Yay, a mystery/thriller that I enjoyed!  The Nothing Man is a book-within-a-book about a serial killer who is reading the true-crime memoir that one of his victims wrote.  Eve lost her mother, father, and sister to The Nothing Man when she was twelve years old, and she hopes with writing the memoir about him and all of his victims that maybe she will be able to solve who he is.  I really enjoyed the author's use of Eve's memoir and The Nothing Man's reactions to her book; I found it to be very unique.  I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys true crime and thrillers.  Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.  All opinions are my own.

Before picking the book itself, I was super intrigued by the whole premise. The survivor of a serial killer’s last killing now writes a book about the incident after 20 years. The killer is still free and ends up reading the book. The faceoff between them definitely was explosive and is satisfying after all these years. The survivor, Eve was 12 when the whole terror occurred and what she is planning to  do by writing the book now after all these years? The serial killer, Jim is now an old man working as a security guard at a store. How does this book affect him now? Do we get all the answers?

The author’s debut novel is a pretty clever one with a book within a book making it interesting. It is written from Jim’s POV but the book within the book is by Eve. It was confusing a bit with this pattern as the other characters are constantly in and out but it gets more clearer pretty soon. With the POVs, the narrations move between past and present giving few clues step by step to unravel the killings. It almost feels like a true-crime fiction novel. 

Overall, an engaging thriller!

My God, what a book. I predominantly read mystery/thrillers and I can honestly say this is one of the great ones. The one that keeps you up all night even though you have an early 6appointment in the morning .

The writing is strong as are the characters and the interweaving  of the characters.

Damn, I hated it ending. Highly, highly recommend. Do not let this one get by you. 

Thank you, thank you #BlackstonePublishing and #Netgalley

12 year old Eve Black was the only survivor of her families brutal murder by a criminal known as the Nothing Man. Almost 20 years later, Eve publishes a true crime memoir detailing her efforts in tracking down the man who killed her family. Jim Doyle, an aging supermarket security guard, begins reading Eve's book; each page rekindling memories of the crimes and igniting his rage towards Eve. Nobody knows the crimes better than Jim because he is the Nothing Man. Jim knows that Eve won't stop until she finds him, new clues are bringing her closer to uncovering the truth about his identity, and Jim will be left with no choice but to finish what he started.

The Nothing Man is an exciting new thriller by author Catherine Ryan Howard. I had previously read her novel Rewind and although I enjoyed it, I connected more with this novel and felt that it was it was a much better fit for me as a reader. The novel is written partially as a book within a book, detailing the events surrounding the crimes committed by The Nothing Man. Jim Doyle, an aging security guard who happens to be the Nothing Man, begins reading the book in order to find out if Eve has enough information to uncover his identity. This unique novel allows the reader to get both a perspective of a true crime novel paired with the insight into the criminal mind. I really enjoyed this novel and had a hard time putting it down. Although there is no surprise in the identity of the killer, there are some surprise twists along the way. Compelling and engaging, this is a must read thriller for 2020!

This thriller is by far the best thriller I've ever read and I've read a lot!  Inventive and absorbing!  A must read.

Add this one to your list! Eve Black is the last victim and sole survivor after a serial killer known as The Nothing Man kills her parents and younger sister when she is only 12 years old. She goes into seclusion until a creative writing class in college prompts her to start sharing her story. Her story, turns into a popular article as Ireland is obsessed with whatever happened to The Nothing Man. So a publisher approaches her about turning it into a book. Her sole reason for writing the book is the hope that it will lead to his capture. She teams up with the detective obsessed with the case and they begin combing through all the 20 year old data, meeting with the few other remaining victims, and begin piecing it together. Her book hits the shelves and The Nothing Man can not believe what he is reading after all this time. Something must be done.  

I could not put this book down. It shifts back and forth between Eve and the man known as The Nothing Man. It is a collision course that had me flying through the pages.  This book will be released in August and I highly recommend you put it on your radar. I, in the meantime, am excited to learn this is not the author's first book and I will be looking into her early works. 

Thank you #Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. #TheNothingMan

4.5 stars for this riveting thriller!

I loved the book-within-a-book format and the fact that you're essentially getting a a true crime memoir and a serial killer thriller rolled into one. I found myself totally engrossed in both elements of the story and could not stop reading! My only gripe is that the ending was a little too anti-climactic, but overall I would for sure recommend for any thriller fans. 

Side note: The formatting was really off in my arc, so I'm interested to see how the transitions between Jim's story and Eve's book will look in the print version. Once it's available at my library, I'll be grabbing it to take a look.

Thanks to Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review. 

Jim was a serial killer about 20 years ago but he is now retired from that and working security at a grocery store. Eve, a woman whose family was killed by Jim when she was 12, writes a book about the killings called The Nothing Man. Jim sees it and becomes obsessed with reading it every chance he gets. This novel is basically Eve’s true crime book along with Jim’s thoughts and actions as he is reading the book.

I liked this book. It is certainly a unique way of telling the story and it is well done. I felt the same about this author’s previous novel, Rewind, on both counts. She is a talented writer. I thought this got a little slow, going through all of the different families that were murdered by Jim, so it wasn’t a 5 star for me but I will definitely read her next novel.

First things first: I highly and wholeheartedly recommend you read this book. It's well written and clever in a way that sort of puts it in a very rare category of fiction. But I can't tell you why because it would spoil the whole thing for you.

I will say that it's creepy without being a horror story, and it takes its time drawing you in, painting a picture and then kind of mixing and mashing reality and fiction together into a beautifully crafted, suspenseful and sometimes sad and painful story.

Just read it. You'll be glad you did.

A very solid thriller from Catherin Ryan Howard. A recommended first purchase title for collections where the genre is popular.

Wow. Wow. Wow!  Another hit by Catherine Ryan Howard!  Absolutely chilling, thrilling, twisty and turny, and shocking!  I’m a huge fan of Howard’s and this book has only made me be a bigger fan!  She knows how to use those twisted stories to chill you to the bone, gasping in shock, and flipping pages like a crazy person!  Absolutely a must read!  Highly, highly recommend!  You will not be disappointed!  
Will make sure to buzz it up on the different platforms and use low amazon reviewer number on release date!

The Nothing Man is a book within a book featuring two points of view. The first point of view is Jim Doyle, a security guard at a department store, who is also a serial rapist and murderer in secret. Although he has not committed a crime in many years, the satisfaction of his deeds creep into his everyday life. Jim notices that a new true crime book has made its way on to the shelves of his store. A book called The Nothing Man, written by a survivor of Jim’s dark past. Eve Black was the sole survivor of her family’s attack, now older, and determined to catch the person who brutally destroyed her family. Jim is both intrigued and rightfully horrified that his crimes have made their way back into the limelight. 

What makes this book so gripping is the format of the story. We read about Eve through the perspective of Jim, who is reading Eve’s book about himself. Like writing in the margins of a book, which Jim even does on occasion, we hear the reader’s perspective of his crimes. Eve is a strong character, which I appreciate in a thriller. I can only imagine the difficulty of being a survivor, knowing your family is gone, and it could have been you. Her determination is refreshing, and her intelligence is unmatched. Jim, on the other hand, is what I would expect him to be. The book touches on the topic of serial killers and how mainstream media can glamorize them. Even as a true crime fan, this has always gotten under my skin. The way it was presented in the novel is to be applauded.

At first, I was unsure of the ending of this book, which is why I determined my rating. It seemed anticlimactic to me and a bit expected. I was so shocked for most of the book that this was a letdown. I did think the time jump at the end was great, and it earned the book back half a star.

I am a reader of thrillers almost strictly, and I have never read a thriller quite like this. It takes quite a bit of shock for my stomach to knot and my hands to sweat, but this book took me right there. The last quarter of the book had my heart pounding so hard; I thought it was going to rip itself right out of my chest. I knew at some point that there was going to be a twist and that everything could not work out so perfectly for Jim, much to his dismay. Despite my best effort to come up with probable scenarios, I was surprised in the end with a significant twist. From the book signing on, be prepared for the book to grab you with force and whip you around a little! I was left scratching my head and searching back through the book to make sure I didn’t miss something. When it hits you, watch out! This book is WILD, and I loved every second.

I’m not going to sugar coat this. This book is brutal to read. It describes horrific crimes in great detail, and it was even too much for me at times. Please read with caution!

The book within a book is a unique take on the genre. A crime novel where the villain  is reading a true crime story by his only survivor is one I think will stick with readers long after the last page. It was an intense and suspenseful story with gripping characters. I will definitely be reading this author again.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest review. 

I loved this thrilling suspense novel and couldn’t put it down! The book-within-a-book format was clever, and the author pulled it off well. A serial attacker who murdered a family years ago is still living as a free man...until a book comes out to rave reviews, written by the sole survivor of the Nothing Man. Loved this, and any lover of suspense will too! 4.5 stars

This is a really hard book to review, and I'll do my best to explain why.

First, a bit of background. I love thrillers and read tons of them, but I tend to steer clear of the goriest or most brutally violent thrillers. I don't read true crime at all (and rarely read horror), because they terrify me, and I (primarily) read for enjoyment.

So... this book has been categorized as a thriller, but in it there's a (faux) "true crime" storyline. The premise is truly brilliant -- serial rapist and killer who was never caught reads about himself in a survivor's true crime accounting of the events, published decades after the events.

The first half is a mix of pages from a (fictional) true crime book and the POV of the serial killer. I'm don't enjoy reading true crime... and the distanced narrative voice combined with the horrific details of the "true crime" were hard to swallow. I skimmed a lot of the crime details because they were just so horrific to read. As for the serial killer's POV, while I don't mind unlikable characters, they have to be interesting, clever, and/or intelligent to keep my interest. He's none of those things. He's just straight up disgusting and monstrous. So, this is probably just a case of "not my taste", but the first half was hard for me to get through.

Halfway through, things change somewhat. The "true crime" novel moves from crime to investigation. And that, my dear friends, is something I LOVE reading. Additionally, the two storylines start to converge more, and the tension increases a LOT. I was caught in suspense for pretty much the entire second half, and even having clues as to what's coming (nicely foreshadowed in the book), I still found myself eager to read on. After that first half, it was a pretty pleasant surprised to find that (most of) the second half had me riveted.

There was one big scene at the end that felt a somewhat stilted. But that aside, I appreciated the way the story wrapped up and really liked the epilogue. Plus, the book is just so clever that I have to applaud the author for that too. The characters in the book make some pretty interesting points about our societal fascination with true crime and serial killers, and then the author makes sure to reinforce those points by the way she wraps up the story. I loved that. It's... meta, I guess? A bit like The Starless Sea in that sense. A book within a book, plus a whole lot of self-awareness.

So... again, not really sure how to feel about this one, and I think it's because I'm only in one of the two venn diagram circles that constitute the perfect audience for this book. The Nothing Man's first half is (probably -- I'm assuming here) best enjoyed by someone who appreciates true crime and/or horror. The second half is best enjoyed by someone who enjoys thrillers and/or characters investigating crimes.

If you happen to fall into both categories, I think there's a good chance you'll love The Nothing Man!

Thank you Blackstone Publishing for providing a free advanced e-copy of The Nothing Man via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

P.S. For Netgalley readers, I do have to note that the e-galley formatting was pretty hard to read on Kindle. I assume this will be fixed for the final version, but just a heads up!

Thank you for an ARC. I did not find this book interesting. I don’t know if it was how it was laid out and told or what. It was so much back and forth that I lost interest quickly. I got 70% of the way through and skimmed to the end.

This was very so moving, I think if the story was a little shorter with less going back and forth it would have been better.  I found it hard to get through.

This is the first book I’ve ever read by this author, but it will not be the last,
The premise is captivating and innovative.
A woman writes a novel about her experience being the only survivor of a killer that took her whole family. 
To catch him. She writes the book in an attempt to lure him. 
There is an entire book within a book and it’s brilliant. 

I particularly love the way the first few pages are subtle. A scene in a department store, with the focus on the mundane, and in particular the store security guard. 
Who happens to be the killer. 
Fabulous. Can’t wait to get my hands on a physical copy of this one as the digital was broken up in an almost dizzying way.

The Nothing Man by Catherine Ryan Howard is a book that I have been desperate to get my hands on, having seen it so unanimously praised on various social media sites.  I am very sad to say that after numerous failed attempts to download this digital ARC, I have only succeeded in acquiring the first chapter, and it has certainly left me more determined than ever to access it in its entirety.  I am awarding the novel 5 stars based solely on what I have read, and the rave reviews of trusted friends.  To the publisher, thank you so much for granting my request, and I would love another opportunity to read this book in the very near future.  It promises to be a must read of 2020.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for this ARC.

Wow what a great book! Thank you Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC. If you like reading books about serial killers, this book is for you. Reading about the killings was a little disturbing, but the story is so good. The tension never lets up so be prepared fro not being able to put this book down!