The Perfect Victim

by David Sodergren

No one expects to be kidnapped.
No one expects to have to fight for their life.

But for Katy Ketcher, that nightmare is about to become reality. She’s sixteen years old, and the daughter of a wealthy Hollywood producer. She’s the perfect victim.

Now, Katy and her best friend Jill must use their wits and cunning in a desperate battle for survival against four dangerous criminals. As events spiral out of control, will their friendship be enough to survive the ensuing bloodbath?

The Perfect Victim is the latest violent thriller from David Sodergren, author of The Forgotten Island and Maggie’s Grave.

Genres: Horror, Thriller, Horror Thriller, Novella, Adult, Fiction, Crime

120 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 16, 2021

About the author

David Sodergren lives in Scotland with his wife Heather and his best friend, Boris the Pug.

Growing up, he was the kind of kid who collected rubber skeletons and lived for horror movies. Not much has changed since then.

His best known books include the gory and romantic fairy tale The Haar, the blood-drenched folk-horror Maggie’s Grave, and the analog-horror fever dream Rotten Tommy. David also writes under the pseudonym Carl John Lee, publishing splatterpunk
novels such as Psychic Teenage Bloodbath and Cannibal Vengeance.

Reviews

[Peter Topside · Rating 4 out of 5]

This wasn’t bad. It is a very dialogue-heavy book, reminding me of Ransom and Reservoir Dogs, but wasn’t as engaging as either. It basically had the same concepts of most kidnapping stories. You have the actual crime happen, dissension among the kidnappers, leaving opportunities for the victim to gain the upper hand, the original plan fall to shambles, plenty of violence, and well, you get where I’m headed. Nothing necessarily new introduced here, except the very resourceful Katy, who was the saving grace for the book. I wanted a lot more of her father, who I felt like was barely touched as an active character, and more of the dynamic they had. This would have added another layer onto a rather generic plot, capitalizing on the best character. Corvo, Emma, and the rest of the antagonists here served their purpose, but since their characters were kept fairly surface level with somewhat obvious fates, I didn’t have much desire or interest in exploring them much. And even with the scenes where they have playful banter or were chasing down Jill and/or Katy, I grew tired very quickly with all of them. So it was fine for the type of story it set out to be, and I think fans of kidnappings and a good deal of the programming on A&E will dig this joint. Now, on a side note, the author did bring up the Snyder Cut of Justice League in his afterword, which I was a big advocate of, and was tickled pink (Is that still an expression?) when it was released last year. And boy was it worth the wait. But will the Snyderverse live on? Only time will tell. And where in God’s name is the DCEU Green Lantern?! Ok, rant over.

[Mort · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those authors I have been meaning to read for a few years, but never seemed to find the time.
That was a mistake – this story hit the spot…the right spot…the g-spot (great-spot, you perv!).

Sixteen year old Katy Ketcher has a rich, successful father.
Making her the perfect victim for a kidnapping and ransom scenario.
But if a group of misfits aren’t that close, even the best thought out plan can go haywire in the end – and that makes it interesting.

The one possible flaw of the story was that Katy felt a little more mature than sixteen in her actions, but it didn’t detract enough from the story to influence my rating. I love revenge stories and I love horror that doesn’t need a supernatural element to make you uncomfortable, so there is not a single thing I would have wanted the author to do differently here.

Highly recommended for horror fans.

[Johann (jobis89) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everything I expect from Sodergren - blood-soaked, humorous and plenty of “what the actual fuck” moments!! He never disappoints

[Brandon Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

The way he writes gore just gets me every time. I think some of the dialogue was a bit unnatural given the circumstances, but this was very gorey, gross, and intense. Kinda like a mix between Panic Room, Home Alone, and Green Room.

4.5 ⭐️

[Leeanne 🥀 The Book Whor3 🥀 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Katy is the 16 year old daughter of a famous Hollywood movie producer, who along with her friend Jill, gets kidnapped by 4 crims wanting to make an ‘easy’ $20 million. I don’t want to spoil the story, so all I’m going to say, is things don’t go to plan, as they weren’t expecting Katy to be a kick ass ‘survivor’! This is a bloody revenge story which is a lot of fun, and David Sodergren sure knows how to keep the action cranked up! I highly recommend this and would gladly pay the ransom of 5 shiny, gold stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Marco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Teen banter while being kidnapped, Sodergren just does it. From breezy crime to extreme violence it goes, never losing its wicked sense of humour. Funny and uncomfortable, bold and tense, cute and gruesome. Reminiscent of certain bad, but oh so good B-movies. With a few hard to forget scenes. Be the pug, people. Be the pug. Cheers, Katy!

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

'The Perfect Victim' is a gripping little story about abduction and revenge...but with a twist.

Although the narrative often felt written for the YA market, the brutal action certainly removed itself from that particular genre and placed itself fairly and squarely into the world of horror. Lots of good dialogue between the main characters and the humour displayed on several occasions worked really well, proving itself to be a big bonus to my overall reading experience.

Thoroughly enjoyed the storyline, but the ending, although rammed with action, felt a little overly done, melodramatic and slightly unbelievable, but maybe this was always a deliberate intention of the author. Thought that this slightly detracted from the believability and general realism of the final scenes, but I'm sure that many readers may tend to disagree with this opinion.

Finally, one thing that did feel strange was that from the outset the tale felt very British and appeared set in a very British environment. Hardly surprising one might conclude especially as DS is actually from Scotland himself. Therefore, I was quite surprised to see that it was all meant to happen in the US (Dollars and the FBI) although I never really picked up on those vibes at any point in the tale. Anyway, am pleased to say that this observation had no bearing on the credibility of the story, but was just something that stuck in my mind.

An entertaining gory, little horror story that has something a little bit different which would definitely appeal to your average teenage fan reader of the more dark, disturbing and grisly aspects of fictional real-life.

Enjoyed it, and will certainly be reading more from this highly talented author.

Rating: 3.7 bright and breezy, fun-filled stars.

[Horror Sickness · Rating 5 out of 5]

To tell you I devoured this book in 2 days when I was supposed to be doing something else....but I just could not stop reading.

A book that will be perfect for fans of fictional true crime stories and can take some brutality, gore and disturbing moments.

The perfect victim for a kidnapping is the daughter of a famous Hollywood producer. One day after leaving school Katy has the feeling that she is being followed. When her fears materialize and she is being taken her nightmare will have just started.

This book was so intense you could not stop turning those pages. The tension, Katy's psychological decline when she starts to realize what this means for her and the violence in this book will keep you engaged to the very end.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very fast paced book with plenty of brutal scenarios and scenes that didn't let up throughout the whole book.
Some of the characters were nasty pieces of work and didn't act kindly to their victim trying to escape...with evil and bloody consequences!!
A good thought out story which kept me gripped until the very last page.
The only negative thing was, I did think that Katy acted rather mature at times in her thoughts and actions considering she was only sixteen years of age!
David Sodergren is an excellent author and I'm enjoying reading his work.

4 ⭐⭐⭐⭐'s for an extremely goodread 👍👏

[Ga.selle (Semi-hiatus) Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Be the pug."

4.5 ✨. Bloody riot revenge story

[J.D. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Katy has never really cared about having a rich, popular dad. She prefers to keep an older version phone and even walk to a nearby public school instead of being driven everyday to some fancy private school.

But when your dad is a famous movie producer, it can make you the perfect victim for a kidnapping.

This one was more of a gory YA styled read with a bit of humor mixed in. It was an interesting change from Sodergren's previous very much adult styled horror stories. But he did pull it off pretty well in my opinion.

This was also a great example of why you shouldn't underestimate anyone, even teenage girls.

Once again a beloved pug made a cute and inspirational appearance which is always great to see in every one of David's books.

Would recommend for slasher story lovers with a strong female lead or to anyone who wants a more grownup version of Home Alone.

[Steve Stred · Rating 5 out of 5]

Had the pleasure of beta reading this. Another fantastic offering from Sodergren, a must-read author. With this one, we get a great survival story while leaning a bit more into the extreme genre. Great stuff!

[clumsyplankton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probably one of my favourite books by this author. It was funny, it was gross at moments and we had a main character we could really root for. A tale of revenge done really well.

[Gemma 🖤🧸🌷 · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Be the pug”

If David Sodergren has no fans, I am dead!! He has secured his title as my favorite author. This is the 6th of his I have had the pleasure of reading. Every single one has been fast paced, entertaining as hell, gory, action packed and even hilarious. The endings are always packed with crazy ass violence and funny dialogue. Nothing can top his book “Maggie’s Grave” for me but this one AGAIN exceeded expectations!

You’re looking for a quick, suspenseful kidnapping story with a bloody revenge plot? Look no further. I can’t wait to read the rest of his published novels.

[elli ⛧ yourspookymom · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m consuming these Sodergren books like popcorn! I can’t get enough! I was really weary to start this one - knowing only that this was a story of the kidnapping of Katy, a 16 year old daughter of a very wealthy movie producer. Anything with kids is a big no for me, but after reading a few reviews, I took a chance. I’m glad I did, because this was all feminine rage bad-assery. I appreciate how Sodergren writes women. He does a great job of balancing emotion & wit with pure resilience. Super fun read - 5/5!

[Sidney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good for her 👏🏽👏🏽

[Herman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took a chance on this due in part that a number of people had given it five stars and because it was short wasn’t looking for a novel right now just something fun and different and this certainly was that it was also “Home Alone” meets spatterpunk but it managed to pull the punches a little bit brutal enough and realistic enough to be a good story a rather nice find of a book it didn’t start all that impressive I was wondering if it was a YA story until the first killing and then I saw the story change and it was also refreshing the main character is this 16 year old girl and an interesting character more dimensional than the silly criminals who kidnapped her overall give it four stars some weakness here and there and I wonder how she managed in the end to make it up those first set of stairs but otherwise I liked it four stars

[Andrew McManaman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bloody Fantastic! Read in a weekend. In the top ten books i've read this year. A must read!

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

3rd book I've read by the author and I've loved all 3. Started with Forgotten Island then read Maggies's Grave. I have the other three waiting. Definitely a fan.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up to a 4 I had to keep reminding myself she’s 16. Jill deserved better!

[Wayne Fenlon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't heard many people talk about The Perfect Victim by David Sodergren, and it's quite odd because there are plenty of reviews for it. Anyway, this was a blast from start to finish. It's a kidnapping story, a girl of sixteen, with a more realistic take on the Home Alone vibe. So, expect a little humour, but not to the extent that it's anything like that. It's more subtle. The humour happens mostly in the dialogue.
I've got to say that David Sodergren has a great track record. Just check out Mother Horror's reviews of his work and you'll see what I mean. I, myself, haven't been let down yet either.
So, yeah, this one is a proper page turner.
I also think fans of Jeff Strand would lap this up. It's just not as over the top.

Seek this one out. I'm sure you'll have a good time too.
Five stars. Tons of fun.

[Zai Zai · Rating 4 out of 5]

imagine that... my sixth sodergren book... this is actually among the better ones... I say on par with night shoot fun wise (nothing can compare to the haar ofc)

here's my official ranking

1. the haar
2. night shoot
3-4 Maggie's grave the perfect victim (tied)
5. the forgotten island


++++big space++++


6. Navajo nightmarw

[Jake Reed · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5⭐️ a kidnapping thriller with Sodergren’s signature blood and gore all with some Home Alone-esque fuckery thrown in the mix. This was excellent!

[Ashley Daviau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my absolute favourite Sodergren I’ve read but still a super solid horror story. Lots of gore and what the fuck moments which I’ve come to love and expect from this author. Looking forward to see what he comes out with next!

[Heather Horror Hellion · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything David writes is a masterpiece. If you like strong female characters who kick butt its definitely a book you need to read.

[April Socarras | Thebookishpage · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Perfect Victim gave me the strangest mix of vibes, like Rush Hour 3 with a kidnapping twist, but then took a sharp left turn into revenge murder territory that felt like Home Alone if Kevin was out for blood (and a lot more realistic). It starts off with some chaotic, almost comedic energy that had me side-eyeing where this was going, but things got real dark and twisted right around the midpoint.

The main character? Absolute MVP. She’s so resourceful and quick on her feet (like, literally). No damsel in distress here! I stayed invested mostly because of her. While many stories love to make their leads clumsy or conveniently “victim-y,” this girl said, “Not today!” and took charge in ways that were thrilling to watch.

That said, the tone shifts felt jarring at times, and the pacing made it hard to figure out if I was supposed to laugh, gasp, or just prepare for carnage. It wasn’t a perfect read, but if you love strong heroines and don’t mind a blend of humor and darkness, it’s worth checking out!

[ezra · Rating 4 out of 5]

The reading experience of this one was a little weird to me, because on one side I could not look away, reading this in (essentially) on sitting, and on the other side the entire time I thought to myself “damn, this is kinda lame”. How does that make sense? No clue! Don’t ask me!

Either way, I had a great time with this, really. I think my problem may have been that I’d read a little too much Splatterpunk this month, so maybe I just got a little *too* used to violence. Despite that, this was better than all the Splatterpunk I’ve read this month combined. Shocking, I know.

I loved the characters in this (not as in “I liked who they are as people” but as in I like them as characters in a horror book) and I’m now 100% looking forward to reading more from Sodergren!

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book isn't bad by any means - by nature it is lighthearted, silly, and not that serious. Some jokes are fantastic as usual, and some of the scenes of violence are quite good, but this 180 page novel took me 4 or 5 days to finish. I don't think it's a matter of a tonal shift being the issue here, I appreciate comedy and horror, but these two girls being kidnapped is a genuinely terrifying thing and they're making jokes about someone's ass being fat instead of trying to work together to escape sooner. Like, okay.

If you're a huge fan of Sodergren this is absolutely worth a read, but absolutely a backlist book for a reason, I would not recommend this to someone still new to his works.

[Audrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really had no idea what to expect from this book! I read a few pages and couldn’t tell if this was going to just be some awful child SA fantasy filled story. Thankfully, the story quickly gains more depth.

It’s fast-paced, stabby, quick. I got halfway through and had to leave for dinner, almost cancelled my plans so I could keep reading. Came back and finished it the same night.

It’s gory but the gore isn’t over the top or there just for shock value, there is one scene in particular that made me feel awful and had a hard time shaking the visuals of that from my head.

The last bit felt like it was a weird mix of Hard Candy and Home Alone.

A super fun read.

[David Veith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, a very well written story, very enjoyable. Quick pace that jumps right into the action. Would have liked to see more a couple of more characters (just for a higher body count lol). Also, at times when the main character was lost in her own little world it was a bit unbelievable. I get the active imagination, but you have to think in this case it would not be so, and if it were you think it would have been a bit darker. Loved the character development. Just enough to know them, but not get in the way of the story. Fun twists throughout. It was a bit odd that I could see my oldest being this girl in the future lol.