a high stakes tension that drips with violence, erotic sexuality, and emotion. These books are extremely graphic in many ways, and I would caution the more sensitive reader to research a bit further before picking up this series. If gripping thrillers that feature gore and experimental subject matter appeal to you, as they do to me, then you'll find this one worthy of your time.
"Almost ten percent of the population will be subjected to some form of stalking in the course of their lifetime."
We see many beloved, reoccurring characters here, ones from early on in the series and some we are just getting acquainted to. I think this is partially where Kepler's success comes from; the ability to rotate around a beautifully flawed cast that keeps the series from growing stale or predictable. There is so much detail and description to give these books the atmospheric decadence that readers adore in this genre, but each installment stays fast paced and compulsive from beginning to end. I don't want to spoil anything with the actual case being solved, but I will state that I had not figured out who the killer was and found myself completely satisfied with how the case wrapped up. Be ready for a gut-wrenching cliffhanger my friends! Highly recommended, and another winner for the authors.
"Just as clouds rolling between areas of high and low pressure can turn into a tornado, a stalker's emotional swings between worship and hatred can suddenly become extremely violent."
*Review copy furnished via the publisher.
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Thanks to Netgalley and Knopf Doubleday for granting my wish to read book 5 in this series. It was great, like the others. I did not figure out who the culprit was in advance, which made it a lot of fun. Credibility-stretching? Maybe. But it still entertained me for a few days. I recommend this, but I think you should read the series in order to get the most out of it.
Fantastic thriller, great characters, believable story, brilliant writing. I started reading it one night just before going to bed. Wrong idea. Shortly after the beginning I run to check if my door is really locked. I don’t want to reveal too much but the whole story is in the title: who is stalker, what he can do with your life and to your family and friends. And it is never easy to catch him unless you start thinking the same way or you find the witness. And the witness must remember the past or be willing to talk about what happened. Each chapter, each scene has special meaning in the book. Genuinely page turner but it will leave you with the impression that some people minds can be very twisted. I hope the next titles by Kepler will not disappoint me.
Excellent plot, following the great Scandinavian style of writing a good suspense-thriller story.
I didn’t realize this was book 5 in a series, but really liked it none the less.