Death Pact

by Matt Hilton

This standalone sees two brothers saved from a cult as children, now grown up to become two very different adults. Both are being pursued by a serial killer hell bent on sacrificing them for their divine purpose . . .

All angels are not goodness and light. In fact . . . they're some of the most murderous creatures you'll ever come across

Former detective Nate Freeman just wants to be left alone as he recovers from the case that ended his career two years ago. As a child, he and his brother Will were saved from a religious fanatic compound in the US and brought to the UK. Now, as an adult, Nate has no idea where Will, or any of the other surviving 'Children of Hamor' are, until they suddenly start turning up dead - minus some skin . . .

When his old boss DCI Openshaw asks him to assist in finding the serial killer who is hell bent on collecting the symbols so brutally branded onto the children's backs in the name of Berith - the Fallen Angel, Nate finds himself conflicted. As one of 'the promised' Nate is in mortal danger, and as the case builds momentum Will becomes the prime suspect. It's an intense race against time for Nate to uncover the identity of the 'angelic' serial killer and save his own skin in the process!

Genres: Thriller

240 pages, Hardcover

First published July 2, 2024

About the author

Matt Hilton worked for twenty-two years in private security and the police force in Cumbria. He is a 4th Dan blackbelt and coach in Ju-Jitsu. He lives in Cumbria with his wife and son.

Matt is the author of the best-selling Joe Hunter thriller series, as well as standalone horror thrillers and short stories that have appeared in a number of collections and anthologies. Matt's first novel - Dead Men's Dust - was a Sunday Times best-seller and was shortlisted for the ITW New Novel Award 2009.

Reviews

[Kat (Katlovesbooks) Dietrich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Death Pact by Matt Hilton is a thriller about a man who has tried to hide his childhood experience of being in a cult.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher Severn House and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

 
My Synopsis:    (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
As a child, Nate Freeman lived on a commune on the Ohop Island off Washington State, sometimes known as the Covenant of Dead Names, or just the Covenant.  He was considered one of the Children of Hamor.  His parents were devoted followers of Weyland Berith.  On his back, Nate was marked with Berith's seal, which translates as "covenant".  He was to be sacrificed.

The commune was breached by the FBI, and an agent got Nate, his brother Will, and a few other children out safely, after Berith tried to burn everything to the ground (including his followers).  The children were sent to Britain, and all ended up in different adoptive homes.

Nate went on to become a detective, but his career ended abruptly.  He has no idea where the other children are, and that includes his brother Will.

But when some of them start ending up dead, the symbols on their backs sliced off, Nate decides to help his old boss DCI Grant Openshaw.  Nate, as one of the "promised",  is in danger of becoming a victim of the killer.  His brother becomes the #1 suspect.  Although he has no idea what his brother's life had been like for the past 20 years, Nate refuses to believe that Will could be a killer.


My Opinions:
I really enjoyed this book. The cult aspect of the book was really interesting (and probably one of the reasons I picked it up), although I would have preferred more details of what life was actually like in the cult.  The plot still held my interest from start to finish, although it did, occasionally, drag.

The characters had depth and were quite intriguing, and I liked the relationships and friendships that developed between the 4 main characters.  I didn't like the Jim Powell character, and thought that storyline could have been eliminated, but everyone else was really interesting.

So, although the story ended up being quite predictable, it was still very good, and I will watch for more stand-alone books by this author.  I don't have the time (nor inclination), to read the two series he has written.


For a more complete review of this book and others (including the reason I chose to read/review this book, author information and a favorite quotation from the book), please visit my blog: http://katlovesbooksblog.wordpress.com/

[Matthew McGhie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sharp, intricately plotted thrilling story. First time reading this author and it was a hell of a good time. Brilliantly done characters you feel for. It’s a top read for this year for me.

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

ARC for review. To be published July 2, 2024.

As children Nate Freeman and his brother Will were part of a cult called the Children of Hamor, but they were rescued and then taken from the U.S. to the UK and adopted out, separately. Now former detective Nate doesn’t know where any of the children taken from the cult are until they begin turning up dead, minus a symbol branded into their backs.

Nate’s old boss asks for his help in locating this serial killer targeting the former cult members, but obviously he’s at risk too.

Reading this was painful and a bit of a slog as it is not well written. Awkward sentence structure. Clauses that don’t make sense. At one point author has the villain thinking that he’s immoral. What? That sort of thing.

I read this because I’m a big fan of books about cults, but this really doesn’t dive deeply into the life of the cult (which is fair, I guess, since Nate was a child,) plus I thought the killer was pretty obvious from the beginning of the book. So this one didn’t do it for me.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a cracking story from one of my favourite authors.
I was drawn in by the end of the first page and even more so when the horror starts to unfold within the first chapter.
People who are drawn in to cults and their incredibly warped leaders amaze me-that's some mind control there.
I won't give too much information as I won't spoil if for others, but if you are a fan of stories with a great tale to tell which involves a fair amount of gore, a sound investigation, satanic influences and a great mix of characters, please read this book.

[Oaky Tyree · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a totally fun and intense trip of a book. What a great thriller read. I absolutely enjoyed every moment of this. The book started out with a bang and it kept riding on that high all the way to the end.

Death Pact was a well thought-out and planned novel, and I couldn't wait to get back to read the next move and the next move. The characters were interesting enough and boy, it kept on coming. This cult-centered book went beyond what I expected and I couldn't rave enough about this. If you like a deep and intense storyline much like an episode of Criminal Minds, you'll really enjoy this. You just would get more and more than expected.

I kept thinking, however, that the book cover didn't match with the intensity of the book. It almost stirred away from how vigorous this book could get, but that might just be me. All in all, I was so glad to get to know this author's work, because I'm now truly a fan!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this amazing thriller. All opinions are my own.

[Kath · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have only read one other stand alone book by this rather prolific author, who is better known for his series books. I said after that one that I would be adding his series onto my ever growing tbr but haven't quite managed to read any yet.
So, in this book we meet two survivors who were saved from a cult as children and follow them as they try and evade a serial killer... good hook huh!?
Anyway, one of the survivors is Nate, a former detective, retired after a career ending case which he is still trying to get over. He is called back by his old boss to assist in the case of the aforementioned serial killer who has been rounding up and killing other former child members of the cult - The Children of Hamor - and, well, removing the skins on their backs. Skin that was branded with symbols. It soon becomes obvious that the perpetrator is wanting to reenact a ritual, but I'll leave you to get the ins and outs from the author direct. Nate has had no contact with his brother Will for years so whether he will be another victim or indeed the perpetrator remains to be seen...
I have mixed feelings about this book. The story was great - five stars. The execution (excuse the pun) was a bit hit and miss - three stars. Hence the middle rating of 4! It should have been more frightening and suspenseful than it actually was and the feeling of immense peril for the main character, Nate, failed to transpire. As did the hero or villain status of brother Will. But that said, I was interested and intrigued enough to carry on and my faith in the author nobly rewarded with a decent and satisfying ending.
I also enjoyed (if that's the right word) the crimes and executions. Brutally horrific and well described! And the crime solving element was well crafted and executed with aplomb.
All in all, a good solid read that I will recommend with the above provisos. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gruesome Crime Horror/ Thriller Starts With A Bang. Seriously, the start of this book feels like Hilton read Jeff Guinn's Waco, because it truly feels like Hilton took Guinn's hyper realistic descriptions of what actually went down there to scaffold his own fictional version.

Which is actually a *phenomenal* way to begin this particular tale.

The rest of the tale then flashes forward a bit and crosses the "pond", becoming a UK based police/ crime tale featuring some particularly horrific murders that fans of Thomas Harris' Hannibal Lecter trilogy or Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child's Pendergast series will absolutely enjoy. The pacing of the investigation is solid, and the way the various characters meld together is done quite well.

Surprises late are well executed, and by the end you're going to be questioning if this is meant to be a series starter afterall...

Overall truly a great crime story excellently told, and a solid change of pace from Hilton's Grey and Villere thrillers in particular in that while the action is equally intense, the criminals here feel so much more decidedly dark and truly evil. Very much recommended.

[Marcia Honeycutt Roseman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Matt Hilton for allowing me to read this Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of Death Pact.

Everybody mark your calendar for July 2nd! Death Pact packs a punch - an amazing storyline filled with plot twists. This could be a movie or a criminal TV show episode. Nate and Will, two brothers rescued in childhood from the cult "Children of the Hammer". Both are placed into the system in the UK. Both grow up to lead very different lives. Or do they? One day a horrendous crime scene unfolds and at the center is a symbol drawn in the victim's blood. This symbol is no Satanic symbol. Quite the opposite. This symbol is angelic and heralds the coming of a new leader for the "Children of the Hammer" - and they want all their members back together, in the flesh, anthropodermic bibliopegy (now I know you're interested)!

Will Will and Nate be safe? What is one of them is the rising leader and killer? What if it is brother against brother?

[Clarke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nate, his brother, and several others are saved from a cult as children, only to separated and lead very different lives. Years later, when cult survivors are being butchered and flayed, Nate, a retired police officer, is asked to help his old colleagues catch the killer by utilising his past whilst facing risk to his own mortality.

This is on par with your average cop thriller, where the characters chase leads, ignore protocol, and everything gets wrapped up in a bow. The cult doesn’t feature much, nor does it really feel like much of a threat. There was no sense that Nate's life was in danger, nor a growing fear as the book went on. Everything seemed too easy and straight forward, and the plot was predictable. It also falls prey to the 'men and women can't just be colleagues' trope, whilst simultaneously painting the women as amazing at everything and the men amazing for not hating them for it.

It was an easy read but didn't do anything new. Thank you to NetGalley for the arc.

[Annarella · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this thriller with plenty of twists and enough suspence to keep me turning pages fast.
Well plotted and entertaining, a solid plot.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

[Alex E. · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF after about 50 pages, couldn't get into it

[J R · Rating 3 out of 5]

oh goodness this was okay but... honestly some of the plot threads didn't feel like they really connectedl. thanks for the arc tho

[Anne Grzybowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Killers and victims, many of both. Great story well told based on the madness of a cult leader and their followers.

[whatemsreadingx · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Severn House for the advanced copy of this book to read and review.

Thankfully I've FINALLY finished reading this book, and when I tell you it feels like I've been reading it for literal years.

To begin with I really got into it, it felt interesting and different and I loved the idea of the cult and the way that was feeding into the story.

I really liked how the author started building on the relationship with Grant and Nate.

But then around the halfway mark I started to feel like I was wading through treacle whilst trying to read it.

The sentence structure and writing started to drop off and go downhill, and that meant that the relationships and character building just wasn't as good. Everything felt forced and I found it hard to feel anything for them.

And whilst I appreciate it's a book and anything goes, it did start to feel like it had gone off the rails a bit and things were just getting a bit all over the place.

I can't lie, from about 85% onwards I just skim read a lot of it as I couldn't bring myself to keep reading properly.

Disappointed with this one, as I felt it had some great potential but around halfway started to miss the mark before completely going off the rails.