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John Reeves #2
Wrath
"An expertly crafted murder mystery that will delight readers with compelling characters, smart dialogue and some truly unexpected supernatural elements." -Kirkus Reviews
The John Reeves "Kill them with kindness. Unless you have a gun."
John Reeves moves back to his childhood home and takes an easy job as a Private Investigator with an old high school friend. A grieving widow asks for help when the medical examiner unofficially labels her husband's bizarre death a suicide. John joins his brother Alan, a local police officer, to learn why the town's residents keep dying horrific deaths at a breakneck pace.
What Readers are
"Wrath will stick with you for days after you finish reading. It's a chilling and wonderfully-crafted story with living, breathing characters."
- Jack Sheppard
Author, The Marlowe Scavenger's War
The John Reeves "Kill them with kindness. Unless you have a gun."
John Reeves moves back to his childhood home and takes an easy job as a Private Investigator with an old high school friend. A grieving widow asks for help when the medical examiner unofficially labels her husband's bizarre death a suicide. John joins his brother Alan, a local police officer, to learn why the town's residents keep dying horrific deaths at a breakneck pace.
What Readers are
"Wrath will stick with you for days after you finish reading. It's a chilling and wonderfully-crafted story with living, breathing characters."
- Jack Sheppard
Author, The Marlowe Scavenger's War
- GenresThriller
343 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 28, 2012
3 people are currently reading
50 people want to read
About the author
Kirkus MacGowan
8 books671 followersKirkus MacGowan wrote his first book at age eight about traveling to Mars to find the cure for cancer. He put his writing dreams on hold for twenty-five years and focused his energies on playing baseball. He moved on when he found playing softball with his friends more enjoyable than his pipe dream.
Since then, he graduated with a B.S. in Psychology, married a woman too good to be true, and moved back to his hometown. He gave up an amazing career waiting tables and now stays at home with his two crazy children. He spends his time writing thrillers and fantasy, playing softball with friends, enjoying the occasional computer game, and wrestling with his kids.
Since then, he graduated with a B.S. in Psychology, married a woman too good to be true, and moved back to his hometown. He gave up an amazing career waiting tables and now stays at home with his two crazy children. He spends his time writing thrillers and fantasy, playing softball with friends, enjoying the occasional computer game, and wrestling with his kids.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 3, 2012
Having read The Fall Of Billy Hitchings , I was anxious to read this follow up effort from Mr. MacGowan. John Reeves is a character who you are forced to like almost immediately. He is an imperfect hero but possesses an unflappable sense of humor in conjunction with a sharp mind. This tale embarks down a macabre path from the outset and had me within its grip in short order. Deaths of a mysterious and improbable nature occur all over a small town and run the local police force ragged trying to keep up with shocking crime scenes. John Reeves blows into town on the summer breeze, ever the wanderer, and is awkwardly reunited with his estranged brother, Alan. The Reeves boys are forced to deal with the terms of their estrangement as they are thrown together in an attempt bring a halt to the grisly crimes plaguing their home town.
Smartly written, this novel has rich, vibrant characters who readily evoke a sense of connection and have an almost tangible quality about them. I nearly felt as though they were all real people due to the skill and depth with which they were presented. Loads of action, suspense, and even some good humor are all contained within the pages. I loved this book, and highly recommend it.
Smartly written, this novel has rich, vibrant characters who readily evoke a sense of connection and have an almost tangible quality about them. I nearly felt as though they were all real people due to the skill and depth with which they were presented. Loads of action, suspense, and even some good humor are all contained within the pages. I loved this book, and highly recommend it.
September 2, 2012
Coming on the heels of THE FALL OF BILLY HITCHINGS, the second, stand-alone John Reeves novel had much to live up to—and boy does it. WRATH is a grab-you-by-the-collar paranormal mystery of the highest caliber. The characters are folks we’d like to hang out with, the mystery is genius, and the pacing is impeccable. From page one this novel had me glued to my chair. It is an absorbing and rewarding adventure.
Kirkus MacGowan is most definitely an author to watch!
The Fall of Billy Hitchings
Kirkus MacGowan is most definitely an author to watch!
The Fall of Billy Hitchings
May 14, 2013
Wrath is a impressive read. Building on the story from the first book, this story takes off with a few familiar characters. The story is great, full of hooks to keep you reading and guessing. The characters interesting and the plot really well thought out. About half way through I thought I knew how it would end. I was wrong. Kirkus keeps you guessing and writes masterfully! A great read. yet another book you should own!
November 17, 2012
My first experience with a book by Kirkus MacGowan was his first novel release, The Fall of Billy Hitchings. I loved that book and found it impossible to put down. I loved the characters and the impossible situation that they found themselves in. I knew that Mr. MacGowan was writing another book and I wondered if he could pull it off. Could he write a book that rivaled “The Fall of Billy Hitchings?” Well, he not only can, but has in his new book “Wrath.”
John Reeves is back! The smart-ass ex-marine returns, this time with a vengeance. He has taken work with a friend when he is plunged straight into a mystery in which people in his hometown are dying mysterious and gruesome deaths. He teams up with his brother and his childhood best-friend to solve the mystery.
Let’s get into what I liked and didn’t like about Wrath:
Characters:
A strong suit for Mr. MacGowan. I liked John Reeves in the first novel, but felt that he played a smaller part in the novel so didn’t get the best feel for him. In this book, the things that made him such a strong character in the first, came to the forefront. He is a very trustworthy and stand-up guy with a way that makes ladies swoon. Even his brother knows that he is a stand-up person. So that was enough for me.
However, I really like Alan, his brother. Also a solid man who has a good upbringing and a moral sense of right and wrong. I felt that he was a believeable character and that is tought to do when you are introducing new characters to a series. I believe that anyone who reads this book will like Alan too.
Character dynamics:
Mr. MacGowan is so so so great at building relationships that you can believe in. You really believe that Alan and John are brothers and that there is a past between these two men. There was no struggling with relationships. Even the side characters like Ruth and Eddy seemed like they had been friends with these men for years. It was really refreshing to read this book because I really cared about the main characters.
I do have to interject one thing here that I didn’t like. Some of the characters seemed to be stereotypes. They were cut out of every thriller I’ve ever read. Ya know, the FBI agent who isn’t going to allow anyone to mess with the investigation, and the mayor who is a jerk. This didn’t stop me from enjoying the book, but only because their parts were small.
Setting:
Mr. MacGowan did a great job of setting each of his scenes in a solid and believable place. I was home with Alan and at the station with him. I was with John as he ran for his life, trying to avoid getting caught. I was definitely in the ending (but I won’t tell you about that) but it is pretty damn harrowing. The places in this novel are superb. The only thing I would say, is that characters have a tie to settings too and I would have liked to see more of that happening in this novel. It would have really made the characters pop for me.
Altogether, I LOVED Wrath! John Reeves is a character I will follow until he breathes his last breath! I would recommend this novel for anyone who likes a mystery or a good old-fashioned thriller with some bite! Kirkus MacGowan has come into his own with this novel. This one is much better than his first and I loved that book too! I would not be hesitant to recommend this book!
I give this book 5 stars. Great character development!
I’ll follow Mr. MacGowan and his books. Hopefully he keeps up the great work! Thanks Kirkus!
I received a copy of this book from the author and promised him that I would give him an honest review. I believe that I have.
John Reeves is back! The smart-ass ex-marine returns, this time with a vengeance. He has taken work with a friend when he is plunged straight into a mystery in which people in his hometown are dying mysterious and gruesome deaths. He teams up with his brother and his childhood best-friend to solve the mystery.
Let’s get into what I liked and didn’t like about Wrath:
Characters:
A strong suit for Mr. MacGowan. I liked John Reeves in the first novel, but felt that he played a smaller part in the novel so didn’t get the best feel for him. In this book, the things that made him such a strong character in the first, came to the forefront. He is a very trustworthy and stand-up guy with a way that makes ladies swoon. Even his brother knows that he is a stand-up person. So that was enough for me.
However, I really like Alan, his brother. Also a solid man who has a good upbringing and a moral sense of right and wrong. I felt that he was a believeable character and that is tought to do when you are introducing new characters to a series. I believe that anyone who reads this book will like Alan too.
Character dynamics:
Mr. MacGowan is so so so great at building relationships that you can believe in. You really believe that Alan and John are brothers and that there is a past between these two men. There was no struggling with relationships. Even the side characters like Ruth and Eddy seemed like they had been friends with these men for years. It was really refreshing to read this book because I really cared about the main characters.
I do have to interject one thing here that I didn’t like. Some of the characters seemed to be stereotypes. They were cut out of every thriller I’ve ever read. Ya know, the FBI agent who isn’t going to allow anyone to mess with the investigation, and the mayor who is a jerk. This didn’t stop me from enjoying the book, but only because their parts were small.
Setting:
Mr. MacGowan did a great job of setting each of his scenes in a solid and believable place. I was home with Alan and at the station with him. I was with John as he ran for his life, trying to avoid getting caught. I was definitely in the ending (but I won’t tell you about that) but it is pretty damn harrowing. The places in this novel are superb. The only thing I would say, is that characters have a tie to settings too and I would have liked to see more of that happening in this novel. It would have really made the characters pop for me.
Altogether, I LOVED Wrath! John Reeves is a character I will follow until he breathes his last breath! I would recommend this novel for anyone who likes a mystery or a good old-fashioned thriller with some bite! Kirkus MacGowan has come into his own with this novel. This one is much better than his first and I loved that book too! I would not be hesitant to recommend this book!
I give this book 5 stars. Great character development!
I’ll follow Mr. MacGowan and his books. Hopefully he keeps up the great work! Thanks Kirkus!
I received a copy of this book from the author and promised him that I would give him an honest review. I believe that I have.
September 12, 2012
Another first rate hit from Kirkus MacGowan! Love the characters. The Reeves brothers are so believable and captivating and this story keeps you guessing from one page to the next. I had the bad guy figured out but man, was I blown away by the reason and methods! I was going to compare Kirkus to James Patterson but I think he is going to surpass even that guy! I encourage anyone who loves a good whodunnit to read this book! A good whodunnit and more. I think they could make a good movie from this book for sure!
The only problem that I have with Kirkus MacGowan books is that they are so good I can't put them
down!
The only problem that I have with Kirkus MacGowan books is that they are so good I can't put them
down!
November 21, 2012
An action packed page turner! Wrath is written with such detail that you can actually visualize.
Readers travel along with Officer John Reeves, as he attempts to solve the twisted unexplained deaths happening in his community. What he does find will shock you!
As a first time reader of Author Kirkus MacGowan, cudos! You've gained a lifetime reader.
Readers travel along with Officer John Reeves, as he attempts to solve the twisted unexplained deaths happening in his community. What he does find will shock you!
As a first time reader of Author Kirkus MacGowan, cudos! You've gained a lifetime reader.
September 19, 2012
Kirkus hit a home run with Wrath. It is a real page turner that I read cover to cover in one day. I found the characters compelling and the interaction between the Reeves brothers added a great deal to the story. I can't wait for the next installment.
March 23, 2013
Like "Criminal Minds" on paper only minus the FBI part. This story took place in a small town setting with very real characters. I was on the edge of my seat at times and laughing out loud at others. Very fast paced read especially toward the end. Well done, Kirkus!
March 19, 2013
Excellent! Loved the suspense.... One of those books you just cant put down!!!!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews