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A review by beate251
All the Colours of the Dark by Chris Whitaker
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This is an epic, sweeping story spanning almost 30 years and has as many characters. To give a synopsis is almost impossible but I will try. It all begins in 1975, when teenager Joseph "Patch" Macauley rescues popular Misty Meyer from a kidnapper but gets snatched instead.
Against all the odds, he is found a year later by his friend Saint Brown. But he is not the same anymore, and he can't stop talking about a girl called Grace who periodically shared his cell and kept him sane by sharing knowledge and travel stories. Police Chief Nix and others think his mind has conjured her up as a means to stay sane but Patch dedicates his life to finding her again. Under the guidance of his mentor Sammy he paints her and other missing girls, many who turn up dead later.
There is definitely a serial killer on the loose but no one can catch him. Patch is in a relationship with Misty for a while, then starts wandering the country, visiting parents of missing girls and now and then robbing banks, only to give the money to charities that look for missing persons.
Saint grows up to become a police officer and she never lets go of finding Patch's abductor - and Grace. When Patch turns Robin Hood it sets them on a collision course, but they will never stop being friends, having each other's back.
When I say I read this in one sitting and you look at the page count you will surmise that I must have lost sleep at night. Yes, massively, but I couldn't stop. The chapters are so short, just one or two pages long that it was easy to simply read "just one more chapter".
But I am deducting points for the length because I think a good author should be able to get a story done within about 400 pages. There were definitely passages that dragged and were repetitive.
I also couldn't understand that it took decades for the serial killer to be found and the mystery of Grace solved. Saint had so many recordings of Patch giving her information and they knew who they were looking for, her not finding the right info earlier felt absurd. A man nearly died under the vile death penalty, for goodness sake!
This is the story of many traumas. This is the story of a pirate and a beekeeper, of a man who touched so many lives, and in the end they came through for him. This is a story of second chances, of friendships and of never giving up. Impressive stuff.
Against all the odds, he is found a year later by his friend Saint Brown. But he is not the same anymore, and he can't stop talking about a girl called Grace who periodically shared his cell and kept him sane by sharing knowledge and travel stories. Police Chief Nix and others think his mind has conjured her up as a means to stay sane but Patch dedicates his life to finding her again. Under the guidance of his mentor Sammy he paints her and other missing girls, many who turn up dead later.
There is definitely a serial killer on the loose but no one can catch him. Patch is in a relationship with Misty for a while, then starts wandering the country, visiting parents of missing girls and now and then robbing banks, only to give the money to charities that look for missing persons.
Saint grows up to become a police officer and she never lets go of finding Patch's abductor - and Grace. When Patch turns Robin Hood it sets them on a collision course, but they will never stop being friends, having each other's back.
When I say I read this in one sitting and you look at the page count you will surmise that I must have lost sleep at night. Yes, massively, but I couldn't stop. The chapters are so short, just one or two pages long that it was easy to simply read "just one more chapter".
But I am deducting points for the length because I think a good author should be able to get a story done within about 400 pages. There were definitely passages that dragged and were repetitive.
I also couldn't understand that it took decades for the serial killer to be found and the mystery of Grace solved. Saint had so many recordings of Patch giving her information and they knew who they were looking for, her not finding the right info earlier felt absurd. A man nearly died under the vile death penalty, for goodness sake!
This is the story of many traumas. This is the story of a pirate and a beekeeper, of a man who touched so many lives, and in the end they came through for him. This is a story of second chances, of friendships and of never giving up. Impressive stuff.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury