This was a good book. Kept my interest and had some really good moments. Interesting characters. Plot was good with some nice twists.

Actual rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

After seeing some of the bad reviews for this book I was a little apprehensive about reading it. I actually enjoyed the book. It had a dark, creepy and unique story line with some twists. However, I did not find any of the characters too interesting and I really detested Detective Sandra Whittal and the wife, Ellen. It definitely does have a bit of a Dexter vibe to it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for a copy of Nathan Ripley's "Find You In The Dark" in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 25%

This was not for me. I wasn't a fan of the writing nor the characters and after picking it up and setting it down multiple times, I'm throwing in the towel.

Don’t Miss This Soon To Be Bestseller!

Who really knows why Martin Reese is driven to find the long dead bodies hidden away by serial killers. Was it to show up the police? Or to provide comfort and closure to the families? Maybe it was because his wife lost her sister to a murderer many years ago, her body never found. Or could be simple morbid curiosity, wondering if he could do it, when the authorities were never able?

The Hobby

After selling a very successful tech business, Martin is pleased to have it sold and done. After long workdays away from his family, he can now spend more time with his daughter, Kylie, and his wife, Ellen.

Martin also has a secret hobby. Or perhaps an obsession: Finding dead bodies. Buying the murder files from a policeman, he searches out the little clues law enforcement missed. Turns out he is very good at it too. Yet with every body he finds, he is more and more drawn into that world. Once a case takes hold, it is difficult to concentrate on anything else. The secret he keeps most carefully is not one he will ever plans to share with anyone.

The opportunity arises for another irresistible case, the search for Tinsley, his wife’s long- missing sister.

The Investigation

Homicide detective Sandra Whittal doesn’t believe the man finding the bodies is an innocent, simply helping the police. She is certain he is something more. She is determined to find out who he is.

Whittal is a smart, young detective who senses the changing tone in the caller’s messages, but clarifying the change brings more questions not answers.

Loss of Control

The author writes with increasing tension, right from the beginning. Building the story from Martin’s point of view, then from that of law enforcement adds to the drama. It is not done with gory detail, but with subtle descriptions that lead you along. Concise, well written chapters don’t leave room for mind wandering. It’s a book that will keep you focused exactly where the author wants you.

With every revelation, the story grows more unsettling. The moves each makes, from Martin, to his wife, his former business associate, Gary, even to his young daughter, then to the stranger who knows what Martin knows.

Twisting, complex turns in this novel have the ability to keep you awake at night. So many little nuances that make you think you know where the path is leading, only to find new directions. You will find yourself suspecting everyone.

Someone is out there. Watching. Anticipating. Acting. Taking control.

It’s an amazing psychological thriller with that same intensity found in Gone Girl, and the like. Afraid to see what will happen next, yet unable to stop reading until you know.

Don’t miss this one.

I loved this book’s premise and had such high hopes for loving these characters! Martin sold his tech company and retired early. He’s wealthy and his wife, Ellen, is a loan officer turned shopkeeper. Ellen’s sister, Tinsley, has been missing for twenty years and Martin has been spending all of his free time searching for her remains. Along the way, he uncovers bodies of other murdered women and anonymously report the findings to the police. Ellen doesn’t have any clue about how Martin spends his “camping” time, but his daughter soon finds out some interesting details when he becomes sloppy. At first it seems as though Martin’s secretive search for his sister-in-law is genuine. He cares for his wife but her sister’s disappearance is a subject that neither can talk about. But it keeps coming to the forefront of their family life. But does Martin have another motive for finding these buried women? While the premise of the book was good, it didn't hold up throughout the book. I found it to be slow & the authors to not have much personality. It could've developed & been written better

Though I liked the book, I made the decision at the time I finished not to review it on my site. Maybe in the future I will include it in a book list post or another article.

I read at least half of this, trying to decide whether I liked it or not. Martin, the main character is married to a woman whose sister was the presumed victim of a serial killer, and whose body has never been found.

He spends his free time poring over case files he buys from a sketchy police officer, finding bodies buried by serial killers, and sending taunting anonymous phone calls to the police telling them where they can find these poor women.

Still with me? So Martin is a bit of a creeper. He's the first person narrator, then there is another third person POV that follows two other detectives who are, among other things, trying to solve the case of a missing prostitute. When they do, it raises the an alarming possibility.

I was mildly curious the entire time I read, but from the first pages had a prediction. Then as I read further, I figured out the rest of the mystery.

For me, the pace was too slow and that everyone in the book was far too unlikable.

Peeked at the ending. Yep, I was right.

2.5 I thought I would never finish stars

This book had quite a different interesting concept. It was about a man, Martin Reese, who had a penchant for finding the graves of women who were killed by serial killers. Martin would unearth the bodies and then in a hidden phone message, alert the police to his finds. He claimed he was doing so in order to give the dead women's family peace and to bury the remains of their family member. However, there were many indications that there might be something wrong with Martin. This was enough of an idea to make me want to read this book.

Unfortunately, the book was overly long although, just somewhat over three hundred pages. It made me wonder was this because of the content or the writing or even a combination of both? I concluded that the writing was my issue. It was to me too wordy, too detailed, and too repetitious. I kept on pushing myself to read it, figuring the intensity of the story would get me to the end. I wanted to quit a number of times, but I did sally forth hoping that in the last few chapters that I would be rewarded for my my diligence. Sadly, for me this wonderful premise just did not measure up. I am sure others will like this slow plodding story, but for me it was just dull. As we all know there are millions of books out there waiting to be read so off I go cracking into one or two or even three of those millions.

Thank you to Nathan Ripley, Atria books, and NetGalley for a copy of this book. I wish I had liked it better.

⭐️⭐️.5
I’ve read a lot of out-of-the box thrillers recently. This one certainly fits that category, though maybe not in the best of ways.

Martin is a loving husband and father. He puts his family first. Okay…most of the time he does. Here’s the deal, it seems Martin has some bizzare hobbies. The kind of bizzare that both his family and the police would probably frown on. But his heart is in the right place... I mean this is for his family after all...right?? And besides, what really are his crimes? Just how guilty is Martin? And what evil has he invited to his front doorstep?

I thought the premise for this book was quite interesting! It grabbed me right away! Though for me it became a very slow read that lacked that push to keep the story moving forward. I think this could have turned into a great read, but I always felt I was on the outside looking in on this book. Never felt a part of the action. Lacked the connection to help me care about the characters or the story.

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books and Nathan Ripley for an ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

If you’re looking for a creepy book that will make you really uncomfortable, this is it.

“Find You In The Dark” by Nathan Ripley is the kind of book that will get under your skin and make you look over your shoulder. Martin, is the finder, he searches for and locates murder victims’ bodies hidden by a serial killer and calls in these “finds” to the police, letting them know that he did their job for them. Martin is a happily married man and a father of a teenage girl who he loves with all of his heart. His fascination with the case began before he got married and as it turns out, his wife’s sister was allegedly one of the serial killer’s first victims. Before Martin got married, he was just a regular guy, you know, the type: the kind that liked to watch women from afar, studying them, learning about them, obsessing over them. That’s how Martin met his now wife…and he’s not even the creepster you need to worry about. The guy you need to worry about, is the one putting these gals in their graves in the first place and once he discovers that the bodies are being dug up, well, he sets his sights on Martin. Are you scared yet? I would be if I were you.

This was a buddy read with Kaceey - both of us were in agreement on this book from start to finish.

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria and Nathan Ripley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Published on NetGalley and Goodreads on 7.25.18

Find You In The Dark by Nathan Ripley: Is Martin a good guy or bad guy? Does his wife know what he does? A twisted plot that keeps you guessing until you know; or do you? You may be a little uncomfortable with what you’ll accept, or maybe not. Read it/Hear it and see; (the narrator is mesmerizing!)

A thriller I will mention to readers of the genre. Page turner and one that kept my interest. Good solid read.

A fantastically creepy book! Marin Reese has a few secrets. He purchases old police files to find clues leading to victims of serial killers. He then digs up undiscovered bodies and tips off the police. A strange but noble act until one of the killers that was supposedly put away, isn't as far away as he thought.
Ripley creates a thriller that's different from many in genre. For fans of fast-paced, psychological, suspense, this is a must read!

Just from reading the blurb of Find You In The Dark you know right away that you're in for something special. Not only do you have a guy harboring his own secrets, but then, he gets attention from someone who doesn't like his own secrets coming out. It's an interesting premise and one that can only work if the writer is talented enough to make you care about the story. The story here is creepy enough, but when you add in Martin Reese's weird hobby and then The Ragman it becomes even creepier and way more interesting. It's the dark aspects of the story that make it so good. We all have secrets that we would like to stay hidden, but what would we do if they began to leak out? What happens when the life we keep hidden is compromised?


The book initially starts out slow kind of like a roller coaster, but then when it picks up speed it hurtles ahead almost giving you whiplash. Martin alone isn't likable, or interesting enough to keep this book moving on his own. He's a bit player in a story that touches other characters and widens a bit in the second half. The questions form as The Ragman appear and it seems as if Martin is truly in over his head. That's what keeps the story moving. It's these small twists and turns that truly grip you. The real story isn't about The emergence of Ragman at all. He's an important part of the story, but how will Marting protect his family without his own secrets coming out? That's the hook, that's why you keep reading the book. Ripley has created an interesting novel that keeps you guessing. You can't but wonder how it'll end. It's an interesting premise that works and works well. Ripley has created an interesting thriller that is gripping and highly entertaining.

I came into this novel with high expectations after learning the author, Nathan Ripley, was a pseudonym for Canadian literary writer, Naben Ruthnum. I’d previously read a story of his loosely based on his father’s upbringing in Mauritius. I’m a big believer that readers need to be introduced to stories across spectrums, stories with diverse characters and settings. Learning about South Asian culture was good for me. All of that said, Find You in the Dark is a different side of the writer, Naben Ruthnum. Here we find him reworked not as a literary writer offering up “currybooks,” as he calls them, but a fast-paced thriller. It has an interesting premise. Martin Reese buys files on serial killers from the police…and then he goes and finds the bodies of their dead and anonymously turns his findings over to the police. Detective Sandra Whittal doesn’t consider this good Samaritan to be very good. In fact, she’s concerned he will escalate to killing himself. And when there are complications with Reese’s latest “case” the reader will breathlessly read on to find out if Whittal is on to something. This is a good edition to the crime fiction genre. I hope Ripley keeps spinning dark, crime-fillled yarns.

I really wanted to like this book. When I saw the comparison to Dexter ( I loved both the tv show and the books) and read the synopsis, I was extremely excited. However, this book did not live up to my expectations, though I wouldn't say it was a bad book. It was a little slow starting out, in that after having read several chapters I didn't feel like I had a good feel for the main character or where the story was going. I think this was mainly due to two things: The first problem for me was that while the main character revealed things about his past and a little about why he does what he does, it was very unemotional and distant and I couldn't relate or empathize. The second issue I had was with the detective characters, especially Detective Sandra Whittal, where at times they are brilliant detectives and other times they were terrible. I also couldn't understand why Detective Whittal was so against "the Finder", I could see her being a little upset that he was showing the police up a little, and being worried that he might escalate, but it seemed there was more anger there than necessary and it was confusing and unauthentic. In the end I managed to finish the book, and found the end escalated the excitement factor, but I'm left feeling a little torn. I can't say that I was happy with how quickly the ending wrapped things up, but I also don't know if I'd want more.

An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is one of the best thrillers I have yet to read. I always love a good morally gray main character

This is a slow burn of a thriller featuring Martin - a man who clearly loves his family but you're never sure if he's on the right side of things entirely. A successful man who was able to stop working, have tons of money to put towards his own research of these dead bodies while consistently gone from his family was quite interesting. He had quite the understanding, yet frustrated wife and a precocious daughter, Kylie, that I truly found to be the highlight of this book. My favorite line by her: "Fuck You, Dad." Haha - my sentiments exactly, girl!

Here's what I loved about this book - a man going against the law to try and do some good. Using his family and his wife's peace of mind as the excuse to do what he does. While I do believe this was mostly the case, you know anyone with this type of obsession and the wherewithal to get things done... there's something lying underneath. This is what kept me reading.

What I didn't particularly care about was the extremely slow burn... which ramps up at the end to an almost too fast of a conclusion that was wrapped up a bit too neatly for my taste. Almost. The last 20% certainly did keep my attention and to be honest, I started to like Martin a little bit more towards the end.

A solid thriller that I did feel was worth getting through the slow burn for. I can see good things coming from this author. While this is touted as a debut thriller, we know this is a pseudonym with other published works under both names. I'm definitely curious where he goes from here.

Thanks to Atria and Netgalley for the free advanced ebook copy in exchange for my honest review.

This ominous looking cover, coupled with the title, definitely caught my attention from the start. FIND YOU IN THE DARK by Nathan Ripley is a solid thriller debut, but just know that this is a slow burn thriller. So if you're wanting something fast from start to finish, then this probably won't be for you!

A man that obsesses over serial killer files to the point of finding the bodies of their missing victims, a detective determined to catch this anonymous tipster dubbed the Finder, and then a new killer into the mix. Talk about an intriguing read! Martin Reese has an unusual and secret hobby. He likes to purchase old police files on serial killers - he studies them and tries to locate the bodies of their missing victims. When he does, he sends photos to the police anonymously, and he believes he is doing the community a public service.

Meanwhile, Detective Sandra Whittal is concerned that the Finder could graduate from finding dead bodies to leaving his own behind. Martin finds himself in some trouble when a new killer has their sights set on him. It becomes a race against the clock for Martin to find the killer and for Whittal to catch her mysterious source and stop the killings.

I was expecting this one to be a bit faster paced simply because of the synopsis. I mean, it sounds like it would be a page turning thriller, but it's more of a slow burn. There's nothing wrong with a good building suspense, but it can ruin the reading experience if you aren't expecting it. This is a solid debut and I really enjoyed the characters. I think that the ending felt a bit rushed and some will find that the ending wrapped up a little too nicely. That last part of the book though really grabs you. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for more from Nathan Ripley in the future.

I give this 3.5/5 stars - rounded up for rating

I admit to a fascination with crime and serial killers. I used to find myself hoping tv's Dexter wouldn't get caught and wondered how warped that was! With this book, I didn't exactly have that feeling - I didn't feel connected to the characters. The story moved a bit slowly at times and tended to be repetitive. It's creepy and gruesome
- what one expects from a mystery thriller; but not a whole lot of suspense somehow. It was an interesting read but not a page-turner.