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A review by foxclouds
Deadly Messengers by Susan May
4.0
I received this book from the author in exchange of an honest review.
Personal rating: 4 stars
(The review is spoilers free.)
Summary: Seemingly unrelated mass killings are happening in town. A freelance journalist Kendall Jennings gets caught in the middle of investigation as she tries to make sense of what's happening while battling some demons of her own and her attraction to the investigative detective Lance O'Grady.
I really enjoyed the book. It is moderately fast paced and engaging with interesting shift in perspective between the characters. The idea behind the killings is also a rather unique one and the thought that anyone could be manipulated like that is chilling.
I love detective stories and I usually rank them based on how far into the novel I am when I manage to guess the killer. I was almost half way through Deadly Messengers when it all clicked in my head. Good thing that the second half of the book was still very engaging.
I found the reasonings and actions of Detective O'Grady in the last few chapters a bit rushed. He seemed to be making lots of wild guesses and some of that seemed, to me at least, less believable. I also couldn't really feel the attraction between him and Kendell. It was superficial and I was slightly surprised by the way things turned out at the end.
I did enjoy the antagonists though. I must say that it is really hard to write a believable villain that is not simply evil for the sake of being evil but an ordinary man with extraordinary circumstances. The creativity of the murders really appealed to me.
Even though I was left feeling rather indifferent towards Kendell, I liked the detectives and the antagonists. I must say that Susan managed to write the voices in their heads particularly well.
Some issues that I had with the story (including the way the story ended - I liked it but would have preferred a more dramatic ending, yes, MORE) didn't prevent me from enjoying it and even though I can't give it more than 4 stars on GoodReads, I recommend you go and read it. I think it makes for an excellent October read.
Thank you, Susan, for giving me an opportunity to read and review your novel.
Personal rating: 4 stars
(The review is spoilers free.)
Summary: Seemingly unrelated mass killings are happening in town. A freelance journalist Kendall Jennings gets caught in the middle of investigation as she tries to make sense of what's happening while battling some demons of her own and her attraction to the investigative detective Lance O'Grady.
I really enjoyed the book. It is moderately fast paced and engaging with interesting shift in perspective between the characters. The idea behind the killings is also a rather unique one and the thought that anyone could be manipulated like that is chilling.
I love detective stories and I usually rank them based on how far into the novel I am when I manage to guess the killer. I was almost half way through Deadly Messengers when it all clicked in my head. Good thing that the second half of the book was still very engaging.
I found the reasonings and actions of Detective O'Grady in the last few chapters a bit rushed. He seemed to be making lots of wild guesses and some of that seemed, to me at least, less believable. I also couldn't really feel the attraction between him and Kendell. It was superficial and I was slightly surprised by the way things turned out at the end.
I did enjoy the antagonists though. I must say that it is really hard to write a believable villain that is not simply evil for the sake of being evil but an ordinary man with extraordinary circumstances. The creativity of the murders really appealed to me.
Even though I was left feeling rather indifferent towards Kendell, I liked the detectives and the antagonists. I must say that Susan managed to write the voices in their heads particularly well.
Some issues that I had with the story (including the way the story ended - I liked it but would have preferred a more dramatic ending, yes, MORE) didn't prevent me from enjoying it and even though I can't give it more than 4 stars on GoodReads, I recommend you go and read it. I think it makes for an excellent October read.
Thank you, Susan, for giving me an opportunity to read and review your novel.