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Detective Sergeant Pace #1
Los buenos samaritanos
Adictivo, peligroso e inquietante.
Seth Beauman no puede dormir. Se queda despierto hasta tarde llamando a gente que no conoce con la esperanza de lograr conectar con alguien, mientras su mujer, Maeve, escucha a hurtadillas en el piso de arriba.
Una noche sus llamadas lo llevan por casualidad hasta Hadley Serf, una joven que cree que está hablando con los Buenos Samaritanos, una línea de ayuda a gente inestable.
Lo que empieza como un intercambio inocente se acabará convirtiendo en mucho más.
Una historia de amor disfuncional que se transforma en algo mucho más oscuro cuando Seth lleva a Hadley a casa y alguien los está mirando...
Seth Beauman no puede dormir. Se queda despierto hasta tarde llamando a gente que no conoce con la esperanza de lograr conectar con alguien, mientras su mujer, Maeve, escucha a hurtadillas en el piso de arriba.
Una noche sus llamadas lo llevan por casualidad hasta Hadley Serf, una joven que cree que está hablando con los Buenos Samaritanos, una línea de ayuda a gente inestable.
Lo que empieza como un intercambio inocente se acabará convirtiendo en mucho más.
Una historia de amor disfuncional que se transforma en algo mucho más oscuro cuando Seth lleva a Hadley a casa y alguien los está mirando...
480 pages, Paperback
First published September 15, 2018
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2300 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 393 reviews
November 29, 2018
this is a dark, disturbing, delicious story that will leave you thinking, “WTH did I just read???”
This book will suck you in, turn you on your head, spin you all around, and then spit you out... leaving you wordless, breathless, a little less innocent, and in need of a shower.... there is a reason for those six bottles of bleach! This book is like no other you have red before, I can promise you that! It is bold, it is edgy, it is graphic... this thriller had more graphic sex then most romances, there is no fading to black! That also goes for the violence and killings.... Will Carver gives you a front row seat to all the gory details and doesn’t hold any punches! This book is not for the faint of heart, if it were a movie it would be rated X, but what a wonderful movie it would make!
Multiple points of view, multiple flawed characters, multiple twists and turns, multiple “oh no they didn’t!” moments.... this is a book best gone into without knowing much... I don’t want to go into the characters at all, I don’t want to spoil anything, just know that they are all completely screwed up! This story is dark, the characters are creepy, you won’t want to turn the page because you aren’t sure if you can handle what’s coming next, but you have to because the compulsion is too strong....
You’ll spend this entire book in the mind of crazy! Short chapters that will leave you jumping from one nut job to another, but never quite getting enough of the madness.... that is until the very end... the end will leave you gasping and shaking your head.... I could tell you I never saw that ending coming, but I never saw the last 60% of this book coming, so that would be an understatement! This is the kind of book that makes you question your self because you really loved it and yet it was JUST. SO. WRONG.
Absolutely recommend if you love a twistyier darker more graphic thriller that is completely original and edgy!
*** many thanks to Orenda for my copy of this book ***
This book will suck you in, turn you on your head, spin you all around, and then spit you out... leaving you wordless, breathless, a little less innocent, and in need of a shower.... there is a reason for those six bottles of bleach! This book is like no other you have red before, I can promise you that! It is bold, it is edgy, it is graphic... this thriller had more graphic sex then most romances, there is no fading to black! That also goes for the violence and killings.... Will Carver gives you a front row seat to all the gory details and doesn’t hold any punches! This book is not for the faint of heart, if it were a movie it would be rated X, but what a wonderful movie it would make!
Multiple points of view, multiple flawed characters, multiple twists and turns, multiple “oh no they didn’t!” moments.... this is a book best gone into without knowing much... I don’t want to go into the characters at all, I don’t want to spoil anything, just know that they are all completely screwed up! This story is dark, the characters are creepy, you won’t want to turn the page because you aren’t sure if you can handle what’s coming next, but you have to because the compulsion is too strong....
You’ll spend this entire book in the mind of crazy! Short chapters that will leave you jumping from one nut job to another, but never quite getting enough of the madness.... that is until the very end... the end will leave you gasping and shaking your head.... I could tell you I never saw that ending coming, but I never saw the last 60% of this book coming, so that would be an understatement! This is the kind of book that makes you question your self because you really loved it and yet it was JUST. SO. WRONG.
Absolutely recommend if you love a twistyier darker more graphic thriller that is completely original and edgy!
*** many thanks to Orenda for my copy of this book ***
March 6, 2021
Hasta casi la mitad de la novela estuve intentando averiguar qué estaba leyendo. Luego vino “el gran giro”, y ya se me hizo adictiva hasta el final. No es que no lo viese venir, que casi (son muchos thrillers a mis espaldas, a estas alturas, y ya no es nada fácil pillarme por sorpresa), es que creo que fue a partir de ahí que el autor supo demostrarme que sabía de qué iba el tema. Y no es por no ponerle pegas, porque las tiene. Por ejemplo, ¿qué pinta el detective sargento Pace en todo esto? Es un personaje tan superficial que resulta difícil saber a qué ha jugado el autor presentándolo de esta forma. Y luego, ¿es posible dormir tan poco durante tantísimo tiempo como hace nuestro protagonista? ¿Podría hacer una vida “casi” normal con esos índices de sueño, o lo lógico es pensar que debería estar ya ingresado y tratándose en algún centro? No puedo contestar a esa pregunta, dado que suelo dormir bastante bien, pero me parece que no podría. Démosle cierta credibilidad a estas y otras cuestiones, y entonces será posible disfrutar del relato. Los capítulos cortos ayudan a hacerlo volar en pocas horas. Una novela morbosa, muy negra, con muchas escenas de sexo (por parejas o individual) y de "blanqueo” de cadáveres (Esto último es un chiste). Pero reconozco que he terminado disfrutando bastante, y creo que los hermanos Coen podrían hacer una excelente película con un guión como este, muy a su estilo.
September 23, 2018
Once in a while an irresistible book will come along that is so dark, twisted and dangerously addictive that it leaves you feeling absolutely filthy! "Good Samaritans" by Will Carver is exactly that book and goodness me does Will know a thing or two about being down and dirty!
Seth Beauman sits at night ringing strangers from his stolen telephone directory, asking them if they will talk to him as he can't sleep, hoping to make the right connection with the right person, all while his wife sleeps upstairs. Meanwhile, Ant is taking calls working at the 'Samaritans' hoping to save someone from suicide after he was unable to save the life of his best friend. However, a crossed wire means a suicidal girl Hadley Serf, is talking to Seth instead of The Samaritans and unfortunately for her she connects with Seth straight away. Trying to contact Seth the next day she gets Ant on the phone and Ant, concerned for her well being decides to follow her.........
What was particularly scary for me was how vivid the bathroom scenes were and I'm afraid I'll never look at a bottle of bleach the same way ever again!
I dread to think what the author's internet browsing history looks like to be able to create and write such a twisted and deranged novel, his detailed descriptions are clear, evocative and certainly unforgettable.
Will carver has a very unique writing style, original, modern and wholly daring (I loved his previous series of books featuring January David) he really is imaginative, deranged and utterly maniacal.
"Good Samaritans" is VERY much an adult book so be warned but I thoroughly enjoyed it and would highly recommend if your preferable reading genre is as twisted as mine.
5 stars
(Paperback copy read)
Seth Beauman sits at night ringing strangers from his stolen telephone directory, asking them if they will talk to him as he can't sleep, hoping to make the right connection with the right person, all while his wife sleeps upstairs. Meanwhile, Ant is taking calls working at the 'Samaritans' hoping to save someone from suicide after he was unable to save the life of his best friend. However, a crossed wire means a suicidal girl Hadley Serf, is talking to Seth instead of The Samaritans and unfortunately for her she connects with Seth straight away. Trying to contact Seth the next day she gets Ant on the phone and Ant, concerned for her well being decides to follow her.........
What was particularly scary for me was how vivid the bathroom scenes were and I'm afraid I'll never look at a bottle of bleach the same way ever again!
I dread to think what the author's internet browsing history looks like to be able to create and write such a twisted and deranged novel, his detailed descriptions are clear, evocative and certainly unforgettable.
Will carver has a very unique writing style, original, modern and wholly daring (I loved his previous series of books featuring January David) he really is imaginative, deranged and utterly maniacal.
"Good Samaritans" is VERY much an adult book so be warned but I thoroughly enjoyed it and would highly recommend if your preferable reading genre is as twisted as mine.
5 stars
(Paperback copy read)
May 27, 2020
“How could you ever really know another person? Could you even know yourself?”
Holy Toledo, Batman! What a ride. What did I just read? It’s been a long time since a book has kept me engrossed enough to keep me up reading way past my bedtime, thinking “Just one more page, just one more page…”.
Will Carver certainly has the writing of a suspenseful tale down pat. It was discomfiting. It was eerie. And it was all too real. It makes you wonder what could really be going on in your neighbourhood.
“It looks peaceful outside. Everyone is still asleep. Everyone is unaware.”
What a bunch of misfits! The characters in this story are human beings at their most needy, ugly selves. They are all so flawed. It’s like a petri dish of nasty human conditions are contained within these pages.
Seth Beauman is a disgruntled, unhappily married computer salesman, who cannot sleep at night. Not helped by the fact that he drinks copious amounts of caffeine way into the evening. He rings strangers at random. ”His insomnia project.” Most times he’s told in no uncertain terms what to do. But sometimes he gets lucky, and there’s someone at the other end who is willing to talk. Sometimes even happy to do so, almost as if they’ve been waiting for his call.
Maeve is his wife. Well aware of his late night shenanigans. While they seem to have been happy once, wine is to her, what coffee is to Seth. Both sitting on their couches at night, another evening watching the TV til she falls asleep, and he can then start his phone calls.
Seth: ”He was who he was. He was what he was. He was Seth. He couldn’t sleep….”
Maeve: “Maeve was alone. Lonely. They’re different things. She was both.”
Hadley Serf is an attractive lass in her mid-twenties, with issues. Self-worth and anxiety issues. Prone to one night stands and sexual encounters with men whose names she never finds out. She rings the Samaritans when she hits an absolute low, as they listen. Like they care. Unlike her last two boyfriends who left her when the going got tough.
Ant is a counsellor with the Samaritans. It makes him feel somewhat better about himself. In some respects, it is his penance, as he feels somehow responsible for the death of his best friend. Which he had no hand in, but guilt is funny that way. It affects you most when you have least to do with the action of others. Listening, on the phone to others in need, gives him a sense of self worth.
Hadley: “I’d been drinking. Alone. Again. Even though it never makes me feel any better at all.”
Ant: (working for the Samaritans) “...filled Ant with warmth. A sense of fulfillment and purpose.”
Add to the mix...
Detective Sergeant Pace is on the case of trying to solve the discovery of bodies “wrapped in plastic” (what a classic phrase), which have been bleached beyond recognition. His gut tells him there is a link between them. But he can’t quite find the missing piece.
”Somebody has to be lying. Everybody lies.”
….How are Seth, Maeve, Hadley, Ant and Detective Pace all in this story together? Well, this is what will keep you turning the pages. I have to admit to having an absolute “Whoa! I did not see that coming moment”, reading this.
It was such an interesting writing technique that Detective Sergeant Pace was on the periphery of the story. You get the sense that he has as many of his own demons as the perpetrator that he’s seeking. He’s just on the other side of the law. The descriptions we have of him are shadowy, just out of reach. Quite unusual to other crime based novels where we feel we get to know the dogged, world weary copper. In this story, we barely get an inkling of what makes DS Pace tick.
“Detective Sergeant Pace is a shadow. Detective Sergeant Pace is paranoia. Detective Sergeant Pace is dirty. Detective Sergeant Pace is a trigger .”
Perhaps the most telling description of all is “Detective Sergeant Pace cannot forget.”.
I’m definitely planning on reading the next installment with Detective Pace in “Nothing Important Happened Today”. I mean, who is he??? I don't think his first name was even mentioned at any point?
If the phone rings late at night, I’d suggest that you don’t answer. It could be Seth.
”Hey, it’s Seth. I can’t sleep. Want to talk?”
Trigger warnings!
Graphic sex scenes and violence. Lots of bleach. Do not read if you suffer from allergies to it.
March 10, 2021
Nos encontramos con una historia muy turbia, que ahonda en las miserias humanas y proyecta una sociedad enferma. Y en la que a través de su historia y personajes nos hace caer en ese abismo de total oscuridad.
Aviso también que hay muchas escenas de sexo, bastante exageradas y llegan a ser un poco hard core. Que llega a cansar un poco, pues también (jamás había leído tantas eyaculaciones de personajes 😂) .
Y que le cuesta arrancar, bastante. Por un lado tiene un arranque muy potente que a medida que avanza decae un poco dando vueltas a lo mismo, sexo y obsesión.
Hasta que todo se tuerce y estalla.
Hasta que hay uno de esos giros que casi te hacen levantarte y aplaudir 😱
Personalmente ese primer giro argumental no me lo esperaba. El de las últimas páginas ya si 😅
La narración intercala la voz en primera y tercera persona lo que a veces me creaba cierta confusión y no sabía quien hablaba hasta avanzar un poco en el capítulo.
Y con una estructura muy adictiva ya que los capítulos son mega cortos (164 en total) lo que te hace caer en la trampa del "venga, uno más" 😂 Aunque reconozco que en ocasiones me descolocaba tanto cambio, y en los que se nos van intercalando los distintos puntos de vista de cada personaje, lo que hace de la lectura un pasa páginas.
- Seth y Maeve. Un extraño matrimonio, uno insomne y la otra alcohólica, en el que él se dedica a llamar a personas desconocidas al azar para entablar conversación (qué jodida es la soledad 😂)
- Ant. Miembro de Los Buenos Samaritanos, con múltiples TOCs (trastornos obsesivos compulsivos) y con mucho que esconder.
- Hadley. Una joven con ideas suicidas que se cruza de manera inesperada en el camino de Seth.
- Y el inspector Pace. De cuya mano conoceremos atroces asesinatos que le traen de cabeza. Pero es el personaje menos relevante ya que casi no tiene presencia y se pasa de puntillas por la investigación en sí.
Y la lejía, un personaje más de esta brutal novela.
Negra, muy negra. De las que me gustan a mi.
Muy gráfica y violenta.
Abstenerse sensibles o fácilmente impresionables. Ya que no escatima en detalles tanto en el tema sexual, como ya he dicho, como en la descripción de las muertes.
Una lectura oscura, sucia e incómoda que aunque no sea redonda, cumple su función con creces.
La única pega es que tuve la sensación de que el desenlace se alargaba innecesariamente, pero al final todo cuadra a la perfección y aunque no es de los que te dejan con la boca abierta es acorde a lo leído y encaja muy bien con el resto de la trama.
💀 "Porque hoy en día las personas estaban tan ocupadas hablando que habían olvidado cómo escuchar."
💀 "El yin para el yang. La mujer para el hombre. La caridad para la desesperación."
💀 "Pero ambos terminaron la noche con ese algo que habían estado buscando y con esa nada que en secreto anhelaban."
💀 "Las cosas no pueden cambiar si repites siempre los mismos errores."
💀 "Es el mal. Está en todas partes."
Para seguir mi pequeño rincón ❤ ⬇
https://m.facebook.com/LaLocadelosLib...
Muchas gracias 😊
Aviso también que hay muchas escenas de sexo, bastante exageradas y llegan a ser un poco hard core. Que llega a cansar un poco, pues también (jamás había leído tantas eyaculaciones de personajes 😂) .
Y que le cuesta arrancar, bastante. Por un lado tiene un arranque muy potente que a medida que avanza decae un poco dando vueltas a lo mismo, sexo y obsesión.
Hasta que todo se tuerce y estalla.
Hasta que hay uno de esos giros que casi te hacen levantarte y aplaudir 😱
Personalmente ese primer giro argumental no me lo esperaba. El de las últimas páginas ya si 😅
La narración intercala la voz en primera y tercera persona lo que a veces me creaba cierta confusión y no sabía quien hablaba hasta avanzar un poco en el capítulo.
Y con una estructura muy adictiva ya que los capítulos son mega cortos (164 en total) lo que te hace caer en la trampa del "venga, uno más" 😂 Aunque reconozco que en ocasiones me descolocaba tanto cambio, y en los que se nos van intercalando los distintos puntos de vista de cada personaje, lo que hace de la lectura un pasa páginas.
- Seth y Maeve. Un extraño matrimonio, uno insomne y la otra alcohólica, en el que él se dedica a llamar a personas desconocidas al azar para entablar conversación (qué jodida es la soledad 😂)
- Ant. Miembro de Los Buenos Samaritanos, con múltiples TOCs (trastornos obsesivos compulsivos) y con mucho que esconder.
- Hadley. Una joven con ideas suicidas que se cruza de manera inesperada en el camino de Seth.
- Y el inspector Pace. De cuya mano conoceremos atroces asesinatos que le traen de cabeza. Pero es el personaje menos relevante ya que casi no tiene presencia y se pasa de puntillas por la investigación en sí.
Y la lejía, un personaje más de esta brutal novela.
Negra, muy negra. De las que me gustan a mi.
Muy gráfica y violenta.
Abstenerse sensibles o fácilmente impresionables. Ya que no escatima en detalles tanto en el tema sexual, como ya he dicho, como en la descripción de las muertes.
Una lectura oscura, sucia e incómoda que aunque no sea redonda, cumple su función con creces.
La única pega es que tuve la sensación de que el desenlace se alargaba innecesariamente, pero al final todo cuadra a la perfección y aunque no es de los que te dejan con la boca abierta es acorde a lo leído y encaja muy bien con el resto de la trama.
💀 "Porque hoy en día las personas estaban tan ocupadas hablando que habían olvidado cómo escuchar."
💀 "El yin para el yang. La mujer para el hombre. La caridad para la desesperación."
💀 "Pero ambos terminaron la noche con ese algo que habían estado buscando y con esa nada que en secreto anhelaban."
💀 "Las cosas no pueden cambiar si repites siempre los mismos errores."
💀 "Es el mal. Está en todas partes."
Para seguir mi pequeño rincón ❤ ⬇
https://m.facebook.com/LaLocadelosLib...
Muchas gracias 😊
December 10, 2020
Adicción pura.
Una de mis mejores lecturas de este año, sin duda. Escrita de modo diferente a lo habitual, logra sorprender.
Un insomne, una esposa alcoholizada, una chica con pulsiones suicidas, un buen samaritano, un detective atormentado y litros de lejía. No podrás parar de leer.
Una de mis mejores lecturas de este año, sin duda. Escrita de modo diferente a lo habitual, logra sorprender.
Un insomne, una esposa alcoholizada, una chica con pulsiones suicidas, un buen samaritano, un detective atormentado y litros de lejía. No podrás parar de leer.
November 7, 2018
Do you like dark, twisted and seriously messed up books? What about books that are fresh and like nothing you’ve ever read before? How about books that literally make you say WTF a thousand times? Friends, if you answered yes to any of these questions this book is for you!
The premise for this is amazing, you have Seth the insomniac who just wants someone to talk to, enter Hadley who needs someone to just listen and then finally the person who is watching…Creepy? Yes!! But so much more than just creepy, it’s provocative and edgy as well. It totally pushes the boundaries in the best possible way, I think dysfunctional is the best word for it, but even then, it doesn’t truly convey just how seriously screwed up this one is. Seriously, I felt dirty just reading it but I just could not stop, it was the very definition of gripping.
This not the book for a fragile reader, it’s bold and does not shy away from sex and graphic descriptions of violence, but if that doesn’t bother you this is a must read. I’ve never read anything quite like, it’s truly original and Carver completely blew me away. Some of the twists were so deranged I was shocked, but also in complete awe, this will most definitely be on my list of best books of 2018! (And this was book 267 for me so it really is a standout!)
Good Samaritans in three words: Edgy, Provocative and Twisted.
The premise for this is amazing, you have Seth the insomniac who just wants someone to talk to, enter Hadley who needs someone to just listen and then finally the person who is watching…Creepy? Yes!! But so much more than just creepy, it’s provocative and edgy as well. It totally pushes the boundaries in the best possible way, I think dysfunctional is the best word for it, but even then, it doesn’t truly convey just how seriously screwed up this one is. Seriously, I felt dirty just reading it but I just could not stop, it was the very definition of gripping.
This not the book for a fragile reader, it’s bold and does not shy away from sex and graphic descriptions of violence, but if that doesn’t bother you this is a must read. I’ve never read anything quite like, it’s truly original and Carver completely blew me away. Some of the twists were so deranged I was shocked, but also in complete awe, this will most definitely be on my list of best books of 2018! (And this was book 267 for me so it really is a standout!)
Good Samaritans in three words: Edgy, Provocative and Twisted.
September 19, 2020
Sorprendente y absorbente.
January 20, 2024
Ant is a Samaritan, that is to say he is one of the voices callers to the charity line are greeted by when they’re seeking help. Callers are often desperate, sometimes suicidal. A close friend of Ant’s committed suicide, it affected him badly. Now he has a chance to help those headed for a similar end to their lives.
Seth isn’t a ‘real’ Samaritan, he’s an insomniac who, most nights, phones strangers hoping he’ll find someone willing to chat, to engage with. He’s married to Maeve, but it’s a dysfunctional union – she goes off to bed at night, aware of her husband’s proclivity.
Hadley is a troubled young woman, she’s looking for something but not finding it. She has suicidal tendencies.
Detective Sergeant Pace is investigating two murders. Both are women who have subsequently been thoroughly ‘bleached’ and then dumped far from their homes. There are no clues as to who carried out these dreadful acts.
How are these people linked? Are they, in fact, linked? We follow them alternately as they set about their daily (and nightly) business. But we don’t really get to know them. Their personalities somehow don’t come through and Pace, in particular, is almost portrayed as a non-person.
The tale is dark, very dark in places, and highly sexual – sometimes graphically so. Ciaran Saward, the narrator in the audio version I listened to, does a good job of maintaining the tension whilst his delivery also suggests that these people are actually rather ordinary, just a little quirky or bored, or perhaps simply tired. I couldn’t warm to any of the characters, but maybe I wasn’t supposed to.
It’s a mystery that shocked me and kept me guessing but with an ending I thought was somewhat telegraphed. It's somewhere between a three and a four star offering for me, but I've decided to round it up.
My thanks to Bolinda Audio for providing a copy of this audiobook via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Seth isn’t a ‘real’ Samaritan, he’s an insomniac who, most nights, phones strangers hoping he’ll find someone willing to chat, to engage with. He’s married to Maeve, but it’s a dysfunctional union – she goes off to bed at night, aware of her husband’s proclivity.
Hadley is a troubled young woman, she’s looking for something but not finding it. She has suicidal tendencies.
Detective Sergeant Pace is investigating two murders. Both are women who have subsequently been thoroughly ‘bleached’ and then dumped far from their homes. There are no clues as to who carried out these dreadful acts.
How are these people linked? Are they, in fact, linked? We follow them alternately as they set about their daily (and nightly) business. But we don’t really get to know them. Their personalities somehow don’t come through and Pace, in particular, is almost portrayed as a non-person.
The tale is dark, very dark in places, and highly sexual – sometimes graphically so. Ciaran Saward, the narrator in the audio version I listened to, does a good job of maintaining the tension whilst his delivery also suggests that these people are actually rather ordinary, just a little quirky or bored, or perhaps simply tired. I couldn’t warm to any of the characters, but maybe I wasn’t supposed to.
It’s a mystery that shocked me and kept me guessing but with an ending I thought was somewhat telegraphed. It's somewhere between a three and a four star offering for me, but I've decided to round it up.
My thanks to Bolinda Audio for providing a copy of this audiobook via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
June 17, 2019
Just a little sick and tired of bad people doing bad and crazy things! Crazy. All of them!
An insomniac gentleman doesn't like dealing with his sleep deprivation and likes to phone people at night, out of the phone book, and say - in a very calm and smooth voice "Hi. It's Seth. I can't sleep, would you like to talk?". He hopes to find as many people who don't tell him to f&!k off, he wants to befriend them, talk; have coffee.
Maeve, wife of Seth, slumbers on upstairs, hoping to re-connect with Seth, she wants her husband back. She seems to be a 'doer' but has her own story to tell.
Hadley Surf (love that name) ends up being one of those callers who doesn't tell Seth where to go. A troubled woman; she calls 'The Samaritans' help line and ends up connecting with our last main character. He likes to watch.
I say beware of all the crazies, or maybe I've just had a gut full of this genre! Blurb states 'sexy' I did not witness anything sexy here. Have not heard of this author, I probably won't delve further.
An insomniac gentleman doesn't like dealing with his sleep deprivation and likes to phone people at night, out of the phone book, and say - in a very calm and smooth voice "Hi. It's Seth. I can't sleep, would you like to talk?". He hopes to find as many people who don't tell him to f&!k off, he wants to befriend them, talk; have coffee.
Maeve, wife of Seth, slumbers on upstairs, hoping to re-connect with Seth, she wants her husband back. She seems to be a 'doer' but has her own story to tell.
Hadley Surf (love that name) ends up being one of those callers who doesn't tell Seth where to go. A troubled woman; she calls 'The Samaritans' help line and ends up connecting with our last main character. He likes to watch.
I say beware of all the crazies, or maybe I've just had a gut full of this genre! Blurb states 'sexy' I did not witness anything sexy here. Have not heard of this author, I probably won't delve further.
December 18, 2018
My Review: There are some books that you pick up and start and know IMMEDIATELY that this is going to blow you away and Good Samaritans is one of those books. It’s also one of those books that once you start you know that you could easily read it in one sitting because there is NO WAY you are going to be able to put this book down. Unfortunately for me, real life gets in the way, so I had to slowly devour this deliciously dark story over 3 days and let me tell you I was giving my family really dirty looks all weekend as they were forcing me to socialise instead of read this book.
So, on to my thoughts on this book. Holy sh*tballs, it’s dark… so dark you need a flashlight. It’s dirty, despite all the bleach. It’s sexy, rude and unashamedly naughty and the twisted, sick characters are an absolute delight. It’s original, it’s slick and downright disturbing and without doubt this is going into my Top Ten books of 2018.
This ticks EVERY SINGLE BOX that I require for a 5 star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read and I can’t wait to read more from this author.
So, on to my thoughts on this book. Holy sh*tballs, it’s dark… so dark you need a flashlight. It’s dirty, despite all the bleach. It’s sexy, rude and unashamedly naughty and the twisted, sick characters are an absolute delight. It’s original, it’s slick and downright disturbing and without doubt this is going into my Top Ten books of 2018.
This ticks EVERY SINGLE BOX that I require for a 5 star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read and I can’t wait to read more from this author.
July 6, 2018
Three dead bodies & six bottles of bleach. That’s only the start of how screwed up this story is! I mean, it was bloody brilliant but I wonder what kind of warped mind (no offense Will Carver) thought of this! Unlike anything I’ve ever read!
Thanks to Orenda for this early copy:)
Thanks to Orenda for this early copy:)
October 17, 2020
Audio 5+Stars
Story 4.5 😳🤯🤪😣😱😬😵 Stars
Story 4.5 😳🤯🤪😣😱😬😵 Stars
November 21, 2018
Have you ever finished the last page of a book and thought to yourself “what the heck did I just read?”.
Meet the weirdly wonderful brain of author Will Carver and his book Good Samaritans. Boy, oh boy, this one will mess with your head like no other.
It’s also quite a hard one to review without giving anything away. The story is mainly told via four different characters. All flawed, all carrying tons of baggage, all lonely in their own little ways and all trying to find ways to cope.
Ant works for the Samaritans hotline. Maeve drinks. (I approve 😂) Seth struggles with insomnia and has the oddest hobby ever as every night, he picks up the phone and randomly calls a stranger asking them if they’d like to talk. Most don’t. Some do. Note to self : never answer the phone again. But Hadley does. Uh oh.
The short chapters urge you to keep on reading, making Good Samaritans incredibly hard to put down. There’s a tense vibe throughout, a threat of something dark and disturbing that oozes from the pages. It’s edgy, original, bit dirty (think the kind of thing that would have made you blush fiercely if your parents had walked in on you reading this) and brings the word “dysfunctional” to a whole other level.
Good Samaritans is a belter of a crime thriller / serial killer / domestic noir kind of combination and the characterisation is immensely engrossing. It’s one of those stories I can’t stop thinking about, going over things in my head, wondering what I missed and I’m obviously struggling to put it into words as well. It’s unlike anything else I’ve ever read and you just really need to experience this one for yourselves.
This is my first time reading a book by Will Carver, whose brain must quite frankly be the most scary place ever, but I’m pretty sure it won’t be the last time.
Meet the weirdly wonderful brain of author Will Carver and his book Good Samaritans. Boy, oh boy, this one will mess with your head like no other.
It’s also quite a hard one to review without giving anything away. The story is mainly told via four different characters. All flawed, all carrying tons of baggage, all lonely in their own little ways and all trying to find ways to cope.
Ant works for the Samaritans hotline. Maeve drinks. (I approve 😂) Seth struggles with insomnia and has the oddest hobby ever as every night, he picks up the phone and randomly calls a stranger asking them if they’d like to talk. Most don’t. Some do. Note to self : never answer the phone again. But Hadley does. Uh oh.
The short chapters urge you to keep on reading, making Good Samaritans incredibly hard to put down. There’s a tense vibe throughout, a threat of something dark and disturbing that oozes from the pages. It’s edgy, original, bit dirty (think the kind of thing that would have made you blush fiercely if your parents had walked in on you reading this) and brings the word “dysfunctional” to a whole other level.
Good Samaritans is a belter of a crime thriller / serial killer / domestic noir kind of combination and the characterisation is immensely engrossing. It’s one of those stories I can’t stop thinking about, going over things in my head, wondering what I missed and I’m obviously struggling to put it into words as well. It’s unlike anything else I’ve ever read and you just really need to experience this one for yourselves.
This is my first time reading a book by Will Carver, whose brain must quite frankly be the most scary place ever, but I’m pretty sure it won’t be the last time.
November 13, 2018
Good Samaritans – Are they really?
Never judge a book by its cover they say, never judge it by its title either. This is not a jaunty ride with bags of frivolity, this is dark and twisted, just how I like it. Will Carver, famous for his January David series, has come up with a book that will be a classic. There is the traditional noir and then there is The Good Samaritans, dark, twisted, and completely engrossing. When you think you have cracked the story you are sadly mistaken, as there are more twists than on a corkscrew.
Seth Beauman cannot sleep, an insomniac who stays up late, well he can do little else. While in those dark hours he likes to call strangers from his phonebook, just to talk, and if he makes a connection with someone, even better. While he does this, his wife Maeve is upstairs in bed sleeping like a baby. One night a crossed wire and he is talking to a suicidal Hadley Serf.
They talk regularly and build up enough confidence so that they meet in day time and it eventually turns into something more. A somewhat dysfunctional love trysts take a darker turn, even more so when he takes Hadley to his home. What Seth does not realise is that his relationship is being watched from afar.
Meanwhile Maeve loves watching the news, and is following the case of Detective Sergeant Pace, who is on the hunt for a murderer. Someone is killing women and bathing them in bleach, then wrapping them in plastic wrap before dumping them somewhere in Warwickshire.
This is a brilliant noir thriller with some wonderful twists and turns that will leave you gasping. There is a wonderfully dark heart at the centre of this thriller and it will keep you entertained from beginning to the end.
Never judge a book by its cover they say, never judge it by its title either. This is not a jaunty ride with bags of frivolity, this is dark and twisted, just how I like it. Will Carver, famous for his January David series, has come up with a book that will be a classic. There is the traditional noir and then there is The Good Samaritans, dark, twisted, and completely engrossing. When you think you have cracked the story you are sadly mistaken, as there are more twists than on a corkscrew.
Seth Beauman cannot sleep, an insomniac who stays up late, well he can do little else. While in those dark hours he likes to call strangers from his phonebook, just to talk, and if he makes a connection with someone, even better. While he does this, his wife Maeve is upstairs in bed sleeping like a baby. One night a crossed wire and he is talking to a suicidal Hadley Serf.
They talk regularly and build up enough confidence so that they meet in day time and it eventually turns into something more. A somewhat dysfunctional love trysts take a darker turn, even more so when he takes Hadley to his home. What Seth does not realise is that his relationship is being watched from afar.
Meanwhile Maeve loves watching the news, and is following the case of Detective Sergeant Pace, who is on the hunt for a murderer. Someone is killing women and bathing them in bleach, then wrapping them in plastic wrap before dumping them somewhere in Warwickshire.
This is a brilliant noir thriller with some wonderful twists and turns that will leave you gasping. There is a wonderfully dark heart at the centre of this thriller and it will keep you entertained from beginning to the end.
August 27, 2022
Con una narrativa original, con capítulos cortos y alternando entre primera y tercera persona en esta novela ocurren asesinatos, pero también hay sexo y muestra trazos de la sociedad actual. Es adictiva y el punto extraño es que el detective Pace e algo siniestro pero no es ni protagonista ni siquiera tiene peso en la historia, es como un mero espectador, solo va recogiendo las pruebas que se le van presentando.
June 8, 2025
Full marks once again for Mr Carver. I’ll attempt a review once I’ve stopped smiling and nodding and clapping.
Six years later - oh yes, I was meant to elaborate on this but now I don’t remember it at all, so.. 🤷🏻♀️
Six years later - oh yes, I was meant to elaborate on this but now I don’t remember it at all, so.. 🤷🏻♀️
October 6, 2020
4/5
“Es el mal. Está en todas partes.”
Los buenos samaritanos es un thriller muy gráfico y violento, que te dejará completamente extasiado/a. Perturbador.
-Reseña completa: http://addicionaloslibros.blogspot.co...
“Es el mal. Está en todas partes.”
Los buenos samaritanos es un thriller muy gráfico y violento, que te dejará completamente extasiado/a. Perturbador.
-Reseña completa: http://addicionaloslibros.blogspot.co...
July 29, 2021
Espectacular, no esperéis encontrar una novela negra porque la profundidad de los personajes y sus vidas no existe, pero adictiva 100%, desde la primera página estás totalmente enganchado, es difícil explicar que os vais a encontrar, capítulos muy muy cortos, gran lectura.
November 14, 2018
Seth Beauman suffers from insomnia. Awake late into the night, he has taken to calling strangers from an odd little phonebook he keeps tucked away, while his wife, Maeve, peacefully sleeps upstairs. Seth desperately wants to make a connection. He just needs one person who wants to talk. Hadley Serf will fill that role thanks to a crossed wire. She is suicidal and seeking help by calling The Samaritans, however, at the same time Seth is calling her. Hadley believes she has found someone at the call center that can help her and Seth believes he has found a new friend. This is where their story begins.
Soon Hadley and Seth’s conversations are becoming a recurring event. They have found something in each other to fill the emptiness they both feel. Their late night talks become in-person meet ups, which become the basis for a strange love story. Things aren’t exactly how they appear and they aren’t exactly who they say they are. Someone is watching Hadley and Seth’s every move and what they see is unspeakable.
One crossed wire opens the door to death and bleach.
GOOD SAMARITANS just blew my mind! Let’s start at the beginning…
The book opens with the reader getting to know a handful of main characters, including Hadley and Seth. I think it’s important to meet everyone blindly, so I’m going to leave out the details on who these people are. Carver uses short chapters that alternate between character’s storylines to create a mood of unease and general confusion over who the reader should trust. It seems every character Carver writes about has something they’re hiding, which quickly put all of them on my untrustworthy list. At about the halfway point I wickedly giggled when a certain revelation was made, which solidified this book as fantastic. For me, whenever an author can make me second guess myself, no matter how correct my hunch ends up being, that’s the sign of a brilliant book.
So often these days the genre of crime fiction/mystery/thrillers becomes predictable in the plot devices that authors tend to use, which can make books seem stale or cheesy to avid readers of the genre. I assure you that is not the case with GOOD SAMARITANS. I was hooked within the first few pages and binge read large chunks of the books wanting to know more about what would happen. Not only does GOOD SAMARITANS have an engrossing mystery plot at its core, but it also has this sense of darkness among the characters that leaves the reader unable to put the book down. Carver’s writing is bold, intense, and certain scenes are definitely not for the faint of heart. Think you can handle it? Then my advice to you is to clear a space in your immediate TBR for this twisty tale!
A special thank you to Orenda Books for sending me a free review copy!=
Soon Hadley and Seth’s conversations are becoming a recurring event. They have found something in each other to fill the emptiness they both feel. Their late night talks become in-person meet ups, which become the basis for a strange love story. Things aren’t exactly how they appear and they aren’t exactly who they say they are. Someone is watching Hadley and Seth’s every move and what they see is unspeakable.
One crossed wire opens the door to death and bleach.
GOOD SAMARITANS just blew my mind! Let’s start at the beginning…
The book opens with the reader getting to know a handful of main characters, including Hadley and Seth. I think it’s important to meet everyone blindly, so I’m going to leave out the details on who these people are. Carver uses short chapters that alternate between character’s storylines to create a mood of unease and general confusion over who the reader should trust. It seems every character Carver writes about has something they’re hiding, which quickly put all of them on my untrustworthy list. At about the halfway point I wickedly giggled when a certain revelation was made, which solidified this book as fantastic. For me, whenever an author can make me second guess myself, no matter how correct my hunch ends up being, that’s the sign of a brilliant book.
So often these days the genre of crime fiction/mystery/thrillers becomes predictable in the plot devices that authors tend to use, which can make books seem stale or cheesy to avid readers of the genre. I assure you that is not the case with GOOD SAMARITANS. I was hooked within the first few pages and binge read large chunks of the books wanting to know more about what would happen. Not only does GOOD SAMARITANS have an engrossing mystery plot at its core, but it also has this sense of darkness among the characters that leaves the reader unable to put the book down. Carver’s writing is bold, intense, and certain scenes are definitely not for the faint of heart. Think you can handle it? Then my advice to you is to clear a space in your immediate TBR for this twisty tale!
A special thank you to Orenda Books for sending me a free review copy!=
April 30, 2020
Carver grabs a bag of crumbs and then slyly lays a trail which I followed. I did not know I was in the forest and was quite surprised when I arrived at cottage and then I felt the cage door slam. And he seemed so innocuous, yeah so normal.
In the meantime he also examines connections, between man and wife, between killer and victim, between people online. We crave connections, we need them to survive, the greater, deeper the connection the better because these connections confirm that we exist. Now we also have to navigate the connections we make out there in the ether, were the game does not have the same rules as other types of connections. Where people shoot from the hip, as if saying words without a filter does not engage our brain, or our common sense.
In the meantime he also examines connections, between man and wife, between killer and victim, between people online. We crave connections, we need them to survive, the greater, deeper the connection the better because these connections confirm that we exist. Now we also have to navigate the connections we make out there in the ether, were the game does not have the same rules as other types of connections. Where people shoot from the hip, as if saying words without a filter does not engage our brain, or our common sense.
May 19, 2021
3.5
Muy novedosa la narrativa de este libro que, para mi, es su gran punto fuerte. La historia me ha gustado y han sido interesantes casi todos los personajes (no entiendo muy bien el papel del detective, supongo que en las siguientes novelas se sabrá más de él). En ella encontramos bastante de la miseria humana que nos rodea y es interesante el retrato que hace el autor de las redes sociales. ¿Cuánto postureo vemos expuesto en gente que parece que es feliz y todo es una actuación? En fin, una lectura trepidante y bastante explícita: muchas eyaculaciones y mucha violencia y, de postre, un manual del uso de la lejía bastante educativo.
Muy novedosa la narrativa de este libro que, para mi, es su gran punto fuerte. La historia me ha gustado y han sido interesantes casi todos los personajes (no entiendo muy bien el papel del detective, supongo que en las siguientes novelas se sabrá más de él). En ella encontramos bastante de la miseria humana que nos rodea y es interesante el retrato que hace el autor de las redes sociales. ¿Cuánto postureo vemos expuesto en gente que parece que es feliz y todo es una actuación? En fin, una lectura trepidante y bastante explícita: muchas eyaculaciones y mucha violencia y, de postre, un manual del uso de la lejía bastante educativo.
September 28, 2019
Wow Will Carver.. this is one helluva story and I am still reeling over the twisted and dark tale that I have just been privy to. There is something scarily real about the way Will Carver has created his characters. Perhaps it’s the way he describes their actions, thought patterns, behaviors - the seemingly mundane aspects of life that nobody actually talks about. These aspects became frighteningly real in this story and create a backdrop for the evolution of a dark and macabre tale.
Seth and Maeve are, on the surface a couple like any other. But underneath the exterior that no one else sees are the dark codependencies that have become the hallmarks of their relationship and their identities. Seth can’t sleep and while some may surf social media, he takes to calling strangers on the phone. Maeve dulls her pain with drink, desperate for that which draws her and Seth together..
Will Carver has created a tale that is in a way terrifying and entertaining, dark and light, fantastic and acutely real.
This one will stay with me..
Seth and Maeve are, on the surface a couple like any other. But underneath the exterior that no one else sees are the dark codependencies that have become the hallmarks of their relationship and their identities. Seth can’t sleep and while some may surf social media, he takes to calling strangers on the phone. Maeve dulls her pain with drink, desperate for that which draws her and Seth together..
Will Carver has created a tale that is in a way terrifying and entertaining, dark and light, fantastic and acutely real.
This one will stay with me..
November 3, 2018
OmgOmgWTFOmgOmgWTF!!
There were so many OMG and WTF moments and I didn't see any of the plot twists coming.
Brilliantly plotted and well written novel about miserable people doing very bad things. This is the first mystery/thriller I have really enjoyed from beginning to end. No long boring backstories. The bad person doesn't give a large speech at the end telling the reader what they did. These have been my main issues with other books I have read recently that have been 1 and 2 stars.
I also liked how the author talked about depression in such a real, realistic way as the point of view shifted from each character who each seemed to become increasingy crazier in each short chapter. It was such a great read with an ending that is so twisty and dark and perfect.
There were so many OMG and WTF moments and I didn't see any of the plot twists coming.
Brilliantly plotted and well written novel about miserable people doing very bad things. This is the first mystery/thriller I have really enjoyed from beginning to end. No long boring backstories. The bad person doesn't give a large speech at the end telling the reader what they did. These have been my main issues with other books I have read recently that have been 1 and 2 stars.
I also liked how the author talked about depression in such a real, realistic way as the point of view shifted from each character who each seemed to become increasingy crazier in each short chapter. It was such a great read with an ending that is so twisty and dark and perfect.
March 29, 2020
It's a simple story, and yet oh so twisted. Simplicity reigns. Normalcy is everywhere. At least in the eyes of some. Don't think that the things you read are out of the ordinary. There is nothing dark here. No madness. Calm.
This is how I felt while reading this excellent and demented story. It's all ok. It's all part of the plan. This is life. But it's not. And it's insane. And it draws you in to every page. Sympathy is felt where it assuredly is not deserved. Want to talk?
This is how I felt while reading this excellent and demented story. It's all ok. It's all part of the plan. This is life. But it's not. And it's insane. And it draws you in to every page. Sympathy is felt where it assuredly is not deserved. Want to talk?
October 8, 2018
A novel of filth and purity set in UK
This is not one for chemophobes. Two bodies are discovered scattered across Warwickshire, bound in plastic wrapping, and cleaned to the hilt (that’s a euphemism for the extent and penetration of the cleaning process that has taken place) with bleach. The perpetrator is clearly washing away impurities, bleaching the personalities from the victims. Is a serial killer at work?
We meet Seth, married to Maeve, who is an insomniac. During the fitful nights he rings people at random from a specially compiled list of names. People with the surname Taylor are the ones who prove most non-compliant, apparently. Essentially he is looking for a random meet up with any individual who will chat to him. Maeve sits back, watches and waits (she watches and sleeps through a lot of TV programmes) actually aware of what he is doing, but she is a loving and tolerant wife and is seemingly not really bothered by his habit. Many aspects of Seth’s life make him feel dirty, both psychologically and emotionally. He is a staunch supporter of women and in particular his wife, no-one should be disrespectful.
A crossed telephone line happens to connect him with Hadley Serf, who has psychological problems of her own, who feeds her terrible and dirty sense of self with self harm and one night stands. She is hoping to hook up with a trained Samaritan at the end of the phone, and Seth just happens fortuitously to engage with her.
Ant is a real life Samaritan. He has come to this line of work after a friend, with whom he was travelling, seemingly caused his own death through auto erotic hanging. He has never recovered from his friend’s death and in order to feel in control he is obsessive compulsive about cleanliness and order (in this way he can keep control over his life). Hadley phones The Samaritans only to discover that Seth doesn’t seem to work there, but at the same time rousing Ant’s interest in her. He is by nature, he feels, a rescuer.
DS Pace is the police officer who has to fit all the pieces together. He too, at times, feels he is dirty. He tries to keep the exact details of the state in which the bodies are found a secret but the news soon leaks out…
As I write, I am actually thinking, what a crazy yet somehow engaging premise for a book (now someone is going to point out that the novel was based on a true case!). There is something about the pulsating short chapters and the good writing that kept me hooked, with a nice twist at the end. There is a lot of psychological winnowing, reliant on the Kleinian theory of “splitting” – people are good and bad; there is purity versus filth, black as opposed to white, clean and dirty…. There are also a lot of disparate drives that cause sexual stimulus for the characters.
So, if a combination of killing, sex and a whodunnit with a dark and quirky heart is your thing, this would be a very good choice.
Location, in terms of TripFiction is not strong, although Warwickshire gets a bit of a look in.
This is not one for chemophobes. Two bodies are discovered scattered across Warwickshire, bound in plastic wrapping, and cleaned to the hilt (that’s a euphemism for the extent and penetration of the cleaning process that has taken place) with bleach. The perpetrator is clearly washing away impurities, bleaching the personalities from the victims. Is a serial killer at work?
We meet Seth, married to Maeve, who is an insomniac. During the fitful nights he rings people at random from a specially compiled list of names. People with the surname Taylor are the ones who prove most non-compliant, apparently. Essentially he is looking for a random meet up with any individual who will chat to him. Maeve sits back, watches and waits (she watches and sleeps through a lot of TV programmes) actually aware of what he is doing, but she is a loving and tolerant wife and is seemingly not really bothered by his habit. Many aspects of Seth’s life make him feel dirty, both psychologically and emotionally. He is a staunch supporter of women and in particular his wife, no-one should be disrespectful.
A crossed telephone line happens to connect him with Hadley Serf, who has psychological problems of her own, who feeds her terrible and dirty sense of self with self harm and one night stands. She is hoping to hook up with a trained Samaritan at the end of the phone, and Seth just happens fortuitously to engage with her.
Ant is a real life Samaritan. He has come to this line of work after a friend, with whom he was travelling, seemingly caused his own death through auto erotic hanging. He has never recovered from his friend’s death and in order to feel in control he is obsessive compulsive about cleanliness and order (in this way he can keep control over his life). Hadley phones The Samaritans only to discover that Seth doesn’t seem to work there, but at the same time rousing Ant’s interest in her. He is by nature, he feels, a rescuer.
DS Pace is the police officer who has to fit all the pieces together. He too, at times, feels he is dirty. He tries to keep the exact details of the state in which the bodies are found a secret but the news soon leaks out…
As I write, I am actually thinking, what a crazy yet somehow engaging premise for a book (now someone is going to point out that the novel was based on a true case!). There is something about the pulsating short chapters and the good writing that kept me hooked, with a nice twist at the end. There is a lot of psychological winnowing, reliant on the Kleinian theory of “splitting” – people are good and bad; there is purity versus filth, black as opposed to white, clean and dirty…. There are also a lot of disparate drives that cause sexual stimulus for the characters.
So, if a combination of killing, sex and a whodunnit with a dark and quirky heart is your thing, this would be a very good choice.
Location, in terms of TripFiction is not strong, although Warwickshire gets a bit of a look in.
November 23, 2018
3.5 - Holy shit, what an opening! Good Samaritans makes you pay attention from the very first page. A thoroughly exciting opening, sinister as hell, but so exciting!
“It will burn. It will blister. You will bleed.”
The premise of the plot is so intriguing, you have Seth, the insomniac, calling strangers, and he happens to end up talking to a suicidal Hadley. I found their conversations so interesting – Hadley, I understand, because she thought she had called The Samaritans, but in some dark part of my brain, I was fascinated by Seth because who does that, dialling strangers from a phonebook!?
What Good Samaritans does so well is build suspense; as the plot builds so does the intrigue, especially once you find out who the ‘someone’ who is watching is. This someone’s actions frustrated me to no end, but they certainly added to the plot in a way that made it unpredictable. And unpredictability is what crime thriller fans crave, the inability to guess the direction of events. And that was the case here, this plot threw me a few times, and each time it was deliciously dark!
There were some dialogue and inner monologues in this novel that I really liked, especially from Seth and Hadley….
“living in the moment was only ever good in the moment”
What do you do when the moment has passed, well, you have to find another, and then another, and that’s how you live life, chasing these moments, but this isn’t without risk, because in between those moments darkness closes in, and that darkness might just follow you into your next moment!
Good Samaritans has those short chapters that allow you to breeze through this novel, but it isn’t plain sailing, the twists will throw you sideways! I don’t know what dark places your mind enters, Mr. Carver, but damn, I’m disturbed! The blurb is so right to describe this novel as a “dysfunctional love story”, but it’s dysfunctional in the best way, in a dark and twisted way! This novel doesn’t hold back on the narration, and the content does get a bit sexually explicit (personal preference: I wasn’t a fan of these moments), the plot gets very dark and intense, so if you like your fiction PG, probably best to give this one a miss. However, if you want to embark on a journey of twisted love, dark obsessions, and murder, then Good Samaritans may just be the book for you.
“It will burn. It will blister. You will bleed.”
The premise of the plot is so intriguing, you have Seth, the insomniac, calling strangers, and he happens to end up talking to a suicidal Hadley. I found their conversations so interesting – Hadley, I understand, because she thought she had called The Samaritans, but in some dark part of my brain, I was fascinated by Seth because who does that, dialling strangers from a phonebook!?
What Good Samaritans does so well is build suspense; as the plot builds so does the intrigue, especially once you find out who the ‘someone’ who is watching is. This someone’s actions frustrated me to no end, but they certainly added to the plot in a way that made it unpredictable. And unpredictability is what crime thriller fans crave, the inability to guess the direction of events. And that was the case here, this plot threw me a few times, and each time it was deliciously dark!
There were some dialogue and inner monologues in this novel that I really liked, especially from Seth and Hadley….
“living in the moment was only ever good in the moment”
What do you do when the moment has passed, well, you have to find another, and then another, and that’s how you live life, chasing these moments, but this isn’t without risk, because in between those moments darkness closes in, and that darkness might just follow you into your next moment!
Good Samaritans has those short chapters that allow you to breeze through this novel, but it isn’t plain sailing, the twists will throw you sideways! I don’t know what dark places your mind enters, Mr. Carver, but damn, I’m disturbed! The blurb is so right to describe this novel as a “dysfunctional love story”, but it’s dysfunctional in the best way, in a dark and twisted way! This novel doesn’t hold back on the narration, and the content does get a bit sexually explicit (personal preference: I wasn’t a fan of these moments), the plot gets very dark and intense, so if you like your fiction PG, probably best to give this one a miss. However, if you want to embark on a journey of twisted love, dark obsessions, and murder, then Good Samaritans may just be the book for you.
September 7, 2019
Sometimes you read a book and it is completely different to what you expected. This was one of those books for me, and I absolutely loved it.
Told in short sharp chapters from five different perspectives, it was a completely engaging, at times funny, murder story, with several unexpected twists.
I would recommend this book to anyone with an open mind and a liking for original writing.
Told in short sharp chapters from five different perspectives, it was a completely engaging, at times funny, murder story, with several unexpected twists.
I would recommend this book to anyone with an open mind and a liking for original writing.
October 20, 2020
5 stars audio
3.5 stars weird twisted story
3.5 stars weird twisted story
July 30, 2022
Hasta la mitad del libro hay varias historias inconexas. Llega un punto que tienen sentido y se van conectando en algún modo. Hay varios giros que te descolocan y te llevan a seguir leyendo.
La historia no esta orientada desde la vista del policia, que es un personaje que no es nada relevante en el libro; es vivir los asesinatos desde dentro.
Es un tema duro y donde muestra lo peor del ser humano.
Son capítulos muy cortos y la lectura se hace rápida.
Espero más libros del inspector Pace, espero que tenga más peso que en esta historia
La historia no esta orientada desde la vista del policia, que es un personaje que no es nada relevante en el libro; es vivir los asesinatos desde dentro.
Es un tema duro y donde muestra lo peor del ser humano.
Son capítulos muy cortos y la lectura se hace rápida.
Espero más libros del inspector Pace, espero que tenga más peso que en esta historia
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