‘The Man Made of Smoke’ reads like a true crime story. I enjoyed the audiobook narration by Shane Zaza. This wasn't my favourite Alex North novel, although I do like their writing. The plot is engaging and unwinds via different perspectives. Overall, a decent crime fiction offering.

I got to about 65% in this and couldn't go further... I just didn't care and honestly wasn't even following the plot. Unfortunately I DNF'd.

Narrated by Shane Zaza five stars
First off a big thank you to the publisher for the invite to listen to Alex North's newest book The Man Made Of Smoke , there just something about his books that hit right , maybe it's the atmosphere, the way he writes them, the set up , or it's all of those things , but once you start your hooked , and this one had me hooked from the start especially when you hear those famous words that the
The Pied Piper always said, "Nobody sees. Nobody cares, there just something about how he says them that gives the tone and the atmosphere of the book an even more dark and creepy feeling .

This is an intriguing slow burn thriller in which a father and son try to unravel the story of a boy who was kidnapped many years ago. Overall, a great story- my only complaint is that when listening to this as an audiobook, I wasn't always able to tell when the POV had changed, which caused me to have to pause and sort out who was who and what was what.

I didn't love this one. I spent most of my time listening to this being confused and never really felt pulled in to the story. The narrator was great! It may just be me, but I don't think it had the typical Alex North spooky factor.

I received an audio of this and the narrator is a favorite of mine now. He did an awesome job. Held my interest all the way. He took this story to a whole new level.

This book absolutely captivated me. I had no idea where it was going at first but couldn't put it down.

You follow Dan Garvie from when he was just a kid who escaped a serial killer at a rest stop. Dan was with his parents and his best friend Sarah. He always felt guilty that he didn't save the little boy that was with this man. The boy with the haunted eyes. The scared child that it seemed everyone turned their backs on.

You meet Dan and his childhood friend and the bully who became the sheriff after Dan's dad retired. You hear from Dan's dad also. Dan was called to come home because it appeared his dad committed suicide. Dan is a prison psychologist. He listens to the worse of the worse as they try to come to terms with things that happened to them. Dan feels so much guilt over the little boy from his childhood.

Dan and his dad didn't have such a good relationship. He mother left shortly after what happened at the rest stop. Each had their own problems.

This is a very intense story. One that will captivate you. Hold your interest all the way. Parts made me cry and near the end it made me weep. I forgot about the letter that

You'll be trying to figure out who the Pied Piper is. Who the killer is. And what happened to all the children. All the adults. Why is this guy doing these things? What happened to him to make him so cruel. And he is cruel.

The Pied Piper always said, "Nobody sees. Nobody cares". But my favorite line in this book was at the end... "We See. We care."

This author knows how to write a good thriller/horror story. This one had me on the edge quite a lot and I did not guess who he was. I did have a few guesses of course. I was always wrong.

If you like a page turner thriller with a touch of horror wrapped in you need to grab this one.

I received an ARC via NetGalley and a physical copy from the publisher. This is my honest opinion of this book.

I'll be looking for more by this author.

Alex North has done it again in this slow burn mystery! I enjoyed the narration and look forward in continuing to pick up North's books in the future!

Alex North does it again. Ever since I read Whisper Man, I have been a huge fan. This one brought back all those vibes. I really loved it.

https://onereadingnurse.com/2025/05/16/the-man-made-of-smoke-by-alex-north-audiobook-review/

There's also an Instagram post and a pending am*zon review!

...

Thanks so much to Macmillan Audio for the early listening copy of The Man Made of Smoke in exchange for an honest review! I have been a little bit hit or miss with Alex North’s books but by far this is my favorite of his works so far!

Dan, now a forensic psychiatrist type and criminal profiler, saw a kidnapped boy many years ago and was afraid to step in. What do you really want a child to do when confronted with that situation though? The thing is, many people saw the.boy and willfully ignored the situation.

"Nobody sees, nobody cares"

The trickle down effect wraps Dan and his father, as well as many others, up in the machinations of North’s creepiest serial killer yet. What are his motivations? What’s fuelling him after all these years? I loved watching Dan follow in his father’s footsteps to put an end to this cycle of murder.

For once I actually liked the time hopping in the.various points of view. It was touching to see both father and son wondering what the other would do in certain situations. They had a complicated relationship but the respect was there. Both storylines were interesting and played into each other well. I do think the audio could have benefitted from two narrators but Shane Zaza was great to listen to.

I can’t really talk about the plot without spoilers but I loved the creepy, slightly paranormal tone to this one. It wasn’t scary but had a great mix of creepy and sentimental vibes set on one of my favorite backdrops: a character coming home.

It’s easy to relate to the father and son team (not that common for mystery/thrillers) and I definitely didn’t see the plot taking the swings that it did.

I’d recommend the audiobook for sure, and plan on getting a text copy to go with my Alex North collection! For anyone wondering, yes all of his books are standalones and can be read in any order with nothing missed. Thanks again to the publicist for the early copy

Dan’s father passed away unexpectedly which sends him into a spiral back to his hometown and with his troubled past. He had an encounter with a serial killer years ago and the case remained unsolved. More and more signs turn up that connect his childhood memory to his current future.

I did struggle a bit with the audio tracking if it was the detective or the dad’s POV. Would have benefitted from a call out to start each chapter.

I enjoyed this thriller with a bit more substance than a typical popcorn thriller, the writing was great. Just didn’t grab my attention until the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review. Out now !

Just finished The Man Made of Smoke by Alex North—and I’m still haunted.

What begins as a chilling near-miss with a serial killer in young Daniel’s childhood spirals into a lifetime obsession—with darkness, with psychology, and with understanding what makes a monster. Now an adult and a criminal psychologist, Daniel is drawn back to the remote island he once escaped—summoned by the sudden and unsettling disappearance of his father, a retired cop still chasing ghosts.

But this isn’t just a missing persons case. His father’s last steps trace the same twisted path as the Pied Piper serial killer—the very one Daniel encountered all those years ago. As Daniel picks through the cryptic clues left behind, he’s forced to confront the long shadows of his past, his father’s unraveling secrets, and a case that may not be as closed as everyone believed.

Told through shifting timelines and layered perspectives—including the final victim, Daniel’s father John, and Daniel himself—this psychological thriller is steeped in atmosphere and dread. The audiobook narrator captures the tone perfectly: eerie, urgent, immersive.

You think you’ve figured it out. You haven’t.

An unforgettable, goosebump-inducing read—I highly recommend The Man Made of Smoke to anyone who enjoys thrillers that tangle the mind and chill the spine. My thanks to NetGalley, Alex North and Macmillan Audio for the ARC audiobook of this book. It was a privilege to be able to provide a review.

This book was fast paced and intriguing, beautifully written and intricately intertwined. It grabbed me from the very first chapter and didn’t let go even after I finished. Set on a small island, the atmosphere was so creepy. The sense of unease builds gradually, and I loved the exploration of liminal spaces —both physically and emotionally. The exploration of guilt and how it shapes people, festers, and defines relationships added a lot of emotional depth. I was surprised to find myself crying by the end—something I definitely wasn’t prepared for in a book that starts off with such tension and mystery.

If you’re looking for a haunting, smartly constructed novel that blends atmosphere with emotional depth, this is a must read.

The Man Made of Smoke starts off with a strong, eerie setup that had real potential. I was intrigued by the premise and ready to dive into what I hoped would be a chilling, psychological mystery/horror. Unfortunately for me, the execution didn’t hold up.

One of the biggest issues was the structure. The constant switching between characters from chapter to chapter became confusing, especially with the mix of narrative styles. There’s one first-person narrator, while the rest of the characters are written in third person, even in chapters where they were the focus. It created a jarring experience that made it harder to stay engaged or emotionally invested.

I read and listened at the same time, which I’m thankful for, because relying solely on the audiobook would have been frustrating. The narrator didn’t do much to distinguish between character voices, so it was easy to lose track of who was speaking or being referenced. That confusion only added to the disjointed feel of the story.

While the book opens with promise, that early intrigue doesn’t carry through. The pacing drags, the emotional beats don’t land as hard as they should, and the payoff was weak. It’s clear Alex North aimed to explore some deep psychological territory, but the execution just didn’t work for me.

I also read The Whisper Man by the same author and thought that one was better, but still not great. I received this audiobook from #NetGalley, and very much appreciate it! But at this point, I think Alex North just isn’t the right fit for me as a reader.

Writing: 🙂
Plot: 🙂
Characters: 🙂
Impact: 😐
Kept Interest: 😐

Penalty points: marketed as “The scariest book you’ll read this year.” Not even close

Creepy, atmospheric, and emotionally layered, The Man Made of Smoke is exactly what I hoped for from Alex North. Dan Garvie’s return to his childhood home to confront old traumas and new horrors makes for a tense, gripping ride. The blend of psychological depth and serial killer suspense is compelling, with just enough introspection to elevate the story beyond typical thrillers. It kept me guessing, and the eerie island setting added to the overall unease. A strong, haunting read that lingers.

Rating: 3/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook ARC of The Man Made of Smoke by Alex North.

This one had such a promising premise—Daniel, who witnessed a horrifying crime as a child and did nothing to stop it, returns home as an adult after his father’s death… and his past may not be as buried as he thought. I really liked the concept and was intrigued by where it could go.

Unfortunately, the execution fell a bit flat for me. The pacing was too slow and repetitive, and I found myself waiting for the story to really take off—but it never quite did. The ending especially left me wanting more. I kept hoping for a big twist or payoff that never came.

Listening to it on audio might’ve made it trickier to follow—there was just one narrator reading three different characters’ perspectives, and while the voice was pleasant and easy to listen to, it sometimes made the story feel jumbled or hard to keep straight.

I also got really tired of the main character, Daniel, constantly having internal conversations with the voices in his head. It was so frequent I started wondering if we were heading into unreliable narrator territory (we weren’t). It just became distracting.

That said, I didn’t hate it—I was still interested enough to see it through to the end. But I wouldn’t go out of my way to recommend it if someone asked me for a good thriller. There’s potential here, but it just didn’t deliver for me.

The story centers on Dan Garvie, a criminal psychologist haunted by a traumatic childhood encounter with the elusive "Pied Piper" serial killer. Decades later, following his father's mysterious death, Dan returns to his isolated island hometown. As he investigates, he uncovers unsettling connections between his father's past, the original Pied Piper case, and a series of new murders. The narrative unfolds through multiple timelines and perspectives, weaving together Dan's present-day quest, his father's past investigations, and the chilling experiences of a young boy named James.

THANK YOU to my besties at Macmillan Audio for the approval to read new Alex North! I have loved what I've read from this author in the past and this story is no different!

Dark, atmospheric, creepy! Out Now!

I loved the audio production of this. The narrator brings MAXIMUM creep factor to the character's voices. And the emotions PUT ME IN the moment, especially for the scary and tense moments! Like, I'm STILL thinking about the rest stop bathroom scene... when Daniel goes back... WILD emotions come through and it was fan-freaking-tastic! It was a great narration and great story!

As with this author's other novels this one goes down a dark and creepy path. The main character, Daniel, has to revisit his past trauma head on when his father goes missing. He realizes he may be the only person that can stop the killer and figure out exactly what happened to his dad.

This story blends timelines and character POVs but I never felt confused by the switching between them.

LOVED it! Alex North does it again!

In The Man Made of Smoke, Alex North blends childhood trauma, supernatural menace, and just enough fog to violate a fire code. The story shifts between different perspectives and periods. At its core, it tracks some disturbing events on a small, isolated island. Kids are missing! A burnt corpse is discovered!

North delivers a slow burn (pun very much intended), and while the plot occasionally drifts like secondhand vape, the payoff is spooky, emotional, and surprisingly tender. Recommended if you like psychological horror with your heartstrings slightly singed.

I was really looking forward to The Man Made of Smoke—Alex North is usually so good at delivering eerie, gripping stories that keep you hooked from the start. But unfortunately, this one just didn’t land for me.

I actually DNFed the ebook at first, which is rare for me. I later got the audiobook for review, and I’ll admit it was more engaging in that format—the narration definitely helped—but the storyline still felt flat overall.

The plot follows Dan Garvey, who returns to his hometown after hearing that his distant father is presumed dead. As he starts to dig through clues left behind, he may uncover the identity of a serial killer who haunted his childhood. Sounds super intriguing, right? But something about the pacing and the execution just didn’t pull me in like I expected.

I wouldn’t say it’s a bad book, but it lacked the tension and momentum that I’ve loved in Alex North’s other novels. Still might be worth a try if you’re an audiobook fan or really into slow-building mysteries—but this one wasn’t a standout for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for these ARCs in exchange for an honest review. The Man Made of Smoke by Alex North hits shelves on May 13, 2025.

Have you ever read a book that you thought would be better off as a movie? That’s how I feel about The Man Made of Smoke. This was a good story with some incredibly forgettable characters. Normally I take notes during bo9ks like this but this time around I didn’t and every time a character was reintroduced I found myself saying, “Who?!” However I am afraid of the dark mood of this project. It felt like a Christopher Nolan film. I did read this on audio and I found the narrator to be quite boring BUT as you get to know the MMC that may be intentional. A rather decent project, looking forward to more by this author.