The darkest book I’ve read for a very long time, with an absolute sucker punch moment that I will never get out of my head. An incredibly clever serial killer thriller packed with tension and twists, this is what dark thrillers are all about.

When Nathan was a child he learned that his father was a serial killer. After his father's death he comes across a fictionalised telling of his crimes and trinkets from each murder. He soon realises that there could be victim still out there.

The powerful storytelling in this novel makes it an incredible read.

It is quite possibly the darkest book I have ever read. Nathan really struggles with the truth about his father - this combination of strained relationships with an extreme situation is so compelling.

I love the use of a story within a story as a plot device and it worked so well in The Midnight King. Reading the fictionalised version of events by Nathan's father was thoroughly chilling.

An unpredictable book full of shocking twists.

Thank you NetGalley and Viper for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

I love thrillers that's not like any other. This is a good example of an original plot and with characters that stood out and made me care. I love the twists and turns.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eArc in exchange for my honest opinions.

Scottish crime author Tariq Ashkanani goes super-dark with his latest crime novel – The Midnight King. This is a book that in America might come with a bunch of trigger warnings related to child abuse, suicide, paedophilia and serial killers. And yet, somehow, Ashkanani manages to thread the needle and deliver something that while no doubt dark and tragic is also fascinating and a little bit nuanced.
The Midnight King is the title of a manuscript by famous crime author Lucas Cole. Left after his apparent suicide, the manuscript partially fictionalises Cole’s life as a serial killer. He has stayed free all these years because someone else was found guilty of his string of 13 child abductions and murders. Cole’s son Nathan returns home after many years for the funeral and finds the manuscript in the old family home. But Nathan already knew what his father was doing, which was why he left. What worries Nathan is the recent disappearance of another girl in the area and the fact that it may well have been his father’s work. Also on the case of the missing girl is Nathan’s old friend Isaac, damaged and drummed out of the police, he is working as a local PI.
Ashakanani uses this set up to explore a range of issues. Nature versus nurture, how parents can influence their children (even while they are abusing them), dark fans. But he also has time to consider the man wrongly accused of the crime, a man with potential intellectual disabilities who has ended up on death row because the police needed a perpetrator.
The whole enterprise ramps up to an excruciatingly tense finale where some not unexpected revelations are made. While the twists become a little predictable, Ashkanani makes the most of the way they land. The only niggle with the whole setup is the contrivance of one of a pair of detectives going on his own to follow up a lead with a suspect.
The Midnight King is pitch black crime fiction, even in the realms of books about serial killers. Ashkanani says in his Afterword that he was inspired by Thomas Harris, and by that time readers might have picked up on some of the similarities in his approach to this type of subject matter. He gives it heart, even if it feels like that heart has to be ripped out of someone’s chest first.

I was blown away by Tariq Ashkanai's debut, Welcome to Cooper and its sequel, Follow Me to the Edge, cemented his position as one of my must-read authors. The Midnight King was one of my most eagerly anticipated novels of 2025 and while it may still be early in the year to start mentioning top reads, this stunningly dark thriller is going to take some beating...
Lucas Cole was better known to his legions of fans as Jack Cross, the author of glossy bestselling novels he acknowledges in his final book, "idolise vigilante justice, casual sexism and toxic masculinity." However, his unpublished manuscript, entitled The Midnight King is written under his own name, rather than a pseudonym and in his author's notes, he explains is a fictionalised account of local serial killer, the Music City Monster. Between August 1994 and May 2008, this serial killer murdered thirteen children and seven parents, but his reign apparently came to an end when Edward Morrison was convicted of the abduction of a ten-year-old boy and the first degree murder of his parents. Except now Chloe Xi, an eight-year-old girl is missing, and although Lucas Cole has recently been found hanged in a hotel room, it looks as though his story isn't finished after his son, Nathan discovers Chloe's red ribbons among his collection of trinkets saved from his scores of victims.
The intricately layered plot mostly follows the perspectives of Nathan, who has returned to Nashville after years away, and his childhood friend, Isaac, a former police detective, now a private investigator who has also come back to their hometown. Lucas's manuscript adds a fascinating, metafictional element to the storyline and gives us an insight into the warped psyche of a killer who abducted and murdered scores of children. What's perhaps even more intriguing though is the impact his words have on those who read them. As Isaac eventually realises, Cole's confession is ultimately "a viral load. It's a concentrated dose of madness."
Tariq Ashkanani avoids having a heroic protagonist in The Midnight King, preferring instead to reflect a more nuanced, believable reality and so Isaac is constantly fighting the darkness which almost consumed him when the accumulated burden of all he bore witness to as a detective finally became too much. Forced to leave after he violently snapped, the physical and mental scars still weigh heavily on him, manifesting in the form of his chronic stomach problems. He agrees to take on the case intending to only work on it for a couple of days before handing over any information he uncovers to the police. However, they are dismissive and he is soon embroiled in a case which risks him becoming more damaged than ever.
Meanwhile, Nathan is haunted by his upbringing and tormented by guilt. He too was a victim of his father's violence but when he realises that Chloe was probably taken by Cole, he finally has the opportunity to act upon the feelings which have plagued him for years. His return to Nashville also reunites him with his sister, Kate, now married to Bruce but likewise, indelibly affected by their warped childhood and the secrets they kept.
The propulsive plot twists and turns relentlessly but as much as this is a breathtakingly creepy, disturbing and shocking mystery, it is also a razor-sharp, complex exploration of the motivation behind the characters' actions and the moral dilemmas which find them seeking both justice and release from their respective demons. The Midnight King isn't a book for the faint-hearted; it is a brooding, atmospheric thriller which never flinches from portraying the murkiest shadows of humanity. However, readers who yearn for provocative, risk-taking crime fiction with a rich sense of place need look no further. Devastatingly dark, gritty and twisted, The Midnight King is an exceptional read and I cannot recommend it highly enough.

The Midnight King is an action packed thriller that kept me guessing until the very last page! As soon as I read the premise of this book, I knew I was going to love it. The plot is like nothing I’ve ever read before, and it did not disappoint!

I don’t want to go too much into the story, because I think it’s better to go into a book like this blind. This book is about a serial killer, Lucas Cole, who was recently found dead in his hotel room. We follow his son, Nathan, who saw all of his fathers crimes when he was a young boy, and is very much carrying all the scars from that. We go back and forth between Nathan’s point of view, as well as private investigator, Isaac (whose character I adored!)

There are also snippets of the serial killer’s eerie novel, that basically documents all of his crimes. I really loved this aspect of the book and I literally sped through this! This is definitely one of the best, most unique serial killer thrillers I’ve read in a while, and I would recommend this to anyone who loves thriller books!

Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Prepare yourself for a book hangover. This one stuck with me for days. It's dark and all-consuming, wrapping you up in its story-telling. I'll be raving about this one for a long time.

I loved Followme to the edge so was keen to read more from this author. Unfortunately this one wasn’t right for me. I don’t think it was just that it was a very dark subject matter but more I couldn’t get a feel for the characters. It won’t stop me trying more from the writer though but will hope for one more like my first read.

This is a new author for me, and I was delighted to find that he will be at the Harrogate crime festival (which I will be attending) after I started reading it. This is a dark, serial killer novel, which has some excellent characters.

There is a man on death row, found guilty of being the ‘Music City Monster,’ after thirteen children are killed in the Nashville area. Author Lucas Cole, who wrote under the name Jack Cross, is found dead in a hotel room. His son, Nathan, returns home for the funeral and to see his sister, and comes into contact with old schoolfriend, Isaac, who is now a private investigator and works with lawyer Alison Bennett, who was also an old friend of Nathan. To add more to an already crowded storyline, we have another young girl who has gone missing in the area and Isaac becomes involved in the investigation.

Lucas Cole is now dead, but he has left behind a book for Nathan, ‘The Midnight King,’ which explores what happened when Nathan was a boy. However, with another child missing, is the man currently on death row really the murderer? Isaac becomes obsessed with finding the child and discovering the secrets of his friend, Nathan’s, childhood and why he left so suddenly.

This is a book packed with plot twists. The first twist really shocked me but, in a way, the author packs so much into this novel that the initial shock – which is really well done – gradually gets lost in a convoluted plot. That said, this was an enjoyable and fast paced read which I received from NetGalley.

A fantastic serial killer thriller!

This book is so well written I had to go back to the start to check I wasn't reading a true story!

A twisted familial tale, told in differing time lines, this book delivers a fresh new perspective in a crowded book space.

5 stars!

Tariq Ashkanani’s novel, The Midnight King, is as dark and stormy a book as I have read in a long time. It is a book which burrows its way into your mind and stays there, quietly festering until the poison it excretes muddles your senses and makes you wonder if there is any kindness left in the world. I loved it, but my goodness it is so dark and very definitely not for the weak of heart or stomach.

The Midnight King delves into the harrowing complexities of familial bonds and buried secrets. Set against the backdrop of a small town in the Nashville area, the narrative follows Nathan Cole as he confronts the dark legacy of his father, Lucas Cole—a celebrated author and secretly, a serial killer. Nathan returns home after seventeen years to bury his father, and re-unite with his sister, Kate He unearths a chilling manuscript, ostensibly a work of fiction, that reveals crimes that intertwine with his own past.​

Ashkanani’s writing style is evocative and unflinching, capturing the psychological turmoil of his characters with precision. His prose is lean and taut, propelling the story forward while digging deep into the emotional landscapes of Nathan and those around him. The inclusion of excerpts from Lucas’s manuscript adds a metafictional layer, blurring the lines between fiction and reality, and immersing us into the mind of a killer.​

The plot is intricately woven, balancing past and present timelines to unveil the depth of Lucas’s atrocities and their impact on Nathan and his sister. This dual timeline enhances the suspense as we piece together clues alongside Nathan and his old school friend, private investigator Isaac Holloway. Holloway has been hired by the parents of a missing girl, Chloe and tasked with finding her. The discovery of a ribbon belonging to Chloe among Lucas’s trophies intensifies the urgency, driving the narrative toward a gripping climax.​

Nathan is portrayed with depth and nuance, embodying the conflict of a man torn between loyalty and the need for justice. His internal struggles and guilt are palpable, making his journey compelling. Isaac Holloway, the private investigator and Nathan’s childhood friend, adds complexity to the narrative, with his own motivations and past intricately linked to the unfolding events. He is driven to investigate Chloe’s disappearance, but he can no longer stomach man’s inhumanity to man. Lucas Cole, though deceased, looms large over the story, his duality as both a father and a remorseless killer explored through memories and his dark and unsettling manuscript.​

The novel’s pace is relentless, with each chapter unveiling new revelations that heighten the tension. Ashkanani skilfully maintains suspense, ensuring that we remain engaged as the plot twists and turns. The atmosphere is imbued with a sense of foreboding, the small-town setting amplifying the claustrophobic feeling of inescapable past sins. The tension is further amplified by the moral dilemmas faced by the characters, particularly Nathan, as he grapples with the implications of his father’s actions and his own silence.​

The Midnight King is dark and disturbing. It is creepy, tense and often very surprising. Ashkanani’s characters get inside your head in a very unsettling way and I was worried for quite a while that I wouldn’t be able to get Isaac, Nathan and Kate out again. I’m still not sure I have.

Verdict: The Midnight King is psychological crime thriller at its best and its darkest. I don’t do trigger warnings, but if I did, this book would be festooned like a carnival float on Labour Day. It is a gripping thriller that delves deep into the shadows of familial ties and the haunting weight of secrets. Ashkanani’s adept storytelling, combined with well-drawn characters and a relentlessly suspenseful plot, ensured that this novel lingers in my mind long after I’ve moved on to another book. If you enjoy dark and disturbing psychological crime fiction, you will find The Midnight King to be a compelling and thought-provoking read.

Arc review-

I have never heard of this author before but when it popped up on a list from Goldsboro, I just had to read it myself. It sounded right up my alley.

A lot of thrillers and horror books lately have unfortunately been a miss and here I thought it was because I was becoming “numb” somehow to the spooks and terror; well I was so wrong, the stories were clearly just not like this one.

This book was horrifying, dark, dreadful and it broke my damn heart. I honestly didn’t see the twist coming halfway thru and my jaw hit the floor and I cried and cried, from there it didn’t let up. There are some major triggers here so please read the author note. This is not for the faint of heart.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review. I recommend this one without a doubt.

This is very dark and at times a hard read. Nathan returns to his home town following his father’s death. His father was an author and Nathan finds a manuscript which appears to details his father’s crimes.
There are a few twists in the story which reads well, this is the first book I have read by this author. My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the arc.

This is a disturbing but refreshingly different take on the usual serial killer in the family story. It gets under your skin and you end up feeling sorry for some of the characters while understanding their motivations. This is a very dark book, which isn’t for the faint hearted but I absolutely loved it. We encounter the son, the daughter, the private detective and through a manuscript left by the dead serial killer, we meet the serial killer too. All these stories are told within different chapters and different points of view. Very clever writing, great story and well paced. Tariq Ashkanani is one to look out for.

The twists and turns were so well done in this book, it had me gripped right away and I just couldn't put it down.

Yes, yes, yes!!

When I read a book, I want to feel something. If that book is a thriller or crime, then I want it to make me feel unsettled, terrified, or anxious. This book delivers and with so much more.

There's one scene in this book, oh my! It filled me with dread. The way it's laid out and what it leads me to think was going to happen was so clever. It made me sick to my stomach, I remember thinking to myself, 'Please don't let it be what I'm thinking it is'. Intense.

You see Nathan returning to his childhood home after his father has died. His father, being the famous author Lucas Cole. A father who was abusive and was the reason Nathan ran and never looked back until now. Returning sees Nathan's emotions resurfacing, one of guilt for leaving his sister behind and undealt with trauma from his childhood. There is something else that resurfaces, too. I really don't want to say too much about this one. I went into it blind and felt all the better for it.

My review is going to be short and sweet. I loved all of it. The characters are all flawed, all dark and twisted in their own ways. Full of twists that didn't disappoint me. Tons of tension and suspense, gritty and disturbing. The works!

This was everything I wanted in a serial killer thriller.

Go add this to your tbr... i loved it

Thank you, Viper, for my advanced copy.

oh wow. this book was everything and more you want from a crime novel. i will tell you it is for those of us dark folk that do like their crime very dark. i jest... but it really is the more traumatic side of crime novel but in the best way. and its written with such perfection you will not regret reading this.
what bought me to this book was its being recommended for those who love Chris Whittaker. and that in itself had me running straight to this book.
Nathan lived a very different life to the one portrayed to the world. as a young boy he and his sister lived with their dad. who was a pillar of the community, liked by all. but Nathan new better. and the reality was more horrific than anyone could imagine. so when he could, he ran. and hes lived with regret of that decision ever since. not least that he left his sister behind. and the guilt and trauma has followed him since then. its changes and moulded who he is now.
when his dads body is found Nathan....nope. sorry,im going to stop there. because this is sooooo much better when you get to know every part new. i dont want to give anything away, because you all deserve those what the and gasping moments as this story unfolds. and alot of it is in the blurb for the next bit. but please read this book. you will not be disappointed. the only sadness is that you will fear any book that comes next is now ruined by the calibre of this book.
this book not only follows the trauma response from victims and those who live amosgt the darkest people in our society. and how the ripple effect for all involved never ends without pain. or at least lots of issues that need care and support to work through. we also have the new and ongoing case of a missing girl that appears to be connected with his Natahns serial killer dad. was he still causing all this pain and harm so close to his death!? and what happens if Nathans secrets come out...or what happens if they dont?
read this book. you will love it!

I chose to read a free eARC of The Midnight King but that has in no way influenced my review.

Nathan Cole returns to the small town he grew up in following his father's sudden death. Nathan didn't have the easiest childhood. Lucas, his father, was a well-loved, much-admired, bestselling writer on the outside. But at home he was a cruel and unloving father. Lucas was also a serial killer. Nathan and his sister, Kate, were always aware of what their father was. But they did nothing about it. Whilst going through his deceased father's things, Nathan discovers an unpublished manuscript titled 'The Midnight King' hidden inside a box also containing souvenirs from Lucas's victims. The book claims to be fiction, not a confession. But Nathan knows the truth...

This is the third book I've read by this author and oh my goodness, the future of crime fiction is looking very, very bright with Tariq Ashkanani in it! Ashkanani's award-winning debut, Welcome to Cooper, took readers on a dark journey to the heart of Nebraska. With this latest book, The Midnight King, the author has ramped that darkness level up tenfold. Where to begin with this twisty read? I've seen a couple of reviews that say, 'the less you know about this book before making a start, the better'. As someone who automatically downloaded it without actually reading the blurb (knew it would be great!), I can wholeheartedly agree with that. I didn't know what to expect and that, for me, heightened the entire reading experience.

Just know that this is a multi-layered, multifaceted exploration of how a traumatic past can influence our present selves. Not only does Nathan discover the manuscript when he's looking through his father's belongings, he also finds souvenirs from his father's victims. One of which is a red ribbon. Nathan immediately knows who the ribbon belongs to; an 8-year-old girl who went missing a few days before Nathan's father died. Was Lucas still up to his old tricks in the days before his death? Tasked by the child's parents to find their missing daughter, disgraced cop, now private investigator and childhood friend of Nathan, Isaac Holloway starts to investigate the disappearance. Isaac is such a brilliant character. His connection to Nathan and the Cole family increases the already palpable tension throughout the book. Bloody marvellous!

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. The Midnight King is like nothing I have ever read before. It takes the serial killer trope and adds multiple new dimensions. As a lover of the serial killer thriller (I've read quite a few over the years), I applaud Ashkanani for taking the story in a different direction. Those twists...*chefs kiss*. Absolutely shocking! I loved the characterisation. I've already mentioned how much I loved Isaac in particular. I loved how gripping the story is, how the reader can't predict how things are going to pan out. I loved the pace of the story with peaks and troughs to keep you thoroughly immersed from page one to the end. I loved the Nashville setting (Nashville!). All in all, I very much enjoyed the time I spent with The Midnight King, and I cannot wait to see what the author has in store for us next. Hugely tense, highly unsettling, totally irresistible and all-consuming. Skilled storytelling from an author to watch. Highly recommended.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of The Midnight King. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

[Review will be published on 8th April 2025]

This is a dark, unsettling crime thriller with very intriguing characters and a serial killer at the core. The short chapters made it a quick read but it is also a difficult read due to the victims being children. The twist in the middle was unexpected and there is plenty of suspense. I didn't like the animal abuse, it was just a bit too unsettling for me and the ending left me feeling disappointed. It all felt a bit rushed for me but Nathan certainly is a great character who I will definitely remember! Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

Lucas Cole is a bestselling crime writer but he is also a serial killer. When Lucas is found dead in a hotel room, his son Nathan returns to his home town after many years. Here he finds the manuscript The Midnight King, his father’s account of his crimes and a box of trophies. From this he realises that there might still be a victim out there urgently waiting to be found.

This is my first story by this author and I hadn’t heard about his books prior to reading this one. I will most certainly be looking back at them now after finishing The Midnight King. This was a fantastically written thriller, that slowly builds up a harrowing atmosphere and ramps up the suspense. I like the thrillers I read to be dark and disturbing, something I probably shouldn’t admit, and this was definitely one that fits this criteria, at times making an uncomfortable read.

The characters were explored well and I gained an understanding of their flaws and history. I really enjoyed all the twists, there were some good ones. I will definitely be recommending this one, especially to those who enjoy dark, powerful, serial killer thrillers. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this copy in return for an honest review.