Ahh, now this was a book perfectly suited to me - deliciously dark, disturbing and violent. If you like your crime thrillers gripping and brutal, pick this one up! You certainly won't regret it! 'The Edge of Sanity' is Chris Thomas's second novel, the first being another dark affair entitled 'Enter The Dark' (previously self-published as 'The Red Room'). Both are enthralling psychological thrillers, and although it isn't essential you read them in chronological order, much of the characters backgrounds are discussed in 'Enter The Dark', so it is preferable to have read the first before moving on to this one. Thomas's fascination with criminal psychology and his love of horror films is evident in this tale, and he admits to using these interests to influence his writing. I feel that this is what sets his novels apart from the rest.

This is a very graphic story with many different threads that all end up intertwining and combining into one. I loved the characters, most of them are bad news, even some of the police force are mixed up with the criminals, making for an intensely compelling read. You never really know who are the bad guys and who are the good - a lot of the characters are not to be trusted despite their air of authority. The author effortlessly combines various different elements - drugs, organised crime, the dark web, and vigilante justice, to name but a few. The plot travels along at a fair pace with action aplenty, and I absolutely devoured it in one spine-chilling sitting. Undoubtedly, one of the best thrillers of the year. Having read over 200 from this genre in 2018, this is no small feat! I literally cannot wait for Thomas to publish more of his work.

Many thanks to Bloodhound Books for an ARC. I was not required to post a review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

The Smart Man holds a gun to the head of a junkie and his girlfriend who are tied to chairs in their squat. He informs them that are going cold turkey for forty eight hours then he will give them something really good. He holds out a bag of blue crystal powder for them to see. He then says " this is Brainfood and it will blow your mind ".
Peter Harris formally of the Cyber Crimes Unit is living quietly running a guesthouse with his young daughter on the Isle of Wight when his love interest Grace and his daughter Olivia are kidnapped . It is up to Pete and the help of the Brotherhood of Righteous to follow the clues to save them.
They have been kidnapped by an old adversary Slater who likes nothing more than to punish and torture even if they have looked at him the wrong way. The Smart Man and his partner the Professor put on specially screened shows using human guinea pigs to show the effects of their new drug to all the cartels worldwide then open a bidding war. It is now a race against time as Grace is due to star in the next show.
This book is very graphic, very violent and very addictive. I read this book in one sitting, no I DEVOURED this book in one sitting. This is one of the best books I have read this year. This is the second book of this series, but you can read it as a stand alone. This author is amazing. I have ordered the first book . More please!!!!!!
I would like to thank the author Chris Thomas, Bloodhound books and Net.galley for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for giving an honest review.

Wow Chris Thomas definitely grabbed my attention with this book and kept me riveted to my seat.
The Smart Man and the Professer operate within the dark web developing and demonstrating new recreational drugs for the world's biggest/nastiest drug cartels.
Without giving too much away former police officers and their families become embroiled in this scenario and the result is exciting, disturbing, harrowing,blood thirsty, gory ..............
Not for the feint hearted but absolutely the most exciting book I've read so far this year. A well deserved 5 stars.

I was unsure if I would enjoy this book as it is set around drug dealers, yet the mention of the dark net drew me in. I’m glad I chose this as it was fast paced and had me hooked from the start. Twists and turns had me gasping and I just had to keep reading.

This is a dark and twisty book. I’d recommend reading the first book before this one because the characters are recurring. Lots going on in The Edge of Sanity but if you like your tales dark and violent, then this is one for you.

This is the authors second book and yet another dark and disturbing read. I personally do think readers will benefit from having read, Enter The Dark, the authors first novel as it features some of the characters and gives you more of an insight into the Cyber Crimes Unit as well as the dark web which I think is important to this story.

To start with the story felt a bit like a horror film. I don't want to go into to much detail but the affects that the new drug has on people was pretty horrific to say the least. If your not easily shocked though, you are going to love it! I certainly did.

The story very much focuses on drugs and the dark web. It is certainly a world I didn't really know much about or really understand. Having read this authors books, it's a world I hope to goodness I never find myself part of either. There is no wonder Pete wanted to put it behind him. Sadly he gets dragged right back into the thick of it.

There are some really good characters in this book. Some good, some not so good and some definitely very bad. They are all an important part of the story though and I enjoyed them all for who they were. I mean even the baddies, who doesn't love a good baddie? Danny was one of my stand out characters I think mainly because of the situation he finds himself in.

The Edge of Sanity is a dark and enthralling read of which I had to keep turning those pages. It gives you a great insight into a powerful and disturbing world that will no doubt shock and horrify you. It would certainly make a great movie that's for sure.

Although he doesn't feature immediately I guess the lead character in this book is Pete Harris. He was previously with the Police's Cyber Crimes Unit. His departure (and that of others in the unit) would appear to have been covered by the previous book in this series. While I think this can be read standalone I think the reader will get more out of it if they read the earlier book first.

The opening chapter was dark, nasty and interesting. A designer drug is tested on two unsuspecting drug addicts. After that an ex DCI from the Cyber Crimes Unit meets with a crime boss to offer him information. The narrative then involves 3 and then 4 people or groups. As well as Pete and the crime boss, Slater, there are the Majestic Road crew with the Smart Man and the Brotherhood of the Righteous.

The pace here is reasonable though not particularly fast initially. There are a range of characters most of whom I didn't really find all that convincing. I did find the behaviour of the crime boss Slater very odd. Other than by unthinking violence I'm not sure how he ever managed to be a "successful crime boss". Indeed the early interaction between Slater and the ex DCI offering information did leave me unimpressed and probably affected my views on the book as a whole.

The premise of this book with ex police fighting dark web violence and drugs interested me. In many ways I think the story was very valid. However I confess I found it a little confusing. While the Majestic Road group were clear from quite early on I can't say the same about the Brotherhood. By the end we have a better idea of who is on who's side but until then I was confused at times. Maybe this book simply was not one for me. There are extremes of violence and drugs which I didn't find appealing. However I also found few of the characters well fleshed out and that left this book readable for me though not particularly good or bad.

I loved Enter The Dark and this is a great follow up, I did get a little bogged down in the middle but then it jumped back up and grabbed my attention, I definitely think that the books should be read in order to get the full gist of the story.

This book doesn’t waste any time jumping right in. I had no idea where it was going but I knew I was along for the ride. Pitting the lone good guy ex-cop against drug lord Curtis Slater, the Brotherhood of the Righteous and the Majestic Road, The Edge of Sanity is a dark tale of revenge, societal cleansing and what the singular moral compass in all of this will do to rescue his daughter. A continuation of his debut novel Enter the Dark, although you could read this as a stand-alone if you chose, The Edge of Sanity leaves you on the edge of your seat through the final series of twists.

Thanks to Bloodhound Books for an early copy.

The story looks to me, like a book based on the show Narcos. The drug lord, narcotics, and dessert.

Good cover design.