Title: The Watcher in the Wall
Author: Owen Laukkanen
Genre: Psychological thriller
Main Characters: Carla Windermere, an intense and driven FBI agent, and her partner, Kirk Stevens, a cop with twenty years experience who's now a special agent with Minnesota's Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
The Premise: A classmate of Stevens' daughter commits suicide and she wants her father to look into it. When he and Windermere do, they discover an online chat room dedicated to suicide and fear that there's another teen out there about to take her own life. But was it a real suicide pact, or something more sinister? As their investigation continues, Windermere starts to believe it's the latter.
"This wasn't about finding some suicidal mystery girl, not any longer. There was something going on here, something deeper than a couple of kids with a death wish."But an online predator like this is hard to catch. Still, Windermere and Stevens are going to do everything they can to catch him before he causes more teens to die.
My thoughts: This is a good read. It's fast-paced and intense and the premise of an online predator stalking lonely teenagers and urging them to commit suicide is very chilling. I also liked that there's not a ton of language or graphic violence in it, just good writing. I found it hard to put down at the end. This lucky find from the L shelf is psychological suspense at its best. Even better? Laukkanen's written several other books about these characters which means there are more thrillers waiting on the L shelf for me to read and enjoy.
Happy Reading!
I haven't read anything by this author, but this sounds like something I might like!
ReplyDeleteI'd never even heard of him before but apparently he's written about 5 books with these characters. Who knew? :)
DeleteI burned my self out on crime novels but this one sounds tempting. I'm glad there's more for you to enjoy.
ReplyDeleteYou can burn out on certain kinds of novels, can't you? I always have to mix in some lighter reads and even some non-fiction with my usual library fare because I can't read the same kind of book over and over either.
DeleteI find psychological suspense hit or miss. I'm glad this one was a great read!
ReplyDeleteI'd say this one is definitely more hit than miss. I'd read this author again. :)
DeleteLove your review format. This one sounds like a very intriguing read. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks! I like switching things up every now and then. :)
DeleteOoh, the title alone is so creepy!
ReplyDeleteYeah, that part of the plot was very creepy. :)
DeleteThe suicide part of the plot is something that scares me off but I'm glad you enjoyed it, Lark :)
ReplyDeleteYeah, that aspect made this story pretty disconcerting.
DeleteI love psychological thrillers, but most of them are filled with graphic language and violence. It's nice that this one isn't. The premise is definitely chilling, but I think I'll still give this one a go.
ReplyDeleteI want to read some of his other books because you're right, it's nice to find an author who writes a good suspense story without feeling a need to be too graphic or use the f-word incessantly. :)
Delete