Black Heart: A totally gripping serial killer thriller (Detective Dan Riley Book 1)

Product Information

Dan is on the trail of a twisted individual who is much closer than he realises. Can he overcome his own demons and stop the killer before it’s too late? This was a very fast paced and extremely well written thriller…. I definitely recommend it as one of the best detective novels I've read lately. It was very hard to put down! SO, Anna-Lou Weatherley, a new author to me, where is your second book -- please don't make me beg or wait too long!’ The Book Nurse As there’s nobody else to remember what the world used to be like before the wizards’ reign, nobody really doubts whether wizards are those men of high moral standing they claim to be or not. Here’s a little example of Fletcher’s writing, the way he can twist a dark happening into a lively bit of humor, still grisly in its content but light in the tone as he spins it:

Black Heart: A totally gripping serial killer thriller

Hence, throughout the book, the question of whether the ends justify the means arises frequently, and the author lets you be the judge. I also did not care for the prose. It wasn't just the first-person narration, which is rarely my first choice but not a problem by itself (my beloved Assassin's Apprentice employs it, after all). In this case, I thought the writing was too plain. I'm not a fan of flowery description and generally prefer shorter, simpler sentences, but for this book the prose bored me, with a few isolated exceptions. I entertained the theory that it would mirror the protagonist's growth and become more evocative as he evolved, but this didn't pan out. I found myself fondly missing the Germanic terms that flavoured the author's Manifest Delusions series; this book could have used some of that linguistic flair. There wasn’t a single massive plot twist at the end, but rather many small revelations throughout the story, which I liked better, as it keeps you entertained all along.The MC, Khraen, is a demonologist, which are known for common use of human sacrifice. Khraen is a distinctive and memorable character for a lot of reasons. I wouldn’t describe him as an anti-hero, I would say he’s straight up a villain. He’s a quite a different type of villain than I’m used to, though. Khraen has had his heart broken into pieces and scattered throughout the world, and because of that he’s suffering from amnesia in the beginning of the book and is almost animal-like in nature. However, each time he finds a piece of his heart, he restores a bit of himself and his memories. This is the second book in a row where the main character has amnesia – which is strange since I haven’t read one of those kinds of books in ages.. The greatest strength of this trope (amnesia) is that the reader and the character start from the same point – we get to know the world with the mc. (Such a clever way to explain a vast world with complicated history without info-dumping.) Another prominent character that deserves attention is Henka, the necromancer. She becomes Khraen’s companion later in this book, and the more you see her, the more dangerous she seems. She’s cunning and manipulative. Henka knows how to steer Khraen in a desired direction, though, we don’t really know her true motives (yet) Who was I? The kind of person who thought only of themselves? The kind of person who abandoned those in need? In this quest story we follow the main character, who wakes up buried alive in the middle of nowhere, hungry, cold and has no recollection of what happened prior to his awakening. What he soon finds out, though, is that there are other versions of him wandering around, each having a piece of obsidian in their heart that holds parts of his persona (memories of his past).

Black Stone Heart - Goodreads Black Stone Heart - Goodreads

Still grieving the devastating loss of his girlfriend and unborn child in a car accident two years ago, Dan throws everything he has into the investigation. Yet just as Dan begins to piece together the clues of this complex case, the body of a woman is found in her bed with identical wounds. I think this book is marketed as adult fantasy, so expect relatively descriptive sex scenes and (not relatively) graphic violence. Demonology and its myriad practices in particular open up an engaging moral debate about the price of societal efficiency and progress, about crime and punishment, and the horrific cost of power. This practice forces Khraen to face certain aspects of himself, facets which are appalling and frightening for anyone to come to grips with – woven here with great skill by Fletcher. However, both of those things were kind of dragged down for me by the execution of the story. The narrative is overly repetitive where it feels like it hits the same story beats over and over and over again. Ditto for the characterization. I don't know how many times we had to get inner thoughts from the main character about his conflicted nature. My best estimate is approximately 10,000. I found myself saying "Dude you murdered someone in cold blood right at the beginning. You're a homicidal maniac. Just embrace it." Fletcher had a similar issue with how often we are told people at large dislike the main character because of his skin color. It feels like he belabors this point to absurdity.The world-building is above average too. It has the usual share of magic and fantasy tropes, but some elements make it unique that I do not want to spoil here. There are shades of 'The Wheel of Time' as well as 'The Sword of Truth'. The book is also quite brutal and graphic. So be warned. It is not for the squeamish.

Black Hearts : Book summary and reviews of Black Hearts by

Listening to the audiobook narration, done by Fletcher himself, is the most engrossed I’ve been with an audiobook in months. The gravelly voice Fletcher opens with eventually reveals a stunning array of nuance –remarkable work, and fun to no end. The audiobook opens and closes with two pieces of original music performed by Fletcher and his band, which did a surprisingly good job of setting the mood for those opening chapters.As we discover who Khraen used to be in his previous life, an internal fight arises in him. With every devoured shard it’s getting harder and harder to differentiate between the often conflicting thoughts – the ones of the new (Khraen with conscience and remains of a good moral compass) and the old Khraen ((cruel, merciless, ready to pay the cost). There’s a lot of self-doubt and self-persuasion, and I absolutely loved that! Like all things grimdark—the murdery bits, the stabby-stabby times, the people popping off in clouds of blood like angry little zits; This is definitely an anti-hero tale told from first person with Khaern as the one who is trying to uncover just who he was and who he is now. Along the way he meets Henka and Shalayn who are two very different women with two vastly different impressions they leave on him. This has to be the best Fantasy read I've ever had the pleasure of coming across so far. The only ones that come close are: The Prince of Nothing series by Bakker,

Jet Black Heart by Teresa Flavin | Goodreads Jet Black Heart by Teresa Flavin | Goodreads

Asimismo, la historia es interesante y me ha parecido bastante original. Lo único es que me ha faltado un mapa, así como un poco más de desarrollo del wordbuilding. Sin embargo, lo que más destaco son los personajes, nunca me había encontrado con unos personajes tan grises, y yo que pensaba que los de La Primera Ley o los de La Compañía Negra lo eran, pero estos igual están a un nivel superior. Además, me puede que el protagonista se plantee si sus actos son buenos o malos moralmente y las reflexiones sobre ello. Now, the wizards rule the world. People blindly believe everything they say, but victors write the history that shows them in a good light. (Reminded me of Orwell’s 1984) Once again Michael Fletcher manages to spellbind you into this grimdark spiral of madness, and yet it feels so very fluent and logical it makes you take a double take at your own thoughts and emotions. The story is perfectly balanced on a fine edge, it holds the reader’s attention all the way as the characters grow, develop and come alive in your mind.Sadly the story didn't live up to its potential. The main character barely seemed to develop except in his knowledge of things long lost. He has an ongoing internal ethical debate ("Am I the bad guy?") that doesn't progress; he merely recirculates the same thoughts ad nauseum. The plot progression has a certain litRPG quality to it, which is fine if that's your bag but it doesn't make for great epic fantasy. Technically it's a progression fantasy, a term some apply to stories featuring significant character power growth, but the character barely uses the knowledge and abilities that level him up from his original state. Overall the story arc felt very flat, with a couple of unsurprising twists near the end in place of a satisfying payoff. I can see potential in the sequels for exciting story, brutality, and mind-blowing magic, but I didn't have a good enough experience to push me forward. That night I dreamed of a strange hell where demons were immaterial spirits that could be bound to steel and iron. They thirsted for death, fed off the essence of the living as it fled the dying body. No le pongo las cinco estrellas porque como he dicho antes ha habido cosas que me han faltado, pero me lo he pasado bien leyéndolo. Supongo que ha sido un aire fresco de tanta novela romántica últimamente. Aunque, a decir verdad, me hubiera gustado haberlo leído en otro momento porque no me encuentro en mi mejor momento, pero bueno, lo hecho, hecho está.