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verumsolum's review
3.25
I really wanted to like this book. A mystery, set within an hour or two of my home, but… it wasn't quite what I wanted it to be, though parts of it were. Much of it was. But what wasn't was absolutely not what I wanted to read. Let's be clear, despite the setting this is NOT a cozy mystery. If you come at this book looking for that, you will be very disappointed. It also isn't just a procedural. I felt this author took this book far too deep into the mind of the killer, far too often, for my taste. I can't understand why anybody would like that, especially when there is as much hate and prejudice (and emotional pain) that the killer is looking through. And… while the book resolves the mystery that it's built on, I didn't feel like it resolved emotionally: the author tries, but the revelations that come before felt to me like they deserved more than the kind of pat scene the author provided in the final chapter (or was it an epilogue?)
In the end, I've tried to sort of split the difference in my star rating. If you really love the type of book that it is? I suspect it's probably at least four stars. Personally, I kind of wish I were rating it as about a two or a 2.5 for my personal (lack of) enjoyment.
In the end, I've tried to sort of split the difference in my star rating. If you really love the type of book that it is? I suspect it's probably at least four stars. Personally, I kind of wish I were rating it as about a two or a 2.5 for my personal (lack of) enjoyment.
melziethegreat's review against another edition
5.0
As most of you know I’m a huge fan of thrillers. When I was given the opportunity to read Sandman by Tammy Bird I jumped at the chance. I mean who doesn’t love a strong group of lesbians fighting against time to bring a serial killer to justice.
I was drawn into Sandman from the very start. Katia is everything I love in a main character. She is cool in the face of danger and willing to do anything to help protect the ones she loves. When a hurricane rips through the Outer Banks of North Carolina Katia’s life changes forever. The woman who was like a mother to her growing up was found dead in the dunes with her throat slashed. This gruesome discovery leads the team of investigators to find several more bodies and the discovery that there was a serial killer in their small town.
Zahra is an investigator on the case of the Sandman serial killer. She is also Katia love interest. Before the story starts, they had fooled around a little bit but nothing serious. The case brings them closer together. I liked that the romance element didn’t overpower the thriller aspects of the book.
The book uses points of view from all of the characters involved. For me, this really made the book interesting. It really transformed the story into something spectacular. Marco was one of my favorite points of view. Marco is Katia’s brother and is non-verbal autistic. Marco knows who the killer is, but he struggles to communicate who the killer is.
What really made this book standout is that you never truly know who the Sandman is until the very end of the book. When I found out who the Sandman truly was my jaw dropped. It was such an amazing twist. It is by far my favorite book of the year so far.
I would recommend Sandman to anyone who likes mysteries and thrillers.
I was drawn into Sandman from the very start. Katia is everything I love in a main character. She is cool in the face of danger and willing to do anything to help protect the ones she loves. When a hurricane rips through the Outer Banks of North Carolina Katia’s life changes forever. The woman who was like a mother to her growing up was found dead in the dunes with her throat slashed. This gruesome discovery leads the team of investigators to find several more bodies and the discovery that there was a serial killer in their small town.
Zahra is an investigator on the case of the Sandman serial killer. She is also Katia love interest. Before the story starts, they had fooled around a little bit but nothing serious. The case brings them closer together. I liked that the romance element didn’t overpower the thriller aspects of the book.
The book uses points of view from all of the characters involved. For me, this really made the book interesting. It really transformed the story into something spectacular. Marco was one of my favorite points of view. Marco is Katia’s brother and is non-verbal autistic. Marco knows who the killer is, but he struggles to communicate who the killer is.
What really made this book standout is that you never truly know who the Sandman is until the very end of the book. When I found out who the Sandman truly was my jaw dropped. It was such an amazing twist. It is by far my favorite book of the year so far.
I would recommend Sandman to anyone who likes mysteries and thrillers.
finallyfinnian's review
5.0
I should note first that I don't normally read thrillers. I read this one because I heard the author read a five-minute snippet from this book at a reading and it was visceral enough to make me want to check out the book. Once I was in, I was deeply in. The characters are well-rounded and interesting with their individual foibles and their real human conversations. I love how the author delved into the psyches of the different characters, especially when dealing with people who don't normally get a voice in fiction. The book gave me several gasp-out-loud moments. There were enough twists to keep it interesting and, without giving anything away, a couple of times when I was sure the author was going to do one thing and they took it another direction instead. I liked the bits of comic relief and the human stories behind the mystery. One important aspect of this book is the very real look into a character with autism - something we need more of by authors who do so with the same sensitivity, insight, and love that this author did. I look forward to more from this author.
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