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Devil's Dolls #1
The Devil’s Dollmaker
Somewhere in the dark, the Dollmaker butchers another victim.
Going against her instincts, K decides to follow Lisa to the police, where she introduces her to Jerry, a cop that seems to distance himself from the corruption of the system. What surprises K more is that the task force has been expecting her arrival, addressing her as ‘special agent’ Rose. Is this another unexpected twist her anonymous boss has thrown her way, or could it be an elaborate scheme to trap her?
The lack of physical evidence on the case and her only unreliable witness leave her no time for caution. Thanks to Jerry’s tech skills and Lisa’s charm, they follow the missing women’s traces to the dark web, where a man called the Dollmaker deals in favors and twisted requests. But the most disturbing revelation of all is why these women answer his call…
What they find on that page scars Lisa, but K is hellbent on uncovering the man behind the operation. She knows whatever lies inside the sickest minds is best to remain hidden, but unless they act fast, more will die, and the killer’s trail will run cold.
This time there is no room for error. Not while the Dollmaker is out there mutilating his new toy.
Going against her instincts, K decides to follow Lisa to the police, where she introduces her to Jerry, a cop that seems to distance himself from the corruption of the system. What surprises K more is that the task force has been expecting her arrival, addressing her as ‘special agent’ Rose. Is this another unexpected twist her anonymous boss has thrown her way, or could it be an elaborate scheme to trap her?
The lack of physical evidence on the case and her only unreliable witness leave her no time for caution. Thanks to Jerry’s tech skills and Lisa’s charm, they follow the missing women’s traces to the dark web, where a man called the Dollmaker deals in favors and twisted requests. But the most disturbing revelation of all is why these women answer his call…
What they find on that page scars Lisa, but K is hellbent on uncovering the man behind the operation. She knows whatever lies inside the sickest minds is best to remain hidden, but unless they act fast, more will die, and the killer’s trail will run cold.
This time there is no room for error. Not while the Dollmaker is out there mutilating his new toy.
77 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 31, 2022
21 people are currently reading
22 people want to read
About the author
William Baker
203 books17 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
William Baker lives on the West Coast with his wife, son, and their two cats, Tiger and Panther. An avid reader across genres, he gravitates toward mystery and thrillers. Writing from childhood onward, he later trained as an economist, but storytelling endured, eventually drawing him back to writing for good.
William Baker lives on the West Coast with his wife, son, and their two cats, Tiger and Panther. An avid reader across genres, he gravitates toward mystery and thrillers. Writing from childhood onward, he later trained as an economist, but storytelling endured, eventually drawing him back to writing for good.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
June 16, 2023
I am soooo lovin’ this series of novella/short stories. It makes me think of Charlie’s Angels, except there is only one angel with an anonymous benefactor. K is the epitome of a female vigilante and I love her. In The Devil’s Dollmaker, a deliciously gruesome story of missing women, K shows her humanity. I hate that she remains a solitary action figure, yet a connection would make her a target. This way, she comes and goes, like a ghost in the night. The only downside to this action packed suspense novella/short story is the cliffhanger…and I am hanging on for dear life!
June 20, 2023
Terrific novella to introduce the reader to The Devil's Dolls, season one. Working girls are disappearing and noone is looking for them. This is not new. But then the wife of an influential man disappears and now the scenario changes. Who is taking these woman and where are they taking them to? K is brought in on the job and gets right to it, making friends with a quiet young street girl who fears for her friend. Can K help? I was really taken with the characters here. They had impact for a short read and had me wanting to move to the next. I so I shall.
I received a free advanced reader's copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving my honest review.
I received a free advanced reader's copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving my honest review.
March 10, 2023
I had never heard of William Baker before downloading The Devil’s Dollmaker as part of a promotional bundle. He remains pretty much a mystery to me now, even after checking out his Facebook page and his Amazon Author’s Page Bio. His author’s page bio said that he lived on the Westcoast, which lead me to think he lived in California, Washington. Or Oregon. His Facebook page said that he’s located in Norway. Doesn’t matter. What matters is that he has the makings of a great fictioneer.
In The Devil’s Dollmaker, Baker has created an intriguing world and some very memorable characters, especially in “K.” If you love strong female protagonists who are all about taking names and kicking butt, you’ll love “K.” Back in the day when I did black ops for Uncle Sam, I knew my share of K’s whose past was a mystery and remains a mystery. Who was K? What did the “K” stand for? Where did she come from? Who was her mysterious boss? What was the mysterious agency that she worked for? I want to know. I need to know! Vengeance in Black is the sequel to The Devil Doll Series. Perhaps I’ll find some answers there.
The Devil’s Dollmaker is a nonstop roller-coaster thrill ride that will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. The Devil’s Dollmaker isn’t a page-turner by any stretch of the imagination, it’s a page-burner. The title, The Devil’s Dollmaker, fits the tale in a very horrifying way, but I’ll leave you to discover why for yourself as you read this spellbinding tale. The ending... well, all I’m going to say about the ending is that it is a real cliffhanger and will have you rushing to Amazon to order book 2. I did along with the prequel.
In The Devil’s Dollmaker, Baker has created an intriguing world and some very memorable characters, especially in “K.” If you love strong female protagonists who are all about taking names and kicking butt, you’ll love “K.” Back in the day when I did black ops for Uncle Sam, I knew my share of K’s whose past was a mystery and remains a mystery. Who was K? What did the “K” stand for? Where did she come from? Who was her mysterious boss? What was the mysterious agency that she worked for? I want to know. I need to know! Vengeance in Black is the sequel to The Devil Doll Series. Perhaps I’ll find some answers there.
The Devil’s Dollmaker is a nonstop roller-coaster thrill ride that will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. The Devil’s Dollmaker isn’t a page-turner by any stretch of the imagination, it’s a page-burner. The title, The Devil’s Dollmaker, fits the tale in a very horrifying way, but I’ll leave you to discover why for yourself as you read this spellbinding tale. The ending... well, all I’m going to say about the ending is that it is a real cliffhanger and will have you rushing to Amazon to order book 2. I did along with the prequel.
July 16, 2023
Devil's Dolls Series:
A book broken into pieces, each a cliffhanger, each quickly read since about six - ten chapters each. Interesting story lines with gore and action, but simplistic in nature. Entertaining no-brainer with no vulgar language and some silly dialog. K is likeable.
The Devil's Origin, prequel pt. 1 - Interesting introduction about K's start. 4*
Vengeance in Black, prequel pt. 2 - How K meets Lisa. 3*
The Devil's Dollmaker (1) - Interesting but reminds me of a Horror movie I saw in the late Sixties, but much worse. Gory but not graphic to extremes, just enough for visualization. 4*
The Silent Watcher (2) - Good vengeance, simplistic but effective. Intriguing side story fully in the works. 4*
Trail of Blood (3) - Goodness, the amount of depravity that exists in this section. 4*
The Devil's Tale (4) - Good mix of Cozy and simplistic rushing to finish this section. 3*
The Devil's Reckoning (5) -
The Devil's Blood (6) -
Devil's Dolls Series end.
A book broken into pieces, each a cliffhanger, each quickly read since about six - ten chapters each. Interesting story lines with gore and action, but simplistic in nature. Entertaining no-brainer with no vulgar language and some silly dialog. K is likeable.
The Devil's Origin, prequel pt. 1 - Interesting introduction about K's start. 4*
Vengeance in Black, prequel pt. 2 - How K meets Lisa. 3*
The Devil's Dollmaker (1) - Interesting but reminds me of a Horror movie I saw in the late Sixties, but much worse. Gory but not graphic to extremes, just enough for visualization. 4*
The Silent Watcher (2) - Good vengeance, simplistic but effective. Intriguing side story fully in the works. 4*
Trail of Blood (3) - Goodness, the amount of depravity that exists in this section. 4*
The Devil's Tale (4) - Good mix of Cozy and simplistic rushing to finish this section. 3*
The Devil's Reckoning (5) -
The Devil's Blood (6) -
Devil's Dolls Series end.
May 29, 2023
The Devil's Doll maker takes the reader into the world of working girls and the total lack of concern they receive from law enforcement, etc, in time of trouble. They are better swept under the rug and forgotten about. K is sent to town because women are disappearing off the streets with no trace left but no one seems to care until Kara, the wife of a city council man disappears. K will find the creep responsible and he will pay. When Kara is taken the police finally show some interest and one officer is assigned to work with K. Will they find the creep and make him pay? K is determined. We are carried to places we never thought we would ever go or see. This is the first William Baker book I have read but it will not be the last. I am a fan of his style of writing and look forward to reading all of his stories. Thank you Mr. Baker!
June 8, 2023
I'm loving this series of a woman, one force, vigilante.
K is given assignments from an unknown person. Usually they are quite vague but, when she arrives at her destination, the problem becomes clear to her. "Working" women in this town are disappearing and it appears that law enforcement isn't interested...until the mayor's wife becomes one of the missing. Lisa, a former working girl, wants to find her missing friend and she is assisting K.
Shortly after the disappearance of the mayor's wife, K goes to the police department and meets Jeremy, a rookie officer who is to assist K. The police department was aware K was coming and was informed that she is FBI. K goes with it and the action begins....
A fast-paced story with lots of action that will leave you wanting more.
K is given assignments from an unknown person. Usually they are quite vague but, when she arrives at her destination, the problem becomes clear to her. "Working" women in this town are disappearing and it appears that law enforcement isn't interested...until the mayor's wife becomes one of the missing. Lisa, a former working girl, wants to find her missing friend and she is assisting K.
Shortly after the disappearance of the mayor's wife, K goes to the police department and meets Jeremy, a rookie officer who is to assist K. The police department was aware K was coming and was informed that she is FBI. K goes with it and the action begins....
A fast-paced story with lots of action that will leave you wanting more.
February 14, 2023
Going against her gut feelings K decides to follow Lisa to the police and introduce her to Jerry a cop who was one of the few who was uncorrupt from the system. She is surprised to be address as Special agent Rose . The lack of evidence on the case and unreliable witness leaves her with no option than to find the evidence. With the help of Jerry and his tech skills and Lisa's charm they follow the missing woman to a man who calls himself the "doll maker. There are many women answering his call and K can't believe that these women responded to his sick mind. A chilling read. I received this book free and leave a honest review. I recommend this book to other.
June 9, 2023
Short But Good!
K is all she's known as, even to herself. She has a skill set that allows her to track down very bad people and her unknown handler seems to know this.
The current job she is working on is a town where women simply do not go out at night. Lisa is a street worker that has no choice but he out and maybe the only lead K has in finding out why women are very afraid of what's in the dark.
Enjoying this series. This gives me a Femme Nakita vibe mixed with a little Dexter. I have a sneaking suspicion that I'm gonna have to read the entire series before most of my questions of what K actually is will get revealed however I'm loving the journey so far.
K is all she's known as, even to herself. She has a skill set that allows her to track down very bad people and her unknown handler seems to know this.
The current job she is working on is a town where women simply do not go out at night. Lisa is a street worker that has no choice but he out and maybe the only lead K has in finding out why women are very afraid of what's in the dark.
Enjoying this series. This gives me a Femme Nakita vibe mixed with a little Dexter. I have a sneaking suspicion that I'm gonna have to read the entire series before most of my questions of what K actually is will get revealed however I'm loving the journey so far.
July 21, 2023
This is the first book that I've read by this author and I can say that I'm not disappointed.
It is a truly gripping and unputdownable book.
K suffers with amnesia and doesn't know who she is.
She is working for an anonymous benefactor helping solve crime.
Her case this time involves missing women.
Although the book is a short read, it is fast paced and will have you sitting on thr edge of your seat.
Especially with the ending 😱
I can't wait to dive into the next instalment to see what happens next.
I'm also stalking the author on all platforms because I don't want to miss out on any new releases 💗💗
It is a truly gripping and unputdownable book.
K suffers with amnesia and doesn't know who she is.
She is working for an anonymous benefactor helping solve crime.
Her case this time involves missing women.
Although the book is a short read, it is fast paced and will have you sitting on thr edge of your seat.
Especially with the ending 😱
I can't wait to dive into the next instalment to see what happens next.
I'm also stalking the author on all platforms because I don't want to miss out on any new releases 💗💗
November 26, 2022
At first I was intrigued by the books name and cover. Soon enough i found myself captured by the charatchers and the story. Like most characthers in a lot of books they had their own interesting gimmicks, which totally puts a smile on my face when you get to know the main charatchers. There were also some secrecy throughout the story that gave you somewhat clues about what was about to unfold. That kept me interested and wanted to continue on with the story.
Overall i would rate this book a 4 star, it was well worth my time and i look forward to check out the next chapter :D
Overall i would rate this book a 4 star, it was well worth my time and i look forward to check out the next chapter :D
February 23, 2023
Unfortunately, The Devil's Dollmaker was disappointing for me. The story itself was ok, but the execution was not. There were typos that should have been addressed (not a major detractor) but the writing style didn't agree with me. At times I felt common sense and continuity had been thrown out the window. I had very high hopes for this series, but the final death knell for me was a cliffhanger. An author should have enough respect for his reader to warn them the story in the book is not complete.
I received a review copy from the author at my request and this is my honest opinion.
I received a review copy from the author at my request and this is my honest opinion.
May 20, 2023
I would like to thank William Baker for sending me a copy of The Devil's Dollmaker. And wow, it was a very fast pace book to the point I felt I like I just started it only to have finished it. K, Jeremy and Lisa are all on the case. One is not who they say they are, the second is a cop and the third is a late night street worker if you catch my drift. The three go on an adventure as they try to find the missing women. The way it end leads to you wanting more and I honestly cannot wait to read the next books!
July 5, 2023
K’s further adventures.
After reading The Devil’s Origin, I reserved my judgement about this series until I had read The Devil’s dollmaker. While there is plenty of action and suspense in this story it just never really hooked me enough to go on with the series. I guess I was hoping there was going to be some- however minor- disclosure who is funding K, or where she came from, or any glimmer of her background. Sadly, without a bit of that dripping out the reader is left with a vigilante whose only motivation appears to be a payday that shows up in bags.
After reading The Devil’s Origin, I reserved my judgement about this series until I had read The Devil’s dollmaker. While there is plenty of action and suspense in this story it just never really hooked me enough to go on with the series. I guess I was hoping there was going to be some- however minor- disclosure who is funding K, or where she came from, or any glimmer of her background. Sadly, without a bit of that dripping out the reader is left with a vigilante whose only motivation appears to be a payday that shows up in bags.
November 16, 2022
The story had the potential to be good. The basis is interesting. But the actual writing is so poorly done… there are grammatical errors, the sentence structure is poor, it is repetitive, the conclusions drawn are pulled from thin air at times, and the ending leaves the reader going “what???” with no desire to continue the story in the next book.
June 16, 2023
Great book
I liked the mystery surrounding K and her badass attitude worked really well in this story. I felt bad for Lisa and everything she had to go through and that Jeremy wasn't allowed to pursue the case the way he wanted to. Lisa disappearing in the end was a shocker and I can't wait to see what happened to her.
I liked the mystery surrounding K and her badass attitude worked really well in this story. I felt bad for Lisa and everything she had to go through and that Jeremy wasn't allowed to pursue the case the way he wanted to. Lisa disappearing in the end was a shocker and I can't wait to see what happened to her.
June 25, 2023
Starts with a bang. No introduction about the principal character "K".
Unless the reader has read about the prequel, they would not be knowing what's the story about.
Similarly, there doesn't seem to be a plot unless it is part of the series, even then, the author could've added some insights and backgrounds about the heroine. Also, there is no description of what's special about the heroine.
Unless the reader has read about the prequel, they would not be knowing what's the story about.
Similarly, there doesn't seem to be a plot unless it is part of the series, even then, the author could've added some insights and backgrounds about the heroine. Also, there is no description of what's special about the heroine.
June 25, 2023
What an amazing and wild ride!! Love that the MC is a bad-ass woman who sets her mind to a task and follows through...no matter what it takes. This book was filled with so many twists and turns, it'll keep you guessing until the very end!! It was unique and original, definitely worth a read!! I can't wait to continue the series....I'm hooked!!
August 31, 2023
Interesting Short Story
I did read the prequel first. It's not necessary to read The Devil's Dollmaker, though. K, the main character, is tasked with an assignment, and the story is packed with action as she completes her task.
Short stories are great fillers for me, and I look forward to the next one in the series by William Baker.
I did read the prequel first. It's not necessary to read The Devil's Dollmaker, though. K, the main character, is tasked with an assignment, and the story is packed with action as she completes her task.
Short stories are great fillers for me, and I look forward to the next one in the series by William Baker.
February 19, 2023
3.5 stars (a bunch of typos). I admit, I'm not a fan of a story where the lead character is referenced as just an initial 'K'. I don't understand what value that adds to the story.
In general terms, I did enjoy the story. A serial killer abducting (mainly) street-workers
In general terms, I did enjoy the story. A serial killer abducting (mainly) street-workers
February 19, 2023
Young women are going missing, mainly prostitutes, so the police are not actively investigating. The mayor's wife goes missing. K introduces herself as an FBI agent to try and get the police involved. The Dollmaker is brutalizing women. A cliff hanger as one of her friends is kidnapped.
March 3, 2023
The premise of The Devil's Dollmaker is creepy! But K moves quick and thinks even quicker. With the help of a rookie cop and a lady of the night, she stops the Dollmaker in his tracks and is soon off on another assignment. I never saw the end coming, though. Kept me guessing. Jean, ARC
May 1, 2023
I enjoyed this book. It was easy to read, and even though there were some rather far-fetched jumps in the narrative, they weren't too important and didn't spoil the book. If you have a couple of hours to spare and don't want anything that will overtax your brain, try this book.
June 5, 2023
An awesomely written thriller that was a fast ride. I saw so much happen in such a short amount of pages. I was not sure if I would like this style of writing but this author made it work. I am now moving on to the next book.
January 9, 2024
WOW!
Absolutely the best! I love that the bad guys get what's coming to them. I especially love that its a female doing it! U have a winner here Mr. Baker. Keep up the good work! Can't wait to read the next one! Extremely well written & easy to follow.p
Absolutely the best! I love that the bad guys get what's coming to them. I especially love that its a female doing it! U have a winner here Mr. Baker. Keep up the good work! Can't wait to read the next one! Extremely well written & easy to follow.p
February 12, 2023
The storyline is good but the writing leaves a little to be desired with some grammatical errors. Occasionally there are some leaps in the story that seem a bit unrealistic.
February 26, 2023
Pretty cool story
I like how K could go in and run things and solve the crime without a lot of red tape. I'm on to read,ing the next one.
I like how K could go in and run things and solve the crime without a lot of red tape. I'm on to read,ing the next one.
February 28, 2023
Breath taking read and the ending is so unfair!
Now to read #2!
Now to read #2!
March 1, 2023
This is a really good story some of the story is graphic on some things but it is a very good read I really enjoyed reading this book
May 20, 2023
This was creepy, disturbing and so entertaining. I am loving this series
May 25, 2023
Wow what a series... Grabs you at the start and won't let go. Just leaves you wanting more.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews