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Every Dark Place
A dark and terrifying crime becomes the unlikely catalyst for one man's redemption and another's ruin in another stylish noir thriller from the author of Cold Rain
Ten years ago, sleepy Shiloh Springs was shaken as five teenagers were clubbed and shot to death and a sixth left for dead. Now the conviction of Booker, the killer, has been overturned after allegations that his rights were violated on his arrest. Rick Trueblood is a careworn private investigator working for the Shiloh County prosecutor's office and still grieving for a daughter murdered eight years agoa crime he has never been able to solve. The judge has allowed 60 days for the prosecutor's office to find enough evidence to retry the case, but as Rick struggles to reinvestigate a trail long gone cold he uncovers a rat's nest of intrigue and duplicity with ramifications that lead closer to home than he could have possibly imagined. In the meantime, Booker is out on bail, intending to kidnap and murder the two adolescent daughters of the minister who brought him to faith. In the desperate hours that follow him snatching the girls, Rick recovers his instinct for the hunt, and with it, quite unexpectedly, a renewed passion for life.
320 pages, Paperback
First published November 2, 2012
About the author
Craig Smith
7 books7 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Prior to his decision to become a novelist he was an assistant professor of English and Humanities at the University of Northern Colorado. CA. Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Southern Illinois; lives in Switzerland.
Prior to his decision to become a novelist he was an assistant professor of English and Humanities at the University of Northern Colorado. CA. Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Southern Illinois; lives in Switzerland.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
February 15, 2013
I hate when I anticipate a book and then it doesn't live up to my expectations, and that's what happened here.
The first hundred pages suck and I do mean SUCK. They are confusing and poorly written, not to mention the hero spends most of them getting sh*tfaced. YOu're supposed to feel sorry for him because his daughter was kidnapped and murdered and his life fell apart, but that fact does NOTHING to make him likeable, or more importantly, make you care about him. And then there's the scene setting--or lack thereof. You have no real sense of place or time (except winter). At first, after the mention of Attica I thought it was set in NY State or the East Coast but at the end of the book--like in the last 25 or so pages-- you find out it's set in the midwest (state unnamed). Because I know this book was pubbed in the UK i thought it had been written by a Brit--who didn't know how to do research, let alone scene setting. I was wrong. It was written by an American living in Switzerland--who doesn't know how to do research or scene setting (and could really REALLY use a good editor).
All my griping aside, it's everything that takes place AFTER that first 100 or so pages (after the kidnapping of two girls--not a spoiler) that redeems this book. It doesn't make the hero or some of the other characters any more well-rounded but at least you actually start to give a crap about whether the girls are found in time.
The first hundred pages suck and I do mean SUCK. They are confusing and poorly written, not to mention the hero spends most of them getting sh*tfaced. YOu're supposed to feel sorry for him because his daughter was kidnapped and murdered and his life fell apart, but that fact does NOTHING to make him likeable, or more importantly, make you care about him. And then there's the scene setting--or lack thereof. You have no real sense of place or time (except winter). At first, after the mention of Attica I thought it was set in NY State or the East Coast but at the end of the book--like in the last 25 or so pages-- you find out it's set in the midwest (state unnamed). Because I know this book was pubbed in the UK i thought it had been written by a Brit--who didn't know how to do research, let alone scene setting. I was wrong. It was written by an American living in Switzerland--who doesn't know how to do research or scene setting (and could really REALLY use a good editor).
All my griping aside, it's everything that takes place AFTER that first 100 or so pages (after the kidnapping of two girls--not a spoiler) that redeems this book. It doesn't make the hero or some of the other characters any more well-rounded but at least you actually start to give a crap about whether the girls are found in time.
July 18, 2015
A decent read. It's pretty straightforward, no real twists, the characters are sketchy, but it bowls along nicely.
August 26, 2015
Very predictable. No twist. Not boring but not a very good spend of time.
January 29, 2017
I've loved everything Smith has written and Every Dark Place was no exception...enthralled from start to finish
April 2, 2013
Un thriller anomalo.
Questo romanzo inizia a metà di una storia, dopo gli omicidi di cinque ragazzi adolescenti e prima di un altro massacro, simile ma non identico, e perpetrato dalla stessa persona. E noi sappiamo benissimo chi è.
Will Booker è finito in galera ma ora viene rilasciato perché nulla lo incrimina a tutti gli effetti, è sostenuto dal reverendo Connie, dalla sua famiglia e da chi lo crede davvero innocente, mentre Pat Garrat – procuratore che cerca di seguire le orme e la fama del padre – non lo crede affatto, e non vede l’ora di rispedirlo al fresco prima che Will faccia di nuovo del male.
Per le indagini viene chiamato Rick, detective privato col problema dell’alcolismo, e che prende molto a cuore il caso per via di un lutto personale che l’ha colpito anni prima.
Come ho detto all’inizio, Every dark place è un thriller anomalo, perché il lettore è informato di cosa sta succedendo, sia dal punto di vista delle indagini che da quello dei crimini. Non si tratta di scoprire chi sia l’assassino, il suo modus operandi o il suo modo di agire, perché i capitoli sono alternati, e sotto i nostri occhi vediamo avvenire tutto, le stanze buie, le torture, le cattiverie, i sotterfugi.
Per leggere la recensione per intero: QUI
Questo romanzo inizia a metà di una storia, dopo gli omicidi di cinque ragazzi adolescenti e prima di un altro massacro, simile ma non identico, e perpetrato dalla stessa persona. E noi sappiamo benissimo chi è.
Will Booker è finito in galera ma ora viene rilasciato perché nulla lo incrimina a tutti gli effetti, è sostenuto dal reverendo Connie, dalla sua famiglia e da chi lo crede davvero innocente, mentre Pat Garrat – procuratore che cerca di seguire le orme e la fama del padre – non lo crede affatto, e non vede l’ora di rispedirlo al fresco prima che Will faccia di nuovo del male.
Per le indagini viene chiamato Rick, detective privato col problema dell’alcolismo, e che prende molto a cuore il caso per via di un lutto personale che l’ha colpito anni prima.
Come ho detto all’inizio, Every dark place è un thriller anomalo, perché il lettore è informato di cosa sta succedendo, sia dal punto di vista delle indagini che da quello dei crimini. Non si tratta di scoprire chi sia l’assassino, il suo modus operandi o il suo modo di agire, perché i capitoli sono alternati, e sotto i nostri occhi vediamo avvenire tutto, le stanze buie, le torture, le cattiverie, i sotterfugi.
Per leggere la recensione per intero: QUI
August 13, 2013
A mystery as to a killer that outsmarts most people. Trying to catch him was a challenge.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews