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The Bentley Books Book #1
Beneath the Mask of Sanity
Bentley Grimes is a killer not content with just taking a victim's life, he also wants to experience emotions. When he kills George Braddock, Bentley infiltrates the Braddock household by befriending his victim's oldest daughter, Katie. He witnesses their misery searching for that indefinable trait that makes him different from the rest of the world.
Frank Miles is a detective with his own demons, and his own obsession, catching George Braddock's murderer. The three, Katie, Frank and Bentley are all on a collision course for each other, none of them knowing the secrets that each hides in their souls.
Frank Miles is a detective with his own demons, and his own obsession, catching George Braddock's murderer. The three, Katie, Frank and Bentley are all on a collision course for each other, none of them knowing the secrets that each hides in their souls.
342 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 19, 2014
44 people are currently reading
461 people want to read
About the author
Mark Phillips
10 books8 followersMark Phillips is the author of several thriller and literary novels. His Bentley Books series introduced the world to sadistic serial killer Bentley Grimes, a villain of unbelievable cruelty and unimaginable coldness. His literary novels are populated with richly drawn characters struggling with issues that affect our society today, such as: homosexuality, alcoholism, family struggles, poverty, greed, and bigotry.
His newest novel, Overwhelming Force, deals with the issue of police brutality and street violence.
Mark was born in Clawson, Michigan, a small suburb of Detroit and currently resides in Canton, Michigan with his wife and their three children.
He has published ten books:
Beneath the Mask of Sanity
Beyond the Mask
Re-Test
Typewriter Blood
A Way Back to Life
Two Worlds
Before the Mask
The Space Between
No Credit in Heaven
Overwhelming Force
Mark currently resides in Canton, Michigan with his wife and their three children.
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His newest novel, Overwhelming Force, deals with the issue of police brutality and street violence.
Mark was born in Clawson, Michigan, a small suburb of Detroit and currently resides in Canton, Michigan with his wife and their three children.
He has published ten books:
Beneath the Mask of Sanity
Beyond the Mask
Re-Test
Typewriter Blood
A Way Back to Life
Two Worlds
Before the Mask
The Space Between
No Credit in Heaven
Overwhelming Force
Mark currently resides in Canton, Michigan with his wife and their three children.
Amazon
Website
Ratings & Reviews
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
June 5, 2014
I want to make it clear that I really liked this story, the pacing of it, the characters, and the hideous nature of the mind set of the serial killer. Dark and unsettling tales are a great favorite of mine, and based on story alone, this was good.
Unfortunately, the myriad malapropisms almost sullied the whole effect. A 'connivance' store when it should have been a 'convenience' store, a police 'precinct' was labeled police 'prescient'. A short fat man who 'wattled' when he walked, um, did you mean 'waddled', perchance? And my favorite, the young man who undoubtedly 'unshouldered' his backpack was written as having 'unsoldered' his backpack. Yikes. And ouch. Although these may bring a rueful smirk or a giggle, this is not okay. Was it auto-correct run amok? Unknown.
Unfortunately, the myriad malapropisms almost sullied the whole effect. A 'connivance' store when it should have been a 'convenience' store, a police 'precinct' was labeled police 'prescient'. A short fat man who 'wattled' when he walked, um, did you mean 'waddled', perchance? And my favorite, the young man who undoubtedly 'unshouldered' his backpack was written as having 'unsoldered' his backpack. Yikes. And ouch. Although these may bring a rueful smirk or a giggle, this is not okay. Was it auto-correct run amok? Unknown.
June 26, 2014
Decent serial killer story
OK, need to get the criticism out of the way first. This book cries out for a proofreader. I can take a few gaffes in any story, but this one was pretty bad. Having said that, I have seen worse. Much worse. Phillips spell checker works at least most of the time, but sometimes, many times in this book, a word might be spelled correctly, but it's the wrong word. "Connivance" instead of "convenience" for example. Another one I noticed was there were two chapter 95's. As I said, it needs proofread.
All right, that's out if the way.
I did really like the story. It flows well and isn't too much of a stretch of the imagination. Thrillers are better when they are believable. This one was pretty good. Pretty graphic and the killer was really cruel. A couple of the killings were kind of taboo for mainstream authors, but that's ok. High body count and lots of blood here.
The author has potential if he'd hire himself a half decent proofreader!
OK, need to get the criticism out of the way first. This book cries out for a proofreader. I can take a few gaffes in any story, but this one was pretty bad. Having said that, I have seen worse. Much worse. Phillips spell checker works at least most of the time, but sometimes, many times in this book, a word might be spelled correctly, but it's the wrong word. "Connivance" instead of "convenience" for example. Another one I noticed was there were two chapter 95's. As I said, it needs proofread.
All right, that's out if the way.
I did really like the story. It flows well and isn't too much of a stretch of the imagination. Thrillers are better when they are believable. This one was pretty good. Pretty graphic and the killer was really cruel. A couple of the killings were kind of taboo for mainstream authors, but that's ok. High body count and lots of blood here.
The author has potential if he'd hire himself a half decent proofreader!
June 5, 2025
I have had this on the shelf for a long time and finally got to it. I do like stories that are dark and graphic and this was definitely that. The story followed a serial killer and his quest to kill, but it was hard to follow at times. The writing didn't mesh with me and I thought the dialogue was bad. The proofreading mistakes were annoying, but I did not take that into account for my review.
May 5, 2014
Gory. Graphic. Fierce. Explicit. Beneath the Mask of Sanity by Mark Phillps is not a read for the faint of heart or for anyone not ready for a jagged splintered journey into the heart and mind of a serial killer and the wake of his destruction.
Phillips has created serial killer Bentley Grimes and set him upon a swath of monumental carnage. Traipsing behind is detective Frank Miles, determined to catch his prey while fighting his own demons, and at the center of Grimes’ butchery is the Braddock family: Dad, George who just happens to stop to give the hitch-hiking killer a ride, wife and mother Sheila, and daughters Katie and Karen. These six people are set upon the road to Hell.
Phillips uses much imagery of Heaven and Hell as well as an interesting interlude on Jesus as Savior in the novel to haunting effect. Grimes is indeed a soul lost in Hell, and he takes us along with him in his ever spiraling deeper descent.
About half-way through this journey, the twists start coming—some of them sharp and steep and totally unexpected.
If graphic psychological thriller is your game, this effort by Mark Phillips will not disappoint.
Phillips has created serial killer Bentley Grimes and set him upon a swath of monumental carnage. Traipsing behind is detective Frank Miles, determined to catch his prey while fighting his own demons, and at the center of Grimes’ butchery is the Braddock family: Dad, George who just happens to stop to give the hitch-hiking killer a ride, wife and mother Sheila, and daughters Katie and Karen. These six people are set upon the road to Hell.
Phillips uses much imagery of Heaven and Hell as well as an interesting interlude on Jesus as Savior in the novel to haunting effect. Grimes is indeed a soul lost in Hell, and he takes us along with him in his ever spiraling deeper descent.
About half-way through this journey, the twists start coming—some of them sharp and steep and totally unexpected.
If graphic psychological thriller is your game, this effort by Mark Phillips will not disappoint.
November 20, 2014
I don't typically read psychological thrillers, so this was a different read for me. Bentley Grimes is an instantly interesting character, and it was worth reading to see what he would do next. I thought that the opening of the book was very well done, too.
I didn't catch hardly any typos, either, and kudos to the author for that. My only recommendations were that 1. the book was a bit long. I don't think it was because of the writing, but instead the chapter numbering. It made it feel longer than it was. And 2. I would have also liked to see a TOC.
But this is a good read and worth checking out if you like psychological books.
I didn't catch hardly any typos, either, and kudos to the author for that. My only recommendations were that 1. the book was a bit long. I don't think it was because of the writing, but instead the chapter numbering. It made it feel longer than it was. And 2. I would have also liked to see a TOC.
But this is a good read and worth checking out if you like psychological books.
August 11, 2014
well, there's not a lot to say about this book. it's not awful. the plot is decent and keeps moving pretty well. the ending was ok. not a lot of superlatives in this review, are there? not only was the story not terrific, the thing really needs a good proofing and editing. there are spelling errors throughout the whole book and the formatting is poor. this was just good enough a book that i managed to read the entire thing without tossing it out. that's the best i can say about it.
April 30, 2018
Good book
You people should just read this book yourselves and write your own review on this novel yourself and I really enjoyed reading this book very much so. Shelley MA
You people should just read this book yourselves and write your own review on this novel yourself and I really enjoyed reading this book very much so. Shelley MA
April 3, 2021
Good book!
Wanted more! It really kept my interest while I did my run, something that is important to me. Going to get the next book, for sure.
Wanted more! It really kept my interest while I did my run, something that is important to me. Going to get the next book, for sure.
July 4, 2025
I read this awhile ago but omg. It was so good and I literally can remember how nuts the serial killer guy is in this. Wild.
**animal cruelty is present in this book
**animal cruelty is present in this book
June 6, 2014
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Meet Bentley Grimes. He's a serial killer with a thirst for the big score. Families.
Now meet Katie Braddock. She was a normal teenage girl until her father was murdered, leaving she and her mom, and her younger sister Karen, to try and salvage their lives without him. But when Katie turns to new boy Brandon, she's unwittingly opening the door for the killer.
Meanwhile, Detective Frank Miles is on the hunt for George's murderer. He's becoming obsessed with finding Bentley, content to stop at nothing to capture him ... before Bentley comes back for the rest of the family.
BENEATH the MASK of SANITY is a great thriller. It will have you on the edge of your seat hugging your pillow, and if you're anything like me, you're also going to find yourself throwing that pillow and grinding your teeth. Bentley Grimes if one villain you won't find yourself feeling bad for.
To note, there are some formatting and grammatical issues I'd like to see cleaned up in a new edition, but overall I thought it was a very well put together and entertaining story.
May 23, 2014
Proofreading is still a thing, right?
It angers me that an author can publish a book when it has not been proofread for stupid errors. If your published work has 'first' spelled 'fist, 'funeral' spelled 'funereal', and 'Sheila' spelled correctly and as 'Shelia' on the same page, something is wrong. I don't know how many errors were there in total, because I wasn't halfway through the book when I got sick of the mistakes and gave up on it. How can this be published? Really?
It angers me that an author can publish a book when it has not been proofread for stupid errors. If your published work has 'first' spelled 'fist, 'funeral' spelled 'funereal', and 'Sheila' spelled correctly and as 'Shelia' on the same page, something is wrong. I don't know how many errors were there in total, because I wasn't halfway through the book when I got sick of the mistakes and gave up on it. How can this be published? Really?
May 20, 2014
Mark Phillips may be a good storyteller. But he'd be a better writer if he used spellcheck, dictionary.com, and an editor. While I was riveted by the progression of this tale, i was distracted by his misspellings, malapropisms, typos, and errant punctuation. And while I'm a fan and client of Kindle Direct Publishing, direct-to-digital is no excuse for lack of discipline.
June 2, 2014
Why the dog...?
Why the dog...?
Don't read this book if you're a dog lover...although the part is not long the author gives gruesome details that I'm sure most would not like to read. I know it's what most serial killers do but this particular part should have been left out.
Why the dog...?
Don't read this book if you're a dog lover...although the part is not long the author gives gruesome details that I'm sure most would not like to read. I know it's what most serial killers do but this particular part should have been left out.
June 21, 2014
A hard hitting book, not for the faint of heart. A ruthless serial killer depicted well. The killer is not satisfied with a single kill, but likes to go back and kill the entire family. The story overall is well told, except for some leaps in logic and some misspellings.. which I think can be forgiven, given that the book engages the reader right to the end. I enjoyed it.
August 3, 2014
Enjoyable Mystery
Enjoyable Mystery
Other than getting a bit too far out on some tangents, Author Mark Phillips writes a fairly fast paced novel with lots of twists and turns. He does a good job of bringing it all together in the end, although not a totally "happy ending."
Enjoyable Mystery
Other than getting a bit too far out on some tangents, Author Mark Phillips writes a fairly fast paced novel with lots of twists and turns. He does a good job of bringing it all together in the end, although not a totally "happy ending."
March 16, 2014
Beneath the Mask of Sanity is an intense book. It keeps you reading because you have to know what is going to happen next. I'm a slow reader and I finished it in just a few days because I couldn't put it down.
May 21, 2014
Not an easy read for the faint of heart. I enjoy the gory and intense psychological thriller, but even this had me questioning my desire to finish. Great storytelling and fantastic characters. But it will make you hope you never meet any of these characters on the road.
June 11, 2014
I did not see the end coming! Was completely caught off guard with it. I liked how the story progressed and the story telling itself was very easy. I was never bored with reading it and look forward to reading the sequel.
January 10, 2015
It Captured Me!
Very interesting! Although there were a few typographical errors, the story itself was good. It would be beyond tragic if a person like the main character existed but the story was great.
Very interesting! Although there were a few typographical errors, the story itself was good. It would be beyond tragic if a person like the main character existed but the story was great.
October 24, 2014
I really liked this story. That being said, the only thing keeping me from giving it 5 stars is the over abundant amount of typos.
March 17, 2015
This villain was a real bad guy! The story was suspenseful and intense, sometimes so much so that I had to take a break from reading it. Not a good book to read at night when you're home alone!
May 29, 2014
Not for the squeamish.
May 20, 2014
Great read I just couldn't put it down read it in 2 days
May 28, 2014
Good read
Good read
One of those stories you can't put down. going inside a sick mind is a scary experience but the ending smacks you in the face!
Good read
One of those stories you can't put down. going inside a sick mind is a scary experience but the ending smacks you in the face!
May 30, 2014
this story is a graphic psychological thriller it is well written and fast paced I liked the story
June 2, 2014
Utterly disturbing.
June 3, 2014
Great Detective & Suspense Book.
Great Suspenseful Book. Well written with the plot masterfully taken thru the story. Kept me interested can't wait to read the second book.
Great Suspenseful Book. Well written with the plot masterfully taken thru the story. Kept me interested can't wait to read the second book.
July 6, 2014
Not worth my time.
I prefer more mystery and less gore.
Perhaps the sequel will be better.Lisa Gardner is more my style.
But that is just my opinion.
I prefer more mystery and less gore.
Perhaps the sequel will be better.Lisa Gardner is more my style.
But that is just my opinion.
July 17, 2014
the ending was rather rushed for me & didn't really explain, but a good read...
September 11, 2014
Good beginning but writing style falls apart in the middle through ending. The story has some potential with an edited rewrite.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews