Helpful Score: 4
I just love this new author. Shadow Man was first and this ones has the same characters in it. Which is always a plus. He has such a twisted mind when writing about evil that sometimes it is hard to read. But who am I kidding that is exactly what makes his books so GOOD!!!!
Helpful Score: 2
I thought this second book featuring MC Smokey Barrett was even better than the first one. This gruesome and haunting story will take you to the edge and at times, bring you to tears. I love the cast of characters and can't wait to see what this author does next...
Ruth B. (spartacusaby) -
Helpful Score: 1
If you're a fan of the serial killer genre, this is a series you need to discover. I do recommend reading them in order, starting with "Shadow Man." The recurring characters in the series are all complex and very real, and their development through the series is well worth reading in order.
"The Face of Death" truly blew me away. In most serial killer books, the victims are cardboard characters and the action lots of blood, gore, and slice and dice. Not true of this book; the victims here are real three-dimensional characters you can relate to and care about. And their fates? Some of the killings hit you like a body blow to the solar plexus, others bring a tear to your eye. When was the last time a fictional murder touched you that deeply? Not just a quick escapist read, the Smoky Barrett books will stay with you long after you're finished reading them.
"The Face of Death" truly blew me away. In most serial killer books, the victims are cardboard characters and the action lots of blood, gore, and slice and dice. Not true of this book; the victims here are real three-dimensional characters you can relate to and care about. And their fates? Some of the killings hit you like a body blow to the solar plexus, others bring a tear to your eye. When was the last time a fictional murder touched you that deeply? Not just a quick escapist read, the Smoky Barrett books will stay with you long after you're finished reading them.
Helpful Score: 1
Smoky Barrett and her team are the best of the best the FBI has to offer. They are the Violent Crime Unit. Minddivers skilled in diving into the minds of psychopaths.
Together with her adoptive daughter Bonnie, who lost her mother, Smoky's best friend, through the hands of a serial killer, they both begin to feel happy again. Embracing their new life, allowing themselves to be happy.
When Smoky receives a phone call she is needed at a triple homicide crime scene it seems odd that a girl is standing there holding a gun to her head demanding to speak to Smoky.
Her story: A stranger killed her new adoptive family. He took everything she ever cared for and everybody who every care for her including her parents 10 years ago and no one every believed her that she had to witness her parents death and two of her Foster families death.
The team soon learns the girl is speaking the truth and the investigation begins.
Up against a killer who seems disorganized but isn't, who is up to date what they do, they discover a cobweb of manipulate, threatened people around Sarah Langstorm. People who haven't spoken up for years to safe their lifes and the lifes of those they love.
The killer's goal is revenge, ruin the life of Sarah Langstorm, make her what he has become, shattered and crazy. The clues the team finds seems to be placed years in advance by this killer and nothing they find seems to be real or lead them further away.
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When I read the first book Shadow Man in this series I knew I found a writer wholly satisfying me as the reader. I didn't expect to find a writer who gets to me emotionally - again.
I thought the little girl tied to her dead mother in book one got to me and there can't be any more more shocking until I read this book and dove into the strong emotions of a 16year-old recounting the story of her life, the witness of her parents murder in detail and those of her Foster families. I was wrong.
McFadyen is a genius who makes you feel for every single victim in his book. He makes you care, putting intensity in his books that create goosebumps and touches the heart. When I read the diary Sarah had written for Smoky I literally felt the terror but also felt the little happy things in her life shortly before they got taken away from her.
Overall there are a lot of characters coming into the book, playing an important role in what happened to Sarah and I absolutely admire that there is not a single loose end in end. I wonder if the book was written backwards and how the author made it to create a story such tight it takes your breath away.
I read an article in which McFadyen mentioned he didn't want anyone to read it and get away unscathed and for me, he archived this goal.
McFadyen is a huge dog lover and surprised me in mentioning his own dogs under different names, but with the same nickname "Black Forces of Destruction", two black Labrador Retrievers. I smiled because I remember reading about his two black Labs on his webpage and I clearly remembered this nickname and the reason why they are named like this.
McFadyen feels near, his book doesn't leave you, you should be afraid of what's coming next and you will have problems to find books that reach the same level.
Together with her adoptive daughter Bonnie, who lost her mother, Smoky's best friend, through the hands of a serial killer, they both begin to feel happy again. Embracing their new life, allowing themselves to be happy.
When Smoky receives a phone call she is needed at a triple homicide crime scene it seems odd that a girl is standing there holding a gun to her head demanding to speak to Smoky.
Her story: A stranger killed her new adoptive family. He took everything she ever cared for and everybody who every care for her including her parents 10 years ago and no one every believed her that she had to witness her parents death and two of her Foster families death.
The team soon learns the girl is speaking the truth and the investigation begins.
Up against a killer who seems disorganized but isn't, who is up to date what they do, they discover a cobweb of manipulate, threatened people around Sarah Langstorm. People who haven't spoken up for years to safe their lifes and the lifes of those they love.
The killer's goal is revenge, ruin the life of Sarah Langstorm, make her what he has become, shattered and crazy. The clues the team finds seems to be placed years in advance by this killer and nothing they find seems to be real or lead them further away.
-
When I read the first book Shadow Man in this series I knew I found a writer wholly satisfying me as the reader. I didn't expect to find a writer who gets to me emotionally - again.
I thought the little girl tied to her dead mother in book one got to me and there can't be any more more shocking until I read this book and dove into the strong emotions of a 16year-old recounting the story of her life, the witness of her parents murder in detail and those of her Foster families. I was wrong.
McFadyen is a genius who makes you feel for every single victim in his book. He makes you care, putting intensity in his books that create goosebumps and touches the heart. When I read the diary Sarah had written for Smoky I literally felt the terror but also felt the little happy things in her life shortly before they got taken away from her.
Overall there are a lot of characters coming into the book, playing an important role in what happened to Sarah and I absolutely admire that there is not a single loose end in end. I wonder if the book was written backwards and how the author made it to create a story such tight it takes your breath away.
I read an article in which McFadyen mentioned he didn't want anyone to read it and get away unscathed and for me, he archived this goal.
McFadyen is a huge dog lover and surprised me in mentioning his own dogs under different names, but with the same nickname "Black Forces of Destruction", two black Labrador Retrievers. I smiled because I remember reading about his two black Labs on his webpage and I clearly remembered this nickname and the reason why they are named like this.
McFadyen feels near, his book doesn't leave you, you should be afraid of what's coming next and you will have problems to find books that reach the same level.
Helpful Score: 1
This book was great. It was absolutely a page turner. The author really keeps things moving and though it is loaded with characters, each are unique and easy to get into. Would highly recommend to anyone that likes a mystery/thriller.
Stacy W. (whatstacy) -
McFadyen writes a very dark world. One where at least, sometimes, the good guys win. His story may seem too detailed at times, but i find that i appreciate it. If you close your eyes, you are actually there watching it happen thru his description. The characters are well developed and you become attached to them and want the happy ending for them all. But the path to the end is full of fear, courage, and raw rage at times. It shows you what it takes to keep your soul intact.
"I've called this a diary, but that's not what it really is.
No.
This is a black flower. This a book of dreams. This is a path to the watering hole, where the dark things go down to drink."......Sara
Sara has everything she has ever loved taken from her, killed by The Stranger. It started for her when she was 6 years old. She is now 16 and his game is coming to an end. It has been a well controlled plan of vengeance, taking place over 10 years. But for the killer, it started at age 6 with the bottom dwellers of human trafficking. But Smoky is smarter than him. Smoky and her team are thinkers, they get into the mind of the most sickest creatures of humanity and get ahead of the game before the final play. McFadyen never lets you see who the bad guy really is until you are almost at the finish. It's an edge of your seat ride and i can't wait to finish the next 2 in this series. If you haven't read the first...start there. You need to understand Smoky first before you follow her to the watering hole.
www.texasreader-stacy.blogspot.com
"I've called this a diary, but that's not what it really is.
No.
This is a black flower. This a book of dreams. This is a path to the watering hole, where the dark things go down to drink."......Sara
Sara has everything she has ever loved taken from her, killed by The Stranger. It started for her when she was 6 years old. She is now 16 and his game is coming to an end. It has been a well controlled plan of vengeance, taking place over 10 years. But for the killer, it started at age 6 with the bottom dwellers of human trafficking. But Smoky is smarter than him. Smoky and her team are thinkers, they get into the mind of the most sickest creatures of humanity and get ahead of the game before the final play. McFadyen never lets you see who the bad guy really is until you are almost at the finish. It's an edge of your seat ride and i can't wait to finish the next 2 in this series. If you haven't read the first...start there. You need to understand Smoky first before you follow her to the watering hole.
www.texasreader-stacy.blogspot.com
Another awesome Smoky Barrett book. This series is NOT for the faint of heart, or those who get scared or grossed out easily. The crimes are intense and explicit. Smoky doesn't pull any punches, nor does her select group of investigators. Love the character development...both of the main and sideline characters. Cody McFadyen takes serial killer novels to a whole new level and I love it!
THIS IS ONE OF THE SCARIEST BOOKS I'VE READ,WHAT A MOVIE IT WOULD MAKE!THE GIRL IS SIXTEEN,AT THE SCENE OF A GRISLY TRIPLE HOMICIDE,AND HAS A GUN TO HER HEAD.SHE CLAIMS "THE STRANGER" KILLED HER ADOPTIVE FAMILY,THAT HE'S BEEN FOLLOWING HER ALL HER LIFE,KILLING EVERYONE SHE EVER LOVED,AND THAT NO ONE BELIEVES HER.NO ONE HAS. UNTIL NOW.
This author is very dark. His books do not leave you feeling good but are impossible to put down. I have had this one for several months and hadn't read it because I remembered how rough the first one was and this is no exception. But it's an intriguing read.
Wow. Another 5-star story in the Smoky Barrett series. And I don't give that rating very often. This book drew me in the moment I started the first page and did not let go until (after reading day and night) I finished it. The writing style draws you into the lives of the characters, makes you care about them, feel like you are part of their experiences, so much so that when the book is done, you really miss them. You want to continue looking in on their lives, seeing how they are doing.
This is a sequel to "Shadow Man", and I recommend you read that first. It's not that "Face of Death" can't stand on its own -- it CAN. But the richness of the stories and the way they meld into each other is an experience you don't want to miss.
This is a sequel to "Shadow Man", and I recommend you read that first. It's not that "Face of Death" can't stand on its own -- it CAN. But the richness of the stories and the way they meld into each other is an experience you don't want to miss.
Good story, good characters--maybe just a little too long but I'll wait for the next installment of Smoky Barrett
