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Labyrinth #1
Лабіринт розуму
Тіло в річці — це лише початок.
За ним ховається ланцюг замовних убивств, які ніколи не мали бути розкриті. Багаті й впливові купують смерть, наче розвагу, а інші змушені підкорятися.
Доктор Холден Ешфорд крок за кроком складає уламки мозаїки. Але що ближче він підходить до істини, то ясніше стає: це не полювання на вбивцю. Це лабіринт, збудований самою системою, де справжній монстр ховається не в темних провулках, а за залізними воротами розкішних маєтків.
За ним ховається ланцюг замовних убивств, які ніколи не мали бути розкриті. Багаті й впливові купують смерть, наче розвагу, а інші змушені підкорятися.
Доктор Холден Ешфорд крок за кроком складає уламки мозаїки. Але що ближче він підходить до істини, то ясніше стає: це не полювання на вбивцю. Це лабіринт, збудований самою системою, де справжній монстр ховається не в темних провулках, а за залізними воротами розкішних маєтків.
464 pages, Hardcover
First published August 1, 2025
About the author
Alex Noir
3 books4 followersAlex Noir has a background in psychology, holding a Master’s degree with a focus on trauma, abnormal behavior, and criminal psychology. Years of study and personal research in PTSD shaped an interest in how people fracture under pressure—and how they find ways to survive.
In recent years, work with gestalt practice added another perspective: not only how darkness consumes, but also how people search for healing.
The novels bring these themes into fiction, blending psychological depth with crime and moral dilemmas. Labyrinth of Mind is the first novel in the series that explores the human mind as its own labyrinth.
In recent years, work with gestalt practice added another perspective: not only how darkness consumes, but also how people search for healing.
The novels bring these themes into fiction, blending psychological depth with crime and moral dilemmas. Labyrinth of Mind is the first novel in the series that explores the human mind as its own labyrinth.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 29, 2026
Головний герой, молодий та інтелектуальний профайлер Холден, володіє унікальним даром (або прокляттям) — він здатен візуалізувати дані у вигляді складного лабіринту у своїй голові. Коли він шукає злочинця, він буквально блукає стежками свого розуму, де кожен доказ — це поворот, а кожна зачіпка — обличчя фантома в тумані.
Що мене найбільше зачепило:
Мені дуже відгукнулася думка, що наші минулі болі — це не просто спогади, а «глухі високі стіни» у нашому внутрішньому лабіринті. Їх неможливо просто перестрибнути, їх треба лише розбирати по цеглинці, щоб рухатися далі.
Автор майстерно передає стан Холдена — від виснаження та відчуття «червоного туману» болю до моментів просвітлення, коли пазл нарешті складається.
Це справжній подарунок для любителів Dark Academia та інтелектуальних розслідувань Інтерполу.
Ця книга змушує замислитися: а як виглядає мій лабіринт? Чи не забагато в ньому глухих кутів? Холден вчить нас, що навіть якщо оболонка нашої душі вкрита тріщинами, вона залишається цілісною, доки ми не загубили жоден її фрагмент.
Що мене найбільше зачепило:
Мені дуже відгукнулася думка, що наші минулі болі — це не просто спогади, а «глухі високі стіни» у нашому внутрішньому лабіринті. Їх неможливо просто перестрибнути, їх треба лише розбирати по цеглинці, щоб рухатися далі.
Автор майстерно передає стан Холдена — від виснаження та відчуття «червоного туману» болю до моментів просвітлення, коли пазл нарешті складається.
Це справжній подарунок для любителів Dark Academia та інтелектуальних розслідувань Інтерполу.
Ця книга змушує замислитися: а як виглядає мій лабіринт? Чи не забагато в ньому глухих кутів? Холден вчить нас, що навіть якщо оболонка нашої душі вкрита тріщинами, вона залишається цілісною, доки ми не загубили жоден її фрагмент.
September 14, 2025
The author's blurb lists them as a psychologist, and storyteller. Well let me tell you these talents came together in an astounding book. I love psychological thrillers, watching them on TV and reading books about it, so I have seen a lot. This one is at the very tip top for me.
The crimes, the investigations and the processes to reach the final deductions of the masterminds really sucks you in. But the supreme part was Dr. Holden Asher's brilliance and watching his mind splinter apart. The author allows you a first row seat to it happening and the reasons for it. Thank goodness for Dr. Schiller, Jack Sanders and Ben the cat.
This is billed as the first release in the Labyrinth series and I can't wait.
I want to add that the love interest in this book is very important in Holden's life, both in his reality and in his fractured mind.
The crimes, the investigations and the processes to reach the final deductions of the masterminds really sucks you in. But the supreme part was Dr. Holden Asher's brilliance and watching his mind splinter apart. The author allows you a first row seat to it happening and the reasons for it. Thank goodness for Dr. Schiller, Jack Sanders and Ben the cat.
This is billed as the first release in the Labyrinth series and I can't wait.
I want to add that the love interest in this book is very important in Holden's life, both in his reality and in his fractured mind.
September 9, 2026
Got to around the 10% mark of this book and had to stop reading. I'm very disappointed and feeling extremely let-down, because the premise was great and I've been looking for an intriguing dark detective MM story for a while. And a series! I love a good detective series! Yay! I started and thought the writing was decent enough. However. The stylistic choices, continuity errors, and plot beats leading nowhere in the mere 61 pages I read left a horrible taste in my mouth, and I simply cannot bring myself to continue.
It really started to come undone on page 37. Here we hear of a Gregory Dorner. He has two children. His younger son is missing. Page 38 introduces his older son, Nick Dorner. On page 41, suddenly there's a Nick DorMer. Who tf is Nick DorMer and where is Nick DorNer. On page 44 we hear about Gregory DorMer. Ok I guess they're the DorMers not the DorNers? I guess it was a typo? On page 48, a third man enters the chat: Gregory Dorn. Now we've chopped a whole syllable off that last name. And on page 53, we've circled right back around to Dorner...s: our MC is in the Dorners' (not Dorner's) kitchen. So I guess that's a fourth name after all?
Some of Nick's cousins are present in this scene. Three kids: a boy named Harry and his two younger twin sisters. On page 45, Harry is afraid to leave the room because of what his sisters might reveal to the psychologist MC. On page 46, the MC, in a ploy to get Harry to leave to hear just exactly what the sisters will say, asks Nick DorN/Mer to play a song on his guitar...."You look tired. [??? what does this have to do with playing guitar or what comes next???? It is a total non-sequitur in the context of the scene] Maybe cheer your sisters up a bit?" Ok wait. Hold up. Whose sisters are these?? I thought Gregory DorN/Mer only had two children, two boys, one of them being Nick. And on page 45 the twin girls are definitely referred to as Harry's sisters. Now, all of a sudden, they're Nick's sisters too?
Ok. Fine. I tried to let it go. The errors were itching at me, but I kept reading. I wanted to give it a chance because dang, that premise tho. Then this happened in the very beginning of the next chapter: "He spun on his heel--almost slipping--and headed back to the kitchen. [emphasis mine] Whenever he took strong meds, he'd wake up with a ravenous appetite. Not immediately, but out of the blue: his mouth would start watering, and the tastes and smells of his favorite dishes would come rushing back. Feeling ready to devour something large and preferably greasy, Holden, in high spirits, headed for the bedroom." What? What? He *turns around* to head for the kitchen and then in the same breath/with the same thought running through his head, he's heading for the bedroom?
Overall I have no choice but to conclude: this is sloppy. Very very very sloppy. AI slop? I don't know for sure, but the vagaries of the plot beats, things that are seemingly emphasized only to not be important at all, make me wonder. And using FOUR DIFFERENT last names for the same damb family in the span of SIXTEEN pages is a continuity crime of epic proportions. How am I supposed to put my trust in an author who can't even keep something as simple as a last name straight? How can I believe they'll be able to weave the complicated plot threads required of a great detective story in any kind of coherent and meaningful fashion? Why should I spend my precious time reading a book that so clearly hasn't been re-read even once by its author? The answer, dear reader: I simply won't.
Other things that had me side-eyeing the author on this 61 page ride of mine:
- Book opens with a woman diving into a river to save someone else. Then when they get back to the river bank she pulls a phone out to call the police. From whence this dry-and-working phone came? Who can say. Was she carrying it in a magical waterproof bag? Did it magically zap into her hand from the ether? Because no mention was made of her dropping her things before jumping into the river, so how did it stay dry? She also was walking a dog when the scene started, but after she jumps in the water, the dog is gone: not gone as in ran away, gone as though he never existed in the first place because's he never referred to again.
- Book's opening scene talks about a neighborhood, and knowing one's neighbors, and a river that's narrow enough to be able to visualize a bag floating in the middle of it, with a slow enough current that the bag...?never moves? even though supposedly a whole day goes by? Anyway. It was all very much small-town vibes. Only....turns out....
- Book is supposed to be set in London? Um. Ok? Then the MC refers to an underground transit system stop as "the metro station". No. Just.....no. Don't set your book in London and then completely ignore the things that make London London. What's the point?
- Book has random fragments of sentences italicized, for no apparent reason: "Realizing Daniel might drown soon, she didn't hesistate--she dove in." and "Holden cleared his throat into his hand and hunched slightly, hiding an inappropriate spark of curiosity--the entrance was something to see." Why???
I must stop myself now, lest this review grow longer than the amount of text I read.
It really started to come undone on page 37. Here we hear of a Gregory Dorner. He has two children. His younger son is missing. Page 38 introduces his older son, Nick Dorner. On page 41, suddenly there's a Nick DorMer. Who tf is Nick DorMer and where is Nick DorNer. On page 44 we hear about Gregory DorMer. Ok I guess they're the DorMers not the DorNers? I guess it was a typo? On page 48, a third man enters the chat: Gregory Dorn. Now we've chopped a whole syllable off that last name. And on page 53, we've circled right back around to Dorner...s: our MC is in the Dorners' (not Dorner's) kitchen. So I guess that's a fourth name after all?
Some of Nick's cousins are present in this scene. Three kids: a boy named Harry and his two younger twin sisters. On page 45, Harry is afraid to leave the room because of what his sisters might reveal to the psychologist MC. On page 46, the MC, in a ploy to get Harry to leave to hear just exactly what the sisters will say, asks Nick DorN/Mer to play a song on his guitar...."You look tired. [??? what does this have to do with playing guitar or what comes next???? It is a total non-sequitur in the context of the scene] Maybe cheer your sisters up a bit?" Ok wait. Hold up. Whose sisters are these?? I thought Gregory DorN/Mer only had two children, two boys, one of them being Nick. And on page 45 the twin girls are definitely referred to as Harry's sisters. Now, all of a sudden, they're Nick's sisters too?
Ok. Fine. I tried to let it go. The errors were itching at me, but I kept reading. I wanted to give it a chance because dang, that premise tho. Then this happened in the very beginning of the next chapter: "He spun on his heel--almost slipping--and headed back to the kitchen. [emphasis mine] Whenever he took strong meds, he'd wake up with a ravenous appetite. Not immediately, but out of the blue: his mouth would start watering, and the tastes and smells of his favorite dishes would come rushing back. Feeling ready to devour something large and preferably greasy, Holden, in high spirits, headed for the bedroom." What? What? He *turns around* to head for the kitchen and then in the same breath/with the same thought running through his head, he's heading for the bedroom?
Overall I have no choice but to conclude: this is sloppy. Very very very sloppy. AI slop? I don't know for sure, but the vagaries of the plot beats, things that are seemingly emphasized only to not be important at all, make me wonder. And using FOUR DIFFERENT last names for the same damb family in the span of SIXTEEN pages is a continuity crime of epic proportions. How am I supposed to put my trust in an author who can't even keep something as simple as a last name straight? How can I believe they'll be able to weave the complicated plot threads required of a great detective story in any kind of coherent and meaningful fashion? Why should I spend my precious time reading a book that so clearly hasn't been re-read even once by its author? The answer, dear reader: I simply won't.
Other things that had me side-eyeing the author on this 61 page ride of mine:
- Book opens with a woman diving into a river to save someone else. Then when they get back to the river bank she pulls a phone out to call the police. From whence this dry-and-working phone came? Who can say. Was she carrying it in a magical waterproof bag? Did it magically zap into her hand from the ether? Because no mention was made of her dropping her things before jumping into the river, so how did it stay dry? She also was walking a dog when the scene started, but after she jumps in the water, the dog is gone: not gone as in ran away, gone as though he never existed in the first place because's he never referred to again.
- Book's opening scene talks about a neighborhood, and knowing one's neighbors, and a river that's narrow enough to be able to visualize a bag floating in the middle of it, with a slow enough current that the bag...?never moves? even though supposedly a whole day goes by? Anyway. It was all very much small-town vibes. Only....turns out....
- Book is supposed to be set in London? Um. Ok? Then the MC refers to an underground transit system stop as "the metro station". No. Just.....no. Don't set your book in London and then completely ignore the things that make London London. What's the point?
- Book has random fragments of sentences italicized, for no apparent reason: "Realizing Daniel might drown soon, she didn't hesistate--she dove in." and "Holden cleared his throat into his hand and hunched slightly, hiding an inappropriate spark of curiosity--the entrance was something to see." Why???
I must stop myself now, lest this review grow longer than the amount of text I read.
October 22, 2025
4.5 stars rounded up to 5.
This book was delightfully compelling. I was in a bit of a book slump before starting this but it got me out of it! I wonder if the author has written under a different pseudonym because the story flowed perfectly. It doesn’t feel like it’s 600+ pages, especially since I read about 300 pages in basically one sitting.
Holden (the MC)’s mental health issues felt grounded and not too sensationalised. It’s no surprise that the author is a psychologist. As someone who’s in their last year in undergraduate as a psychology major and someone who’s dealt with severe mental health issues and the resulting therapy, I enjoyed the insights into the human psyche that the characters brought up. Treatment was mostly realistic although I find the idea of Holden completely coming off medication by the end of the novel unrealistic, especially considering the ending.
As for the romance, it’s definitely a slow burn. If you’re expecting the MCs to be having passionate sex by page 100, this is not the book for you. Also, this book is not high in “spice” which I liked. The few sex scenes in this book were only a couple of pages and didn’t overstay their welcome which I appreciated as I find sex scenes boring usually.
I do have some grievances. The college jock friend turned trade broker character (I think his name was Matthew?) did not need to be included imo, especially that first night with him. I feel like what he contributed to the plot could’ve be assigned to other characters. I have a suspicion the author forgot about him by the end as he was not mentioned in the last quarter of the novel. Also, the book is mostly told in Holden’s POV but jumps around to other characters randomly. It jumps to the other MC’s POV mostly which makes sense but sometimes, it jumps to a side character’s POV suddenly which is a bit jarring. There were some side comments in the narration that made that made me raise my eyebrow (why did Holden specifically point out that the 13 year old girl he knew for a few years suddenly developed curves?) but those were few and far between.
Overall though, I really enjoyed this book and can’t wait to read the other books in the series!
This book was delightfully compelling. I was in a bit of a book slump before starting this but it got me out of it! I wonder if the author has written under a different pseudonym because the story flowed perfectly. It doesn’t feel like it’s 600+ pages, especially since I read about 300 pages in basically one sitting.
Holden (the MC)’s mental health issues felt grounded and not too sensationalised. It’s no surprise that the author is a psychologist. As someone who’s in their last year in undergraduate as a psychology major and someone who’s dealt with severe mental health issues and the resulting therapy, I enjoyed the insights into the human psyche that the characters brought up. Treatment was mostly realistic although I find the idea of Holden completely coming off medication by the end of the novel unrealistic, especially considering the ending.
As for the romance, it’s definitely a slow burn. If you’re expecting the MCs to be having passionate sex by page 100, this is not the book for you. Also, this book is not high in “spice” which I liked. The few sex scenes in this book were only a couple of pages and didn’t overstay their welcome which I appreciated as I find sex scenes boring usually.
I do have some grievances. The college jock friend turned trade broker character (I think his name was Matthew?) did not need to be included imo, especially that first night with him. I feel like what he contributed to the plot could’ve be assigned to other characters. I have a suspicion the author forgot about him by the end as he was not mentioned in the last quarter of the novel. Also, the book is mostly told in Holden’s POV but jumps around to other characters randomly. It jumps to the other MC’s POV mostly which makes sense but sometimes, it jumps to a side character’s POV suddenly which is a bit jarring. There were some side comments in the narration that made that made me raise my eyebrow (why did Holden specifically point out that the 13 year old girl he knew for a few years suddenly developed curves?) but those were few and far between.
Overall though, I really enjoyed this book and can’t wait to read the other books in the series!
June 15, 2026
Alex Noir is a unique author. One paragraph brings tears of tenderness to your eyes. Another plunges you into despair. Another makes you happy.
And this is against the backdrop of a carefully crafted text and impressive nuances in various spheres of people's lives and activities.
"The Labyrinth of the Mind" was difficult for me to read. At first, it took me a long time to get used to Holly's peculiar thinking. Then I had a hard time accepting the moment with Kira. I desperately pitied the girl, then I got angry at her stupidity. And the icing on the cake was my disappointment with Professor Richards.
Holly turned out great. I have to give him (and the author) credit. Just the scene at the beginning of the book, where Holi, despite all her fears, saves the boy. It's a very brave act.
I'm endlessly enchanted by Colin and in love with Jack! Jack deserves a whole other ode. Strong, smart, interesting, caring, and affectionate. And at the same time, stern and powerful. What a stunning combination!
There's one more character... and I think he deserves not only an ode, but also a book—his happy fate. That's Tom.
If you want to know why, read it! This book is worth every word!
Thanks to the author for a wonderful time. And yes, I believed it!
And this is against the backdrop of a carefully crafted text and impressive nuances in various spheres of people's lives and activities.
"The Labyrinth of the Mind" was difficult for me to read. At first, it took me a long time to get used to Holly's peculiar thinking. Then I had a hard time accepting the moment with Kira. I desperately pitied the girl, then I got angry at her stupidity. And the icing on the cake was my disappointment with Professor Richards.
Holly turned out great. I have to give him (and the author) credit. Just the scene at the beginning of the book, where Holi, despite all her fears, saves the boy. It's a very brave act.
I'm endlessly enchanted by Colin and in love with Jack! Jack deserves a whole other ode. Strong, smart, interesting, caring, and affectionate. And at the same time, stern and powerful. What a stunning combination!
There's one more character... and I think he deserves not only an ode, but also a book—his happy fate. That's Tom.
If you want to know why, read it! This book is worth every word!
Thanks to the author for a wonderful time. And yes, I believed it!
September 2, 2025
It's a masterpiece. The emotions are overwhelming. The book captivates from the first pages.
Amazing characters that you fall in love with and don't want to let go. Amazing plot, well-developed. Like the cherry on the cake - love.
If you like detectives, investigations - you are here. If you like strong heroes - you are here. If you want to escape from reality for a while - you are here.
As I said above, the book is simply amazing.
Amazing characters that you fall in love with and don't want to let go. Amazing plot, well-developed. Like the cherry on the cake - love.
If you like detectives, investigations - you are here. If you like strong heroes - you are here. If you want to escape from reality for a while - you are here.
As I said above, the book is simply amazing.
dnf-meh
June 20, 202631% started good, but just feels like a Hannibal nbc fanfic and I’m kind of losing interest. Maybe I’ll come back to it
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Did Not Finish
June 17, 2026I don't support authors who use AI for their covers or marketing.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews