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Роман от автора феноменального бестселлера «Страж»! Эдвард Листер — успешный предприниматель, один из титанов британского музыкального бизнеса. Казалось бы, ему можно только завидовать — пока в его жизнь вдруг не вторгается трагедия: восемнадцатилетняя дочь Софи, изучавшая живопись во Флоренции, погибает от рук таинственного маньяка. Полиция бессильна, и Эдвард решает взять расследование в свои руки — когда начинает получать весточки от самого маньяка, именующего себя Страж. Судя по всему, Страж и Софи познакомились в Интернете, и чем глубже Эдвард проникает в психологический портрет маньяка, тем больше обнаруживает в нем пугающе знакомых черточек: ведь и сам он не чужд сетевых чатов и сайтов знакомств отнюдь не чужд. Что если его дочь оказалась вовсе не случайной жертвой? И что скрывает веб-сайт www.domoydotemnoty.net.kg?
464 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 2009
9 people are currently reading
273 people want to read
About the author
Charles Maclean
31 books12 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the goodreads data base.
Charles Maclean is the author of crime thrillers, and has also written about the Scottish countryside and other non-fiction.
He is the son of Sir Fitzroy Maclean – an Etonian, brilliant linguist, near-legendary adventurer, war hero, diplomat and author of Eastern Approaches. Charles Maclean is something of an adventurer himself, and certainly in his own literary journey. His first job was helping set up the Ecologist magazine; he also worked on a ranch, and as a merchant seaman. His 1972 book, St Kilda: Island on the Edge of the World, is an evocative study of the island that has never been out of print. Other successes as a non-fiction writer included 1977's The Wolf Children, examining the cases of two girls in India, claimed as feral children raised in the wild.
Charles Maclean is the author of crime thrillers, and has also written about the Scottish countryside and other non-fiction.
He is the son of Sir Fitzroy Maclean – an Etonian, brilliant linguist, near-legendary adventurer, war hero, diplomat and author of Eastern Approaches. Charles Maclean is something of an adventurer himself, and certainly in his own literary journey. His first job was helping set up the Ecologist magazine; he also worked on a ranch, and as a merchant seaman. His 1972 book, St Kilda: Island on the Edge of the World, is an evocative study of the island that has never been out of print. Other successes as a non-fiction writer included 1977's The Wolf Children, examining the cases of two girls in India, claimed as feral children raised in the wild.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
April 22, 2010
HOME BEFORE DARK is the first thriller from UK Author Charles Maclean. It's the story of a wealthy man, who had it all. A thriving business, a beautiful wife, doted on daughter. Until his daughter is murdered while studying in Florence. Frustrated by the slow and ineffectual police investigation, Ed Lister starts his own. Doing some of the investigating himself, he is led to a mysterious website, which prompts him to offer a million dollars to a computer expert in the quest to crack the weird online clues that seem to be trying to lead Ed forward.
HOME BEFORE DARK did seem to take a long time to get into. The early parts of the book, that setup the plot and give you an opening feeling for the characters - particularly Ed - didn't quite seem to work and there was definitely a feeling of having to consciously stay with the thing. Perhaps that is partially because this could be a film script in the making, with the conspicuously touristy settings (Florence / Paris / London / New York), and with elements of the action themselves - murder on a train seeming like the quintessential noir movie scene these days. Perhaps it is also because it could take the reader a little while to pick up on a couple of things - why our killer is present all the time, stalking, menacing; and that Ed is ultimately an unreliable narrator. Interestingly enough it is the pursuit of what it is that Ed is trying to hide that frequently becomes the focus, rather than the death of his daughter.
Being a thriller there are some elements of the plotline that readers will simply have to accept - the lack of police involvement in the investigation, a bit of male-jep (for a change), a psychopathic killer with a "history" and a husband with a guilty secret or two tucked away. Perhaps one of the things that remains with this reader the most about the book is the way that the women are all elusive. Ed's wife is around but not really involved; his daughter is dead and whilst mourned and seemingly the instigator of all the angst and pursuit, not discussed or fleshed out that much. The only female character that has much presence at all is a cyber-character who may not necessarily exist or even be female for that matter. There's also a few technology aspects that pushed the boundaries of credibility to stretching point, but let's face it, a thriller isn't necessarily bound by the rules of reality.
As a thriller, once the pace got moving and the story started to get complicated, HOME BEFORE DARK definitely got more interesting and ever so slightly creepy. Not exactly "leave the lights on for a week after you've finished it" frightening, and with some slight quibbles about some aspects of the book, fans of thrillers could find HOME BEFORE DARK an interesting twist on the unreliable narrator.
HOME BEFORE DARK did seem to take a long time to get into. The early parts of the book, that setup the plot and give you an opening feeling for the characters - particularly Ed - didn't quite seem to work and there was definitely a feeling of having to consciously stay with the thing. Perhaps that is partially because this could be a film script in the making, with the conspicuously touristy settings (Florence / Paris / London / New York), and with elements of the action themselves - murder on a train seeming like the quintessential noir movie scene these days. Perhaps it is also because it could take the reader a little while to pick up on a couple of things - why our killer is present all the time, stalking, menacing; and that Ed is ultimately an unreliable narrator. Interestingly enough it is the pursuit of what it is that Ed is trying to hide that frequently becomes the focus, rather than the death of his daughter.
Being a thriller there are some elements of the plotline that readers will simply have to accept - the lack of police involvement in the investigation, a bit of male-jep (for a change), a psychopathic killer with a "history" and a husband with a guilty secret or two tucked away. Perhaps one of the things that remains with this reader the most about the book is the way that the women are all elusive. Ed's wife is around but not really involved; his daughter is dead and whilst mourned and seemingly the instigator of all the angst and pursuit, not discussed or fleshed out that much. The only female character that has much presence at all is a cyber-character who may not necessarily exist or even be female for that matter. There's also a few technology aspects that pushed the boundaries of credibility to stretching point, but let's face it, a thriller isn't necessarily bound by the rules of reality.
As a thriller, once the pace got moving and the story started to get complicated, HOME BEFORE DARK definitely got more interesting and ever so slightly creepy. Not exactly "leave the lights on for a week after you've finished it" frightening, and with some slight quibbles about some aspects of the book, fans of thrillers could find HOME BEFORE DARK an interesting twist on the unreliable narrator.
July 24, 2020
Vor knapp einem Jahr haben Ed und Laura Lister ihre Tochter verloren. Sophie wurde auf dem weitläufigen Gelände der Florentiner Villa, in der sie während ihres Kunststudiums logierte, ermordet. Den Täter hat man nie gefunden, was Ed bei seinem und Lauras Florenzbesuch, bei dem sie letzte Habseligkeiten ihrer Tochter abholen wollen, zum Anlass nimmt, noch einmal bei der Polizei vorstellig zu werden.
Gleichzeitig erreicht ihn eine E-Mail von Sophies Freundin Sam, in der sie ihn um ein Treffen bittet, das sie kurz vorher ohne Angabe von Gründen absagt. Sie schickt ihm jedoch einen Link zu einer Website namens „homebeforedark“. Neugierig und in der Hoffnung, dort einen Hinweis darauf zu finden, was die internetversierte Sophie möglicherweise vor ihm verborgen hat, besucht er die Seite und entdeckt dort eine detailgetreue Darstellung des Hauses, das Sophie kurz vor ihrem Tod in diversen Variationen gemalt hat.
Eine morbide Faszination geht von diesem Haus aus. Es beschäftigt Ed genauso wie seine Chatfreundschaft mit Jelena, einer jungen Frau, die er nur aus dem Internet kennt, ihn aber besser zu verstehen scheint als seine eigene Frau, von der er sich nach Sophies Tod immer mehr entfremdet. Dann erhält er die Einladung zu einem Live-Webcast – der alles andere als harmlos ist. Was und wer sich dahinter verbirgt, ist völlig unklar, doch Ed hat immer stärker das Gefühl, dass es der Schlüssel zum Geheimnis um Sophies Ermordung sein könnte.
Das Internet, die virtuelle Welt von Chats und Onlinespielen, bietet nicht nur Tummelplätze für alle möglichen Verrückten, sondern auch die tollsten Ideen für originelle neue Thriller. Was zunächst nach einem „normalen“ Kriminalfall aussieht, erhält schon bald eine neue Dimension und springt zwischen der echten und der virtuellen Realität hin und her, als der smarte Managertyp Ed Lister dem Zauber seiner Onlinebekanntschaft verfällt und kaum noch an anderes als an Jelena oder aber die merkwürdige Website denken kann (wer hat nicht schon selbst erlebt, wie stark man sich doch manchmal mitten im Alltag mit Erlebtem aus Chats und Foren beschäftigt?)
Mit wechselnden Schauplätzen und Perspektiven hält Maclean den Spannungsbogen durchgängig aufrecht bis zum gelungenen Showdown und einem ebenfalls gelungenen Schluss. Die Charaktere sind zwar nicht allzu detailliert gezeichnet, aber doch glaubwürdig. Der (wie üblich) kranke Geist des Täters zeigt sich in ein paar Ekelszenen, größtenteils ist die Spannung aber eher psychologischer Natur mit ein paar Schauereffekten. Was in meinen Augen gar nicht passt, ist der deutsche Titel.
Für routinierte Krimileser sind manche Wendungen zwar relativ vorhersehbar, insgesamt aber gute, solide Thrillerlektüre, die sich auch verfilmt gut machen würde.
Gleichzeitig erreicht ihn eine E-Mail von Sophies Freundin Sam, in der sie ihn um ein Treffen bittet, das sie kurz vorher ohne Angabe von Gründen absagt. Sie schickt ihm jedoch einen Link zu einer Website namens „homebeforedark“. Neugierig und in der Hoffnung, dort einen Hinweis darauf zu finden, was die internetversierte Sophie möglicherweise vor ihm verborgen hat, besucht er die Seite und entdeckt dort eine detailgetreue Darstellung des Hauses, das Sophie kurz vor ihrem Tod in diversen Variationen gemalt hat.
Eine morbide Faszination geht von diesem Haus aus. Es beschäftigt Ed genauso wie seine Chatfreundschaft mit Jelena, einer jungen Frau, die er nur aus dem Internet kennt, ihn aber besser zu verstehen scheint als seine eigene Frau, von der er sich nach Sophies Tod immer mehr entfremdet. Dann erhält er die Einladung zu einem Live-Webcast – der alles andere als harmlos ist. Was und wer sich dahinter verbirgt, ist völlig unklar, doch Ed hat immer stärker das Gefühl, dass es der Schlüssel zum Geheimnis um Sophies Ermordung sein könnte.
Das Internet, die virtuelle Welt von Chats und Onlinespielen, bietet nicht nur Tummelplätze für alle möglichen Verrückten, sondern auch die tollsten Ideen für originelle neue Thriller. Was zunächst nach einem „normalen“ Kriminalfall aussieht, erhält schon bald eine neue Dimension und springt zwischen der echten und der virtuellen Realität hin und her, als der smarte Managertyp Ed Lister dem Zauber seiner Onlinebekanntschaft verfällt und kaum noch an anderes als an Jelena oder aber die merkwürdige Website denken kann (wer hat nicht schon selbst erlebt, wie stark man sich doch manchmal mitten im Alltag mit Erlebtem aus Chats und Foren beschäftigt?)
Mit wechselnden Schauplätzen und Perspektiven hält Maclean den Spannungsbogen durchgängig aufrecht bis zum gelungenen Showdown und einem ebenfalls gelungenen Schluss. Die Charaktere sind zwar nicht allzu detailliert gezeichnet, aber doch glaubwürdig. Der (wie üblich) kranke Geist des Täters zeigt sich in ein paar Ekelszenen, größtenteils ist die Spannung aber eher psychologischer Natur mit ein paar Schauereffekten. Was in meinen Augen gar nicht passt, ist der deutsche Titel.
Für routinierte Krimileser sind manche Wendungen zwar relativ vorhersehbar, insgesamt aber gute, solide Thrillerlektüre, die sich auch verfilmt gut machen würde.
December 20, 2024
Every book that Charles Maclean writes is a mess -- a bizarre, well-written, beautiful mess -- and this book is no different.
What amazes me about Maclean's writing is the constant sense of uncertainty about what will happen next; Maclean is at his best when we as readers feel that we have immersed ourselves into a world of systematic chaos, a world where so many strange things are happening that we simply can't make sense of it all, even though we know it must all tie together in some way.
So, on that note, the first 150 pages or so of this novel are some of the best pages I've ever read -- I would personally recommend that you read them slowly and savor them; appreciate the fresh prose, the continuous mysteries, and the subtle way that Maclean maintains narrative distance from his protagonist despite the first-person POV.
The next part of the book is good, but in its own way -- the story shifts into a slightly different, more frantic tone. No longer are we constantly bombarded with the next mystery, but rather the story starts to zoom in a bit more on the characters, and we feel the sense of urgency start to peak, especially with Campbell's financial situation.
I think my main issues with this story lie with the main character, Ed Lister. I feel that his character is central to the story, and yet his thoughts, feelings, and personality in general are so vague. I liked the narrative distance at the beginning of the story, but while Maclean sees the necessity of "zooming in" midway through and eventually affording empathy for some of the other characters, he never quite achieves this effect with Ed. I never know what Ed's real motivations are -- he feels like a very unreliable narrator. He tells us that he feels sad about his daughter's death and his crumbling marriage, but we never quite see these emotions displayed through his actions. I also felt that his affair should have somehow related more to the story overall -- marital infidelity is a motif throughout Maclean's works, and the way it was integrated made it seem more important to this story than it actually proved to be.
Lastly, I felt that Ed's relationship with Ward was underplayed -- early on, I felt very strongly that they had some deep history with each other, so I was somewhat dissatisfied with the truth behind Ward's obsession with Ed.
That being said, I loved the final confrontation scene, and the ending of the story still haunts me whenever I think of it. Which brings me back to my original point -- even though this story is a mess, it is extremely well-written and is unlike anything you will probably ever read. I think that Charles Maclean might be one of the world's most underrated writers.
This one isn't as good as The Watcher, but it's still worth a read.
What amazes me about Maclean's writing is the constant sense of uncertainty about what will happen next; Maclean is at his best when we as readers feel that we have immersed ourselves into a world of systematic chaos, a world where so many strange things are happening that we simply can't make sense of it all, even though we know it must all tie together in some way.
So, on that note, the first 150 pages or so of this novel are some of the best pages I've ever read -- I would personally recommend that you read them slowly and savor them; appreciate the fresh prose, the continuous mysteries, and the subtle way that Maclean maintains narrative distance from his protagonist despite the first-person POV.
The next part of the book is good, but in its own way -- the story shifts into a slightly different, more frantic tone. No longer are we constantly bombarded with the next mystery, but rather the story starts to zoom in a bit more on the characters, and we feel the sense of urgency start to peak, especially with Campbell's financial situation.
I think my main issues with this story lie with the main character, Ed Lister. I feel that his character is central to the story, and yet his thoughts, feelings, and personality in general are so vague. I liked the narrative distance at the beginning of the story, but while Maclean sees the necessity of "zooming in" midway through and eventually affording empathy for some of the other characters, he never quite achieves this effect with Ed. I never know what Ed's real motivations are -- he feels like a very unreliable narrator. He tells us that he feels sad about his daughter's death and his crumbling marriage, but we never quite see these emotions displayed through his actions. I also felt that his affair should have somehow related more to the story overall -- marital infidelity is a motif throughout Maclean's works, and the way it was integrated made it seem more important to this story than it actually proved to be.
Lastly, I felt that Ed's relationship with Ward was underplayed -- early on, I felt very strongly that they had some deep history with each other, so I was somewhat dissatisfied with the truth behind Ward's obsession with Ed.
That being said, I loved the final confrontation scene, and the ending of the story still haunts me whenever I think of it. Which brings me back to my original point -- even though this story is a mess, it is extremely well-written and is unlike anything you will probably ever read. I think that Charles Maclean might be one of the world's most underrated writers.
This one isn't as good as The Watcher, but it's still worth a read.
February 23, 2011
This book had been rated as the years' most chilling thriller and I would inform you why did it take the year most chilling thriller book , but I would not recommend this book to weak hearted people, because its full of intense and horror scenes.
This story is talking about Ed the desperate father and his wife who's their life had changed forever after their lovely young daughter had been brutally murdered in Florence. Sofia, their young daughter had been studying art in Italy. However, Ed is very rich business man who can be defined as millionaire business man. He tried everything to find her daughter's killer and he couldn’t sleep with such grieve because he felt that he didn’t do everything possible to help with the investigations. Money couldn’t however buy everything in the life such as grieve. The Italian investigations spent a lot of time and tried to do everything possible but due to the lack of evidence and leads, the case was closed or more specifically had been put on hold and they totally neglected it.
Ed and her wife had traveled to Florence to attend the anniversary of Sofia's death. However, they met Sofia's friend who helped them by giving them Sofia's diary and drawing book which an unknown site was there. This site was called homebeforedark.com. Ed logged in to the website where the Sofia's killer had put Trojan worm which enables him to take control of everything Ed is sending and receiving and actually reading everything he writes. Ed asked the help of Sofia's friend to investigate the source of that strange website and know its originality to see what kind of site is this. By the way she began investigating she had put her life on danger.
Ed was stuck in long exhausting journey through Florence all the way to Paris and then going by London and finally ending up in New York. He asks computer analyst to help him with that site to investigate the mysteriousness of what is he taking himself into, after failing with Sofia's friend. After pages and chapters of finding clues and red herrings on that creepy site the novel ends up to good ending for Ed. However I will leave you to see whether Ed would be the hunter or the hunted that what will you discover at the end.
This story is really utterly gripping; I think it’s the best thriller of the internet age I have ever read. There were times when scarcely dared to turn the page because it lets you live the events in the story. My own opinion is that it’s a classic thriller of the highest quality. A compulsive read.
This story is talking about Ed the desperate father and his wife who's their life had changed forever after their lovely young daughter had been brutally murdered in Florence. Sofia, their young daughter had been studying art in Italy. However, Ed is very rich business man who can be defined as millionaire business man. He tried everything to find her daughter's killer and he couldn’t sleep with such grieve because he felt that he didn’t do everything possible to help with the investigations. Money couldn’t however buy everything in the life such as grieve. The Italian investigations spent a lot of time and tried to do everything possible but due to the lack of evidence and leads, the case was closed or more specifically had been put on hold and they totally neglected it.
Ed and her wife had traveled to Florence to attend the anniversary of Sofia's death. However, they met Sofia's friend who helped them by giving them Sofia's diary and drawing book which an unknown site was there. This site was called homebeforedark.com. Ed logged in to the website where the Sofia's killer had put Trojan worm which enables him to take control of everything Ed is sending and receiving and actually reading everything he writes. Ed asked the help of Sofia's friend to investigate the source of that strange website and know its originality to see what kind of site is this. By the way she began investigating she had put her life on danger.
Ed was stuck in long exhausting journey through Florence all the way to Paris and then going by London and finally ending up in New York. He asks computer analyst to help him with that site to investigate the mysteriousness of what is he taking himself into, after failing with Sofia's friend. After pages and chapters of finding clues and red herrings on that creepy site the novel ends up to good ending for Ed. However I will leave you to see whether Ed would be the hunter or the hunted that what will you discover at the end.
This story is really utterly gripping; I think it’s the best thriller of the internet age I have ever read. There were times when scarcely dared to turn the page because it lets you live the events in the story. My own opinion is that it’s a classic thriller of the highest quality. A compulsive read.
October 19, 2021
Vor fi zile, poate nu acum, dar în lunile sau anii următori, când te vei gândi la ea, când telefonul va suna și vei răspunde fără să stai pe gânduri, întrebându-te dacă te sună să-ți spună că n-a pățit nimic.
Nu vei înceta să îți faci griji pentru copiii tăi nici după ce vor fi suficient de mari să plece din casa părintească. Îți vei face griji chiar și după ce ei vor fi de mult așezați la casa lor.
Dacă există vreo posibilitate de a întoarce timpul sau vreo speranță ca într-o dimineață să descoperi că totul nu a fost decât un vis urât, eu unul nu am descoperit-o încă. Cred că este dificil să te resemnezi, și supărarea trece foarte greu atunci când familia ți-a fost distrusă. De când a murit Sophie, noi nu am mai fost aceiași. Criminalul nu își ucide doar victima, el ucide și o parte din familia acesteia. În acea noapte a ucis o părticică din Laura și din mine.
Îl visez, pe criminalul nostru și al vostru ― o ființă umană fără conștiință, fără niciun respect pentru viața unui semen de-al lui, indiferent la durere și care lasă în urmă doar durere, care nu este uman deloc, cel puțin nu în cartea mea, dar cu toate acestea încă umblă liber și își vede de viață în continuare.
*
I-am ajutat cu sfaturi, am împărtășit cele mai personale sentimente cu ceilalți, străini ale căror vieți le-a distrus. Am înțeles din propria mea experiență prin ce au trecut și ei. Mi-a părut atât de rău pentru ei. Am simțit, și încă mai simt, că ce s-a întâmplat a fost parțial și din vina mea. M-am întrebat dacă ar trebui să aștern totul pe hârtie. Aș fi vrut să scriu. Ceva m-a ținut însă.
Nu vei înceta să îți faci griji pentru copiii tăi nici după ce vor fi suficient de mari să plece din casa părintească. Îți vei face griji chiar și după ce ei vor fi de mult așezați la casa lor.
Dacă există vreo posibilitate de a întoarce timpul sau vreo speranță ca într-o dimineață să descoperi că totul nu a fost decât un vis urât, eu unul nu am descoperit-o încă. Cred că este dificil să te resemnezi, și supărarea trece foarte greu atunci când familia ți-a fost distrusă. De când a murit Sophie, noi nu am mai fost aceiași. Criminalul nu își ucide doar victima, el ucide și o parte din familia acesteia. În acea noapte a ucis o părticică din Laura și din mine.
Îl visez, pe criminalul nostru și al vostru ― o ființă umană fără conștiință, fără niciun respect pentru viața unui semen de-al lui, indiferent la durere și care lasă în urmă doar durere, care nu este uman deloc, cel puțin nu în cartea mea, dar cu toate acestea încă umblă liber și își vede de viață în continuare.
*
I-am ajutat cu sfaturi, am împărtășit cele mai personale sentimente cu ceilalți, străini ale căror vieți le-a distrus. Am înțeles din propria mea experiență prin ce au trecut și ei. Mi-a părut atât de rău pentru ei. Am simțit, și încă mai simt, că ce s-a întâmplat a fost parțial și din vina mea. M-am întrebat dacă ar trebui să aștern totul pe hârtie. Aș fi vrut să scriu. Ceva m-a ținut însă.
May 14, 2009
When Ed Lister's daughter Sophie is violently killed while studying in Florence he's devestated, but when after a year there is still no progress towards finding her killer, Ed decides to take it into his own hands. He has the money and the determination to track the killer down, but upon finding the killer's website he realises this is no normal person. This deadly game of cat and mouse highlights the dangers of the internet and how easy it is for someone to get far to close with deadly consequences...
Great story, although slightly creepy when you think of how easily this could happen in real life. It's fast paced and the language used is very easy to get into. The storyline is really clever, I liked how it progressed and then had an explosive ending. I'm not sure whether I liked Ed Lister as a character, but I think that's how you're meant to feel. I really enjoyed this book, and have heard good things about his other books also, so I'll definitely be looking out for those as well.
Great story, although slightly creepy when you think of how easily this could happen in real life. It's fast paced and the language used is very easy to get into. The storyline is really clever, I liked how it progressed and then had an explosive ending. I'm not sure whether I liked Ed Lister as a character, but I think that's how you're meant to feel. I really enjoyed this book, and have heard good things about his other books also, so I'll definitely be looking out for those as well.
November 21, 2018
Definitely a thriller sometimes bordering on horror. You simply did not know what would happen next with the many twists and turns the story took which very much added to the tension. An author I want to read again.
June 2, 2019
La inceput m-a atras coperta cartii si titlul care promitea ceva ce ma va tine cu sufletul la gura. Pe parcusul celor 500 de pagini am fost usor dezamagita. Un amestec de gen politist si ,,dragoste” imposibila ,scris simplu fara ca actiunea sa ma atraga in mod deosebit.
October 25, 2020
Жесть, жесть как она есть. Маньяк и Казахстан, что может быть глупее!
Разве что только Борат.
Разве что только Борат.
December 20, 2021
I enjoy Riley books, although this one was good, it’s not as nail biting as his others. I am reading final girl next and can’t wait.
This was good, but just not the next of his
This was good, but just not the next of his
January 21, 2023
The main character is the most hateable man ever written! How am i supposed to feel bad for this rich douchebag who has everything and yet is so determined in ruining his own life?
He forms this weird fantasy out of a woman he talks to online and feels as though he “loves her” despite his perfect wife and son that love him and try to be with him while they are all mourning their daughter.
Not to mention every woman character is written in a sense that over sexualises them. Their personalities are boring and most of them get killed.
The writing is fine, sometimes awkward and often times difficult to differentiate all of the perspectives constantly changing.
Gave up about 60% through. probably won’t go back to it.
He forms this weird fantasy out of a woman he talks to online and feels as though he “loves her” despite his perfect wife and son that love him and try to be with him while they are all mourning their daughter.
Not to mention every woman character is written in a sense that over sexualises them. Their personalities are boring and most of them get killed.
The writing is fine, sometimes awkward and often times difficult to differentiate all of the perspectives constantly changing.
Gave up about 60% through. probably won’t go back to it.
February 20, 2023
Abgebrochen auf Seite 100/511.
Faszinierend, wie ein Autor in einem Thriller es schaffen kann, so wenig Spannung aufzubauen. Der Schreibstil gefällt mir leider gar nicht, die Charaktere bleiben alle platt und leblos und die gesamte Story wirkt irgendwie "billig" und unkreativ. Das Ende interessiert mich jetzt auch nicht besonders, mich würde es sogar nicht wundern, wenn es das absolut Offensichtliche wäre.
Faszinierend, wie ein Autor in einem Thriller es schaffen kann, so wenig Spannung aufzubauen. Der Schreibstil gefällt mir leider gar nicht, die Charaktere bleiben alle platt und leblos und die gesamte Story wirkt irgendwie "billig" und unkreativ. Das Ende interessiert mich jetzt auch nicht besonders, mich würde es sogar nicht wundern, wenn es das absolut Offensichtliche wäre.
February 26, 2023
Hat mir leider gar nicht gefallen. Ich fand die Geschichte leider viel zu konstruiert. Und zwar sowohl den Ausgangspunkt, warum das Verbrechen stattgefunden hat, als auch den weiteren Verlauf der Aufklärung im Buch. Darüber hinaus fand ich nicht eine der Personen sympathisch. Schade.
May 31, 2025
Der Plot ist eigentlich gut durchdacht und erinnert etwas an eine Fitzek Story, aber trotzdem hat es mich nie ganz gepackt (was unter anderem daran lag, dass sich für mich keine Verbindung zum Erzähler aufgebaut hat).
July 17, 2023
3.5. Good read!
April 20, 2024
Für mich fing es etwas mau an, aber die Spannung steigerte sich stetig. Konnte das Buch nicht mehr aus der Hand legen.
December 6, 2022
The main character is the most hateable man ever written! How am i supposed to feel bad for this rich douchebag who has everything and yet is so determined in ruining his own life?
He forms this weird fantasy out of a woman he talks to online and feels as though he “loves her” despite his perfect wife and son that love him and try to be with him while they are all mourning their daughter.
Not to mention every woman character is written in a sense that over sexualises them. Their personalities are boring and most of them get killed.
The writing is fine, sometimes awkward and often times difficult to differentiate all of the perspectives constantly changing.
Gave up about 60% through. probably won’t go back to it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 10, 2009
Very compelling so far, I've got the hardback version so it's very chunky to carry around
January 17, 2014
Film gibi bir romandı. Üniversite sınavına girip döndüğümde
elime alıp okumaya başlayıp bırakamadığım bir kitap. :)))
elime alıp okumaya başlayıp bırakamadığım bir kitap. :)))
September 21, 2014
loved it, couldn't put it down, very catchy and loved the twisted diverse paths that the author gave in the middle of if all, making you think and thrilled on whom is who!
July 1, 2023
Sorry I entered this against the wrong title lol
March 12, 2010
great twists and turns but a bit heavy to hold when tired.
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