This was a pretty solid mystery-thriller.

I really enjoyed Kelly Roth’s character, and I’d love to see her solving more cases. I thought her dynamic with the other officers was good, but I think I’d like to see her work with more a team.

I found the plot to be interesting and genuinely didn’t peg the killer until it was revealed in the book toward the end. That said, despite one heart-pounding moment, the case didn’t feel particularly high stakes and the take-down of the killer was a little anti-climactic.

Despite a few niggles, this was a very enjoyable read and I’ll be on the lookout for more books by the author.

I have read other books by this author and enjoyed them. This was not the case with this book. The pacing is extremely slow. The characters are undeveloped. The main point in the blurb is a killer contacting the husbands of the victims. There is very little of this in the story. The killer is easily predictable. There isn't a lot of suspense or twists. There is an overabundance of procedure that is very dry. I was disappointed this book didn't live up to the potential.

A very twisted psychological thriller,with many twists and turns. Female lead with her own problems battled to solve the murders.

"...you can trace all human behavior to love or a lack thereof."

FBI Agent Kelly Roth of the Behavior Science Unit is sent to the town where she grew up to investigate a serial murderer known as the "Park Killer" (all the murders happened in some kind of state or local park). Three women have been killed, one pregnant and also a 10-year-old boy. The killer simply puts a single shot in each victim's head and apparently drives off leaving shell casings and the dead behind where they fell. As she navigates between police departments and the usual turf protectiveness, Kelly finds that the is definitely a case where her training in psychopathology will be put to use as the killer is using some sort of "no free will" manifesto to justify his behavior. As she interviews the devastated husband survivors, it is discovered that the killer is contacting the men and manipulating their minds. In a complicated investigation involving the FBI and local police, Kelly is confounded by contradictory evidence and frustrating interviews. Can they discover the killer's identity and stop him before he takes more victims? NO SPOILERS.

This was an interesting police procedural and crime thriller that focused primarily on the psychological aspects of a person devoid of some of the vital parts of humanity. The notion that pain is all in the mind and that people are reactive rather than liberated by thoughts and that control of anything is an illusion. The novel, however, was filled with characters who were only partially more than one-dimensional and I didn't feel as if Kelly Roth was fully developed. The book focused less on people than on theory to some degree. It was a quick read and I'll probably look for other books by this author in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Joffe Books for the e-book ARC to read and review.

This is a very good book, very well written and with a good plot. Excellent flow and timeline, and on point all the way.

I found this book to be an OK read. I haven't read any of TJ Brearton's other book and this was my first. I quite liked the lead character in the book. I was able to guess the killer quite early into the book. However there a lot of unnecessary talking and parts of the book which I had to speed read to get past. some parts. The explanations about guns and also in depth descriptions of ballistics which could have been interesting but it failed to do so and I felt that some parts dragged a bit too much and made it a struggle. The plot sounded so intriguing from the blurb and I feel like the author could have explored this so much. In my opinion the book was a bit bland. A big thank you to NetGalley, Joffe Books for the opportunity to preview this for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange of my honest review.

I did not finish The Husbands by T.J Brearton. I read the prologue and the beginning of Chapter 1 and was not interested enough to continue. The writing felt cheesy and did not invoke the feeling of a "thriller". The description of the plot sounded like something that I would be interested in reading, so I signed up for the digital ARC. But, once I began the story, I quickly realized that the writing style was not for me.

This is a new psychological thriller by TJ Brearton set in his home town of New York.

Someone is killing wives and children and then taunting the husbands. Kelly, an FBI agent, is sent to investigate. Kelly is an FBI profiler and that means the story is told from an unusual perspective. As Kelly tries to get into the mind of the killer the bodies stack up. How many more will die before her colleagues realise she is right?

With a large pool of victims to choose from and the police fumbling about in the dark the unsub gains confidence and that spells danger.

The characters develop well into realistic complex individuals and the story has plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader intrigued. Maybe not as fast paced as I would like but an engaging read.

Overall this book was slow and hard to finish until the end. I did not guess the culprit- author did a good job with twists and laying groundwork.

# The Husbands #Netgalley
Wow what a change, reading a book about the implications of the loss of there partners, usually it about women coping. T.J.Brearton has taken this book to another level. With Kelly being sent back to her part of the world where she had bad memories as FBI working in the behavioural unit.. can she help solve the case. She gets recognised by journalists, Kelly at one point thought she couldn’t do it. However she kept digging and digging, the twists and turns throw you one way, yet when it comes down to the truth. Of the park killer. Will be the biggest shock of all, I certainly didn’t see it coming until almost the end. Even then there was some doubt due to lack of evidence. I started to wonder if after all they got the wrong person, even Kelly’s collogues doubted her. It’s a awesome read, with so much different looking at a mans point of view rather than the woman dealing with a death. It’s a touch of genius, a extremely addictive brilliant read. One you will not forget in a hurry definitely recommend this book, ps 5 ****** is definitely not enough for many books. Awesome

Several women have been murdered at point-blank in various parks in New York with no motive, no links to each other and leaving no clues.  Agent Kelly Roth is called in to assist using her knowledge of the local area and her background in behavioural analysis.  The local forces are determined to pin the murders onto the husbands but Roth can see beyond that and realises something more sinister is going on.  Can she solve the crime before the victim count becomes higher?

Instead of the usual fast paced thriller, this novel is a slow release of events that lead up to a very unexpected ending.  Although you get snippets of insight into the mind of a killer, the main focus is on the unravelling of a case with no discernible clues, suspects or leads using a psychological, behaviour analyst perspective rather than hunting for physical evidence and suspects.

What I really liked about this novel was that you had no clue to what the outcome was going to be and no real idea where the investigation was leading, making this compulsive reading.         

I recommend this to fans of Criminal Minds, Linwood Barclay and slower paced thrillers.  

My main criticism would be that I wish authors would write female protagonists who have never been victims and who are not damaged in any way as I felt in this novel, Roth's background wasn't necessary to the story.

This was just an okay read. I wanted way more character development. I don’t feel like I knew or liked any of the characters. The author could have spent a lot more time fleshing out the characters rather than spending pages and pages talking about ballistics and psychology.

Also, I don’t think the content of the book matches up with the synopsis. The premise of a killer contacting the husbands of his victims sounded very interesting, but you don’t actually get much of that at all. This book was more about a FBI profiler who couldn’t really get it right.

This is the second T.J.Brearton book that I've read and been disappointed in. I had no expectations going into this book and hadn't heard anything about it however from just reading the blurb, it sounded like it could be a great plot, unfortuantely not. My actual rating is probably more like a 2.5 star but not high enough to round it to a 3 star!

I feel like this had the makings of a great story however there was so much unnecessary talking and parts of the book which I actually had to skim through. There were parts of a psychology book paragraphed in the book despite the overarching theme of the book being mentioned throughout, and also in depth descriptions of ballistics which could have been interesting, but not in this story and it ws written so blandly. The plot sounded so intriguing from the blurb and I feel like the author could have explored this so much more if the book was slightly longer and less rambly.

We got a few chapter's from the perspective of the killer and it would have been interesting to hear more from that perspective. It would have been great if the killer had been explored a bit more and maybe even if there had been more murders. It felt that towards the end of the book, there was a big rush to wrap up who the killer was when this could have benefited from having a bit more attention and possibly a few more murders to help flesh it out a bit more.

I'm so unsure on Kelly Roth so was the main character in this book; she's an FBI profiler who has been sent in to try and create a profile on the park killer to help catch him. We aren't told that much about her however from reading this I would have thought there was a previous book which introduced her as I felt like I really didn't know her and I still felt this way by the end of the book. We find out that she has been through something when she was younger and we do find out what it was but it sortt of felt like this and her other background information was just put in to make her controversial when returning to her home town. It was similar with some of the other characters; we get to know Broward well as he works the closest with agent Roth however there were so many other detectives and then another agent Dixon (who I still don't exactly understand who he is or was) and it was confusing trying to keep up and also devleop an opinion on them.

I think this is a book which had great potential with it's storyline but unfortunately fell short of the mark for me. I have another T.J.Brearton book which I have marked as to read so I may give that a go if I ever find the physical copy or the eBook is cheap before I write him off completely but I didn't enjoy this book.

TJ Brearton writes a tense, dark and fast paced thriller based in Syracuse, New York. A vicious and brutal serial killer, named 'The Park Killer' by the media, has taken the lives of women, including one that is pregnant, and including a child in remote and isolated parks in separate incidents. FBI agent and profiler, Kelly Roth, is from Syracuse, she has a haunted and traumatic past there so is uncomfortable about her return there, and the police do not exactly offer the warmest of welcomes to her. Were the victims in the wrong place at the wrong time, or were they the actual targets. As Roth races to identify the killer, faced with a host of suspects, she becomes utterly convinced the real targets are the bereaved husbands, who are contacted by the killer. This is a twisted and engrossing read, one which in the narrative we are given glimpses into the mind of the killer. An entertaining crime read.

I could not wait for this book to end! I skimmed half of it because the characters were boring and the story dragged. There was also way too much information on firearms and ballistics throughout the book. Sorry to say I will not be recommending. Thank you netgalley for letting me give an honest review of this book.

The Husbands by T.J. Brearton is a psychological thriller

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher Joffe Books, and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

My Synopsis:
Three crime sites, in three different jurisdictions of Syracuse NY. All victims were found on, or close to, a park trail. One victim was alone, another pregnant, and another was a woman and her ten year-old son. All dead. One shot to the head by a hunting rifle. The casings are left behind. It appears everyone in the area owns a similar rifle. The pool of suspects is wide. Are the targets women in secluded areas? Are they specific women? How and where are the victims targeted? Are they followed, or will anyone that shows up suffice? So many questions.

FBI Agent Kelly Roth is called in to profile the killer. This is her first time in the field, and although she is a little nervous, she’s been doing this job for a long time behind a desk, and she’s confident. When her opinions differ from the police officers working the cases, her luke-warm reception starts to turn icy. Her boss, however, reassures her, and provides whatever she asks for.

Kelly is sure that the real targets are the husbands. One of them told an officer that he received a text message and then a call from someone that admitted to being his wife’s killer. The officer dismissed this. By the time Kelly found out, the husband had committed suicide. Another of the husband’s has left town for a bit, and the third husband is not saying much. Kelly has her work cut out for her, because she is sure this killer isn’t done.

On a personal level, Kelly doesn’t really want to be back in Syracuse. She is from the area, and past events still haunt her. Facing her family will not be easy.


My Opinions:
I’ve read a couple of other books by T.J. Brearton, and thought they were great, so I was really looking forward to this one.

I really liked the premise of the book, and the character of Kelly was really good in that I could really feel her determination and anxiousness.

The other characters were okay, but weak.  I just couldn't relate to any of them. I had sort of guessed the perpetrator part way through, so that was disappointing. As well, although it was generally fast paced, some parts dragged. The explanations about guns and shells went on, and on…

So, overall, I’m on the fence. I liked it, but didn’t love it. It won't, however, stop me from reading more by this author. 3.5 stars

4.5 Stars

Kelly Roth, FBI Profiler, has been sent to her small hometown in Nw York. Someone is targeting wives and children and then he targets the husbands.

The sadistic serial killer starts with one woman ... a shotgun blast to the back of her head. The next victim is a pregnant woman. Then comes a woman and her young son. All killed brutally and all the same.

Kelly and local law enforcement have nothing to go on. The victims have nothing in common, there are no clues left behind ... other than bullet casings. The police think this is a deliberate act.

And then come the phone calls. A man calls the husband and wants to know how he's feeling. One husband kills himself ... another hides out in a remote cabin.. another turns to alcohol.

And then it gets real personal for Kelly. And there are more deaths.

This is a well-written crime fiction with several major twists and turns. Is this killer targeting random families? Or is he known to one or more of them? Is this a cover for one of the husbands?

Kelly will risk her own life in a heart-stopping race against time to stop more murders and find out the truth.

Kelly is a terrific character and I enjoyed how the author weaved her backstory into today's killings. There are plenty of suspects with a story premise that keeps you guessing until the very end.

Many thanks to the author / Joffe Books / Books n All Promotions / Netgalley for the advanced digital copy. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

3.5 ⭐️ Rounded up to 4

He kills their wife's. He destroys their families. Then he comes after the husbands. Kelly Roth, FBI Profiler, returns home to Syracuse to stop a sadistic serial killer. Three murders in three separate jurisdictions in a central New York State. Kelly has been sent from Virginia to help the local police. Each victim was found murdered in a remote area or a quiet park.

The media has called him "The Park Killer". Does the perpetrator wait in parks on the off chance of finding his next victim or does he have another way of deciding who his next victim will be? A killer who shoots his victims from a hunting rifle, then contacts the bereaved husbands telling them he killed their wife. I liked the storyline and the characters seemed true to life. These murders could have happened anyplace in the world. Kelly is fighting her own demons as she help to investigate these murders. I quite liked this page turning novel that kept me turning the pages until I found out who and why the murders were happening.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Joffe Books and the author Jane Adams for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very interesting premise for a psychological thriller. After a man's wife and child are killed, he's contacted by the murderer who wants to discuss his pain. Eventually, the FBI matches three homicides that seem to have been committed by the same person. But who? The husband who has left town? The husband who kills himself because the pain is too much? The quiet one whose wife died first? Or someone else? Perhaps it's the psychologist who has written a book that sounds a lot like the killer. I read this book quickly because I wanted to know who had done it! Thank you to netgalley and Joffe Books for providing me an advance proof in exchange for an honest review.

"In this life you have to move forward. It's the only way."

FBI profiler Kelly Roth has returned to her hometown of Syracuse, New York to stop a serial killer who kills married women (and sometimes their children) and then targets their grieving husbands. Each woman was killed by a fatal gunshot to the head in remote parks and their killer is eventually dubbed the "park killer". Kelly has her own issues with returning to Syracuse and must put them behind her in order to work on this case

“Do you want to know who killed your wife?”

Then he contacts the women's husbands. Grieving men who want to know why, why was their wife was murdered? Who was the killer? Why is he taunting them? Hasn't he done enough? What if anything, do the women have in common? Were the wives the intended victims or were their grieving husbands? The women were killed fast, the men are made to suffer.

I found this to be a fast and entertaining read. I had several theories while reading this book and was fooled. Ha! I love when that happens. We also get small glimpses into the killer’s mind which is always interesting and works well with this story. The killer says some interesting things to one of the husbands which had me scratching my head. Hmmm…is this killer some new age philosophical killer? Between you and me, I prefer a creepy sadistic serial killer over one who is going to pontificate his way-out-there deep thoughts to me that one needs a Ph.D. to decipher. But then again, where did these thoughts come from? Agent Kelly Roth is rushing against the clock to make sure the killer is caught before more lives are lost. It was fun to tag along as she gave her profile, interviewed witnesses and possible suspects.

By the end of the book, I was certain that I knew the identity of the killer. I had that "aha" moment to only learn that I was wrong, wrong, wrong. So, when the reveal occurred, I was not expecting it. I almost wish the ending had been just a little more shocking, but overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Heck, I devoured it. I was plugged into the investigation and search for the killer.

Thank you to Joffe Books and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own