The Knock-Knock Man presents itself with an unsettling cover and an intriguing blurb promising a rich, disturbing horror read. It's a shame that the book does not deliver. There are flashes of real fear and a pair of scenes that sent shivers down my spine, but the story wrestles with an existential crisis of identity, straying more into a leaden police procedural than atmospheric horror I had envisioned.

The book’s strongest elements are its central antagonist and its creepy, early-chapter atmosphere. The Knock-Knock man himself is a chillingly well-written figure, and the mystery surrounding him—is he a man or a ghost?—is genuinely compelling for the first half of the book. The flashbacks to the Deveraux Estate also provided some excellent, goosebump-inducing moments, making me wish the entire novel had been set there.

Too bad that the interesting premise is shortchanged by the way it is presented. Pacing is one of the biggest issues; the first half is a slow, rambly setup that can't quite stay interesting. Even when the plot does get underway, it zigzags to a frustrating and anticlimactic conclusion that leaves you with an urge to see more. The plot is also populated by confused and unresolved plot threads. Small things like the priest and the cat are mentioned over and over again but amount to nothing, and the intriguing side plot with a secret society is wasted and practically irrelevant. And then there's Ali, the main character, whose enormous chip on her shoulder makes it difficult to empathize or cheer for her.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!

For some unknown reason this one isn't Shoowing up on my kindle at all , so sadly I won't be able to read it

Again another book with an amazing premise but poorly executed. This book had an identity crisis, it didn’t know whether it wanted to be a thriller or a horror and ultimately the disparity between those two elements jarred the whole narrative. Longwinded at times with confusing plot lines it was a strange read. With more careful editing I think it could have been better.

Thank you NetGalley and to the publishers for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This wasn’t what I was expecting so I had to DNF it.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest review*

A great thriller - I would recommend it!

I thought this boom was extremely well written and the author conveyed a growing sense of dread as the story progressed. I thought the ending to be a little rushed, but it was a great story overall.

Something was missing from this book.. I was drawn in by the premise and the eerie title, and felt promised a real horror factor but the pacing was too slow for my liking, and it felt like it leaned more towards mystery.

This caught my interest at first, but failed to hold it through the entirety of the novel. I found myself skimming the latter half of the novel. It wasn't bad, the writing style just didn't click with me and it leaned more mystery than horror for my tastes.

The knock-knock man by Russell Mardell.
Now, after the death of her former colleague, Ernie, Ali has returned home to face a past that won’t stay buried. Found in the disused office building where he worked as night security, Ernie’s death has been ruled as suicide. But not everyone is convinced. Wild stories are circulating about a supernatural presence in the building, an entity that might have attacked Ernie that fateful night.
A good read. Good story and characters. 4*.

Honestly, I might not have been the best person to review this book. Hindsight is 20/20, but I found it long and drawn out for no purpose. I would start it and get only so far before putting it down and starting another book because I was so bored with the content.

Thank you to NetGalley and RedDoor Books as well as the author for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
#NetGalley redDoorBooks #RussellMardell #KnockKnockMan

The concept of the Knock Knock Man is incredibly cool, but the first half of this book was difficult to get through. Way too much procedural police stuff to wade through before we get to the good stuff, which, for me, is the ghost.
Ex-police officer, Ali, is traumatized by her partner and friend’s apparent suicide. It seemed like an open and shut case. However, Ernie’s girlfriend, Maggie, is convinced that he was killed by a supernatural presence, namely, The Knock Knock Man. Ali agrees to work his overnight shift as a security guard in order to prove that there is no Knock Knock Man. This is a great story that took too long to get going. I felt like this story could have been cut by ⅓ and been much more effective. The characters were wooden and unlikable. The ending was unsatisfying.
The scenes in the dark building were creepy and atmospheric, which tells me that this author knows how to write a good horror story. I have no complaints about the author’s talent. I love the Knock Knock Man as a character and an idea. I would have loved to have seen more of that and heard more ghost stories. I do have to give the author credit for a good, creepy entity. The amazing thing is that the Knock Knock Man is introduced largely through second person accounts and still manages to be foreboding. Well done there!
Overall, I have to say that, while this book is certainly not bad, I needed more horror and less procedure. I still have this Russell Mardell on my radar though. Maybe I’ll get my horror in the next one.

This was definitely not what I was expecting from the blurb, it was not really as fast paced and twisty as I expected and I found it to be just an ok read overall

Unfortunately, I have been locked out of my netgalley account for a few months and was not able to see which books I had on my list or even know to check if they downloaded properly, in order to properly read and review. I do apologize and am doing a 3 for neutral. Will update once I’m able to obtain a copy and read!

There was something missing in this book. I wanted to love it promised a real horror factor but honestly nothing happens for so long and when something did, it was like okay...

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

DNF - this was not what I was anticipating. Surely there is an audience of readers for this style of story but, I think I was looking for something truly blood-curdlingly scary.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Knock-Knock Man by Russell Mardell is an absolutely terrifying horror/thriller novel that will have you scared out of your mind. The story revolves around Ali, a disgraced police officer who is being called back to deal with the stories of The Knock Knock Man, a figure that appears when you hear two knocks. Is he a real monster or the figment of a kid's imagination? Will Ali be able to figure it out before the Knock Knock Man comes for her next?

Here is a chilling excerpt from the Prologue:

"He thought of two more things before he died. He thought of his dear friend, Ali, and his guilt at not telling her the truth of that night when he had the chance. More than anything, he wished he had done that. Not to give her closure, at least not anymore, but to give her a warning. Then, before darkness drew down, and Ernie finally let go, another thought came to him as soft as a whisper. It was the same thought he'd had every day for the last fifteen months.
I don't believe in ghosts.
It seemed a little stupid now."

Overall, The Knock-Knock Man is an unputdownable horror/thriller that will appeal to fans of The Chalk Man or the Unsub series. One highlight of this book is how scary it was. It was. There were moments when I was scared to keep reading but also scared to look away. The "Knock Knock Man" in particular is such a scary concept. I did take off 1 star, because the ending was sort of unsatisfying. I felt like the terror that was so major in the beginning of the book ended up fizzling out by the end. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of thrillers, I highly recommend that you check out this book, which is available now!

I love horror stories and it is by far my favorite genre. The Knock-Knock Man moved at such a slow pace that I found myself skimming and eventually losing interest. Very few creepy passages and not atmospheric enough to hold my attention.

This book has a great premise and I was excited to read it. Unfortunately I found the pacing too slow and the characters didn't have much depth.

Meh... I was truly expecting more of this book and it just did not deliver as expected. I am disappointed by the time I wasted waiting for something truly shocking to happen but well... I'm still waiting.

Knock Knock…whatever you do, do not look over.

The blurb really caught my attention. This is a balance between a detective mystery and a supernatural presence which is always good fun to read.

Fifteen months ago, Ali worked on a case that destroyed her and changed her life. She discovered the Knock Knock man. She is now a disgraced police officer and she works hard to forget what happened that night. But the past she worked so hard to bury comes back to haunt her when her best friend and colleague, Ernie, committed suicide. No one seemed to believe he would jump off a building and so Ali decides to put aside her past and investigate what happened. Is the Knock Knock nan a mere folklore or is something sinister waiting for Ali?

I find the pacing a little slow but I thought the plot was interesting enough for me to read till the end. The plot started off quite creepy (It was giving me Boogeyman and Crooked man vibes) but some parts fell a little flat for me especially when Ali was investigating Ernie’s death. I enjoyed reading about Ali’s past and how the Knock Knock man came about.

I also love Ali’s character. Despite what happened to her, she is still determined to seek the truth and stood by what she witnessed. Although the ending was not what I expected, I was glad that it ended that way! Can’t give too much away otherwise I will spoil the whole plot.

Thank you Netgalley and Red Door Books for the arc.