Oh, Charlie Donlea, I wait for your books every single year and they never ever disappoint!!!!!!! Told in multiple timelines where secrets from the past help reveal the present, we are brought into the mystery of the serial killer The Thief in Some Choose Darkness. Donlea has a knack for fleshing out the most interesting characters and he does so here in sometimes lawyer-sometimes doll restoration expert Rory Moore. Following the trail and learning how the two stories come together is always a thrill ride in Donlea's books. The worst part? Having to wait a whole year to see what he comes up with next!

I received an advance copy. All opinions are my own.

This was a slow start for me, but once it got going, I really enjoyed it. I really enjoyed Rory and her quirks. She provided an interesting view of the mystery that unraveled. I did feel the twist was telegraphed in screaming capital letters but the payoff of the ending made the whole plot come together and make sense. I wouldn’t mind seeing more books with Rory and Lane.

Another fabulous book by this Author. Possibly his best yet. Rory Moore, a forensic reconstructionist (and lawyer) is tasked with closing her father's law office after his death. She is forced to take on a soon to be paroled felon who has served 40 years for the murder of his wife who disappeared. When Rory realizes her father was searching for this woman at the behest of his client, Rory takes up the search. She also uncovers information about her past that she never knew about. I highly recommend this book and this Author. Thanks to NetGalley, Kensington Books and the Author for allowing me to read and review this book.

This was my first time reading a book by Charlie Donlea, and I must say, I am hooked! Forty years ago, during the summer of 1979, five women go missing, at that time a woman named Angela Mitchell believes she knows what happened to these women, but before she can tell the police, she disappears, too. Jump to 2019, where Rory Moore, a forensic reconstructionist, is asked to take over a parole hearing for her late father's client, known as The Theif. As Rory begins unraveling more details about the case, some shocking details come to light. This was a real page Turner and I enjoyed reading it!

Some Choose Darkness by Charlie Donlea was a heart tugging mystery for me.
When you have a daughter with a murderous father, you do everything in your power to protect her, even if it kills you.
This is the story of that mother and the repercussions of trying to protect her daughter even after her death.
It could have been ripped from today’s headlines.
Excellent read!

Rory, a woman who appears to be autistic and to have OCD, solves cold crimes as a consultant to the Chicago Police. Her father, an Attorney, passes away unexpectedly and she has to close his office and handle his estate. As a result of this, she is called in to represent a man who has been imprisoned for forty years for the murder of his wife. He is now going to be paroled because of his good behavior in prison and she has to complete the preliminary work. I won’t go farther into the very complex plot other then to say her story is told, his story is told and his wife’s story is also told. All are fascinating. It is a gripping and consuming novel that will keep you reading into the night. Thanks to Net Galley and Kensington for an ARC for an honest review.

This is an unusual thriller, featuring an autistic girl who is gifted in the forensic reconstruction of homicide cold cases. In reconstructing the crimes of this serial killer, who definitely choose darkness, she uncovers unexpected information about herself and her family too.
This is an absolutely gripping story and I was hooked from beginning to end. It is by far the best book I have read this year and I hope there will be more in this series.
I am grateful to the publishers and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Charlie Donlea has done it again, another fascinating book. Great characters, storyline and suspense. The twist was definitely not anything I suspected. Highly recommend. Thank you netgalley for letting me give an honest review of this book.

Another great story from Charlie Donlea! I’ve read his 3 previous books, all 5 five stars, but this one may be his best yet. So many directions, and answers revealed as you go, building to a crescendo that will have you shaking your head. An intelligent, well-written thriller that you won’t regret or forget.

Book Review - What do you do in preparation for a storm they’re now calling a “Bomb Cyclone”??? Well I chose to shut the curtains, ignore my “storm preparation” list both the electric, gas company, and state police have posted repeatedly AND instead finish this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ twisted, creepy, make your heart pound, keep you turning the pages to see how it all plays out, read. Take a forensic reconstructionist with ocd, add in a list of missing women from 1979 and her need to make sense what she discoveres in her recently dead fathers law office.... omgggg!!!!!!

Some choose darkness. Others are chosen by it. Is it the same with greatness? I mean, it’s pretty appropriate for a serial killer thriller, alas one that is nowhere near great. Which was actually as expected, because this is my third read by Donlea and he seems to be very consistently threading the middle of the road, quality wise. His thrillers are reliably entertaining, but they never wow and, while some authors improve over time, this hasn’t been the case here, in fact this book was almost a let down, even considering relatively mediocre expectations. The serial killer thrillers inherently imply a certain level of darkness, of course. This one features the formulaic dual narration of past and present, both driven by women narrators…in the former an autistic woman with OCD decides to take on personally solving a serial killer case, in the latter 40 years later a woman with a variety of autism like OCD like qualities finds herself involved with the very same case, when that very same serial killer is up for parole. So it has murders and suspense and thriller elements, but the main thing here was that the prerequisite twist can be figured out a mile away, possibly several miles on a clear day. Which is just…so far from optimal with this sort of books. I mean, yes, I read a considerable amount of these type of books and yes, I’m relatively smart and yes it would be flattering to think that I just Sherlocked the mystery straight away due to my superior mental prowess, but realistically speaking…it’s more likely the author just didn’t work diligently enough to obscure the mystery more. I mean, it’s all so obvious, I figured it out way, way early on and from there on it was just waiting for the characters to catch up and seeing how it all plays out. Which is to say it’s basically entertaining and to his credit the author actually rendered a fairly accurate representation of psychological disorders, but it lacks the crucial element of surprise that’s really integral to this sort of mediocre thriller if it’s to have any chance to stand out in the overpopulated genre field at all. So a quick underwhelming read, a fairly decent diversion, but far from great. Some choose darkness and some will choose this book, but there are far superior thrillers out there. Thanks Netgalley.