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3.39 AVERAGE
3.39 AVERAGE
I've had a thing - maybe you have too - where I just can't focus on reading the way I used to. I have tons of books to read, and I'll get like maybe 10% into them, and then I lost interest.
So chalk one up for The Angel Maker, which I did finish. It moved so quickly I probably could've read it in one go.
And as far as creepy thrillers with possible supernatural goings-on go, this is pretty good. Interconnected stories, a possible prophetic book, evil serial killers, etc. But too many dangling threads go unexplored. Even the book's title and ultimate meaning is mentioned only in passing.
I'll give it 3 stars because I actually got through the whole thing, hoping my questions would be answered.
So chalk one up for The Angel Maker, which I did finish. It moved so quickly I probably could've read it in one go.
And as far as creepy thrillers with possible supernatural goings-on go, this is pretty good. Interconnected stories, a possible prophetic book, evil serial killers, etc. But too many dangling threads go unexplored. Even the book's title and ultimate meaning is mentioned only in passing.
I'll give it 3 stars because I actually got through the whole thing, hoping my questions would be answered.
Checked it out based on a review on NPR. Not exactly sorry I read it, but it was...not good. But I finished it, so I don't know what that says about me.
Katie has been filled with guilt ever since she was a teenager and left her brother Chris to walk home alone from school one day and he was attacked. As an adult, he has had a rough time of it battling addiction and homelessness, and their relationship has been rocky. When he goes missing, Katie starts looking for him more out of duty and for the sake of her mother than anything else...until she realizes there is actually something bad going on. Even her own daughter might be in danger! Turns out, it's more of a twisty mess than she ever imagined.
As another reviewer said, I do not recommend listening while multitasking. I can often listen to a thriller while I'm working but I was so terribly confused. There are a few reasons this book requires focus.
a) There are a lot of characters.
b) The author switches between referring to them by their first names and last names.
c) The story switches between timelines, often multiple times in one chapter, and if you miss the date....you will have no idea what is going on. This happened to me many times with the audiobook. Whoops!
I had to go back and listen to several chapters again, and I took some notes so I could clarify and remember who all of the characters were. After a little homework, I got back on track. But if I got a little distracted and missed a minute or two....I had to go back and listen again.
Now, I could blame that entirely on myself, but I don't think a book HAS to be quite that confusing. The author could have made things slightly clearer without dumbing things down for us.
I thought the story was mostly twisty and turny and devious and good! The end wasn't a cop out and there were no cheap tricks. It's definitely something more original than the standard fare domestic thrillers going around these days.
But I was still left with some questions when it finished, and there were some loose ends that were not tied up. Since I was so confused before that, I just can't give this TOO high of a rating. Maybe read a physical copy of this one rather than the audiobook, and you'll have better luck.
As another reviewer said, I do not recommend listening while multitasking. I can often listen to a thriller while I'm working but I was so terribly confused. There are a few reasons this book requires focus.
a) There are a lot of characters.
b) The author switches between referring to them by their first names and last names.
c) The story switches between timelines, often multiple times in one chapter, and if you miss the date....you will have no idea what is going on. This happened to me many times with the audiobook. Whoops!
I had to go back and listen to several chapters again, and I took some notes so I could clarify and remember who all of the characters were. After a little homework, I got back on track. But if I got a little distracted and missed a minute or two....I had to go back and listen again.
Now, I could blame that entirely on myself, but I don't think a book HAS to be quite that confusing. The author could have made things slightly clearer without dumbing things down for us.
I thought the story was mostly twisty and turny and devious and good! The end wasn't a cop out and there were no cheap tricks. It's definitely something more original than the standard fare domestic thrillers going around these days.
But I was still left with some questions when it finished, and there were some loose ends that were not tied up. Since I was so confused before that, I just can't give this TOO high of a rating. Maybe read a physical copy of this one rather than the audiobook, and you'll have better luck.
I now understand why some reviewers said this was INCREDIBLY SLOW. BECAUSE IT WAS.
First of all, I LOVED Alex North's past two books, and The Shadows has a special place in my heart because that one made me cry. Don't ask. That's why I'm surprised that The Angel Maker was so bad. Almost nothing happened in the first two parts; new characters keep popping up, and I can't keep up because I can't bring myself to care about them. It would have been nice if the maximum number of POVs was cut down to three. And can we also talk about how Katie's story line felt cut short? I was expecting more because the prologue was really good and it made me hooked until I realized nothing's going to happen in the upcoming chapters. Laurence Page's character was a little pretentious considering that his investigations didn't contribute much to how the story unfolds. I will forever not be frustrated about the fact that they didn't think to interview Katie early on in the investigation. It felt like his character was made to confuse us even more.
Also, that thing Alan Hobbes pulled up was very Filipino telenovela design. I can't help laughing.
Alex North, I still love you and will wait for your future books, but I'm going to pretend that this one didn't happen.
First of all, I LOVED Alex North's past two books, and The Shadows has a special place in my heart because that one made me cry. Don't ask. That's why I'm surprised that The Angel Maker was so bad. Almost nothing happened in the first two parts; new characters keep popping up, and I can't keep up because I can't bring myself to care about them. It would have been nice if the maximum number of POVs was cut down to three. And can we also talk about how Katie's story line felt cut short? I was expecting more because the prologue was really good and it made me hooked until I realized nothing's going to happen in the upcoming chapters. Laurence Page's character was a little pretentious considering that his investigations didn't contribute much to how the story unfolds. I will forever not be frustrated about the fact that they didn't think to interview Katie early on in the investigation. It felt like his character was made to confuse us even more.
Also, that thing Alan Hobbes pulled up was very Filipino telenovela design. I can't help laughing.
Alex North, I still love you and will wait for your future books, but I'm going to pretend that this one didn't happen.
3.75⭐
Featuring ~ multiple 3rd person POV, 4 part story, dual timeline ~ present & 1956, serial killer
Kate is one of our main characters who's brother, Chris, has gone missing. But that's news to her since she already thought he was missing since she hasn't seen him in 2 years due to a falling out. Then we have the detectives trying to solve the murder of a professor, Alan Hobbes. And finally, we're swept back to 1956 during the time of the serial killer, The Angel Maker.
I wasn't a super big fan of North's first two books, but I am happy to say I enjoyed this one a smidgen more than those. You can't multitask while listening to this one though because there are quite a few characters and timelines to keep track of, so you need to pay attention.
Narrated by Rosalie Craig for 8 hours and 1 minute. She did a fine job and the sweet spot was 2.5x on this one.
Overall, a fine thriller with a touch of horror that did not keep me up at night (maybe I was multitasking, so I missed the super scariness?).
*Thanks to the author, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the audio copy. I am voluntarily leaving my honest review*
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Featuring ~ multiple 3rd person POV, 4 part story, dual timeline ~ present & 1956, serial killer
Kate is one of our main characters who's brother, Chris, has gone missing. But that's news to her since she already thought he was missing since she hasn't seen him in 2 years due to a falling out. Then we have the detectives trying to solve the murder of a professor, Alan Hobbes. And finally, we're swept back to 1956 during the time of the serial killer, The Angel Maker.
I wasn't a super big fan of North's first two books, but I am happy to say I enjoyed this one a smidgen more than those. You can't multitask while listening to this one though because there are quite a few characters and timelines to keep track of, so you need to pay attention.
Narrated by Rosalie Craig for 8 hours and 1 minute. She did a fine job and the sweet spot was 2.5x on this one.
Overall, a fine thriller with a touch of horror that did not keep me up at night (maybe I was multitasking, so I missed the super scariness?).
*Thanks to the author, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the audio copy. I am voluntarily leaving my honest review*
Follow me here ➡ Blog ~ Facebook
This was... wild, and I don't know how I feel about it.
The story was good. There certainly were thriller elements, family discord playing a big part, but also some interesting Fantasy notes that didn't QUITE get explained. The ending was satisfying, if telegraphed fairly early.
See, here's the problem. It was so chock full of different elements that, honestly, I lost the feed a couple times, and by the end I feel like North may have as well. There were also a few elements (one super early on) that I feel were left on the table rather than really well developed.
So for me, kind of a letdown compared to North's other books.
Still, for fans of the dark thriller subgenre, I'd say go out on a limb for it. Alex's literary voice and command of the reveal are certainly still on display here!
My thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The story was good. There certainly were thriller elements, family discord playing a big part, but also some interesting Fantasy notes that didn't QUITE get explained. The ending was satisfying, if telegraphed fairly early.
See, here's the problem. It was so chock full of different elements that, honestly, I lost the feed a couple times, and by the end I feel like North may have as well. There were also a few elements (one super early on) that I feel were left on the table rather than really well developed.
So for me, kind of a letdown compared to North's other books.
Still, for fans of the dark thriller subgenre, I'd say go out on a limb for it. Alex's literary voice and command of the reveal are certainly still on display here!
My thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Unfortunately this really missed the mark for me. The characters were very underdeveloped, the storylines were incredibly confusing and hard to follow, and overall I just felt lost the majority of the time.
There were so many alternating plot lines and various characters. As soon as I felt hooked by one character’s storyline it would switch to someone else, losing me entirely. Also the constant changes of using a characters full name to just their first name to then sometimes just their last name was impossible to follow.
There was a lot of potential with this one but it just wasn’t for me.
There were so many alternating plot lines and various characters. As soon as I felt hooked by one character’s storyline it would switch to someone else, losing me entirely. Also the constant changes of using a characters full name to just their first name to then sometimes just their last name was impossible to follow.
There was a lot of potential with this one but it just wasn’t for me.
This took me on a wild ride. Readers HAVE to stick with it, it's a bit bumpy at first but within the first 15 pages, it took off down the highway. I was able to figure just about everything in the first half but was then THROWN a major swerve; did NOT see it coming. If you like serial killers and mysteries, this is one for you.
The Angel Maker by Alex North is delightfully dark and enthrallingly thrilling. I enjoyed the ride! Told from multiple POVs, The Angel Maker boasted well-developed characters who were invested in the high stakes of the plot points. I am a full-on fan of Alex North now.
I received a review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
I received a review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
This feels like a "it's not you, it's me" kind of book. My mind was really wandering during this one and I'm not sure if it is because of the amount of characters and plots or just general distractions. I had a hard time keeping track of the characters. The ending left a lot to be desired for me and when I was finished reading I wasn't sure if that much even happened throughout the book. With that said, there were so genuine horrifying moments in this one that really had me spooked. I'll still read whatever North puts out next as he is clearly is a talented storyteller.