I love mysteries on a boat. I was constantly changing my mind on who did it and why, and I still was surprised by the end. I won't give any more detail so I don't give anything away, but I definitely recommend not reading the synopsis beforehand.

I would say up until the reason we found out this was happening, I enjoyed the story. Wyatt's whole speech just didn't make sense to me at all. If he wanted to be caught and recognized so bad then why did he plea not guilty? Why not just admit to the crimes he was accused? Other than that, it was fast enough paced that I went through it pretty quickly. Thankst o Netgalley and the publishers for an advanced reader's copy.

Thrilling and terrifying, this one of a kind novel is a must read! I enjoyed this book immensely and I recommend it goes to the top of your to be read list.

A former juror in a murder trial finds herself stalked by the murderer after he’s set free. She realizes his motives are personal and races the clock to save others, including those closest to her. Co-writers James S. Murray and Darren Wearmouth kick off a new series with surface-level thrills that don’t get full explanations in their newest book The Stowaway.

Maria Fontana is exhausted and ready for a break. After sitting as a juror in one of the most high-profile murder cases in recent history, she thought she would go back to her life and resume her work as the head of the psychology department at Columbia University in New York. Ever since the end of the trial, though, nothing has been normal.

She’s plagued by nightmares of the grisly evidence she had to view for the case, for one thing. The killer, Wyatt Butler, murdered and dismembered children, leaving bizarre calling cards at each crime scene as clues for who he would target next. As a mother herself, Maria shudders when she thinks about the depravity of Butler’s acts.

Also, despite being sequestered with the rest of the jury during the trial, someone leaked their identities. What’s worse, the jury wasn’t unanimous in its vote and ended up acquitting Butler. The victims’ parents have targeted jury members ever since, and Maria’s finding it a challenge just to function in her day-to-day life.

News gets out that Maria stood as the lone vote against convicting Butler, and her life becomes even more of a storm. The university lets her take a sabbatical, and her fiancé suggests a long vacation. Maria agrees for the sake of her twins, Chloe and Christopher, and the four of them head onto a cruise to get away from it all, literally.

Within days of embarking on their vacation, though, disturbing events on the ship bring Maria right back to the days of the trial. Someone is murdering again, this time targeting those on board, and the method of the killings mirrors Butler’s style. Terrified but determined to get some semblance of her life back, Maria teams up with the head of the ship’s security to find the killer. She has an inkling that Butler has followed her, although she doesn’t know why, but she does know that if she doesn’t find him fast, her own kids could be his next victims.

Authors James S. Murray and Darren Wearmouth offer readers a fast read, made all the faster by keeping the story mostly on the surface. No deep motivations are provided for Butler’s behavior and fetishes, and many of the action scenes on the ship might make readers wince for how much they feel like a cheesy movie. They also stretch a reader’s suspension of disbelief to the limits.

Maria, too, doesn’t always come across as likeable. At times she’s controlling, and, again, Murray and Wearmouth don’t offer any back story as to why she is that way. Also, while her concern for her children feels real, there isn’t enough interaction shown between her and the kids. Maria goes through a difficult time after the trial, but no mention is made of how that affected Chloe and Christopher. They feel like stand-ins for a cause, something to give Maria reason to hunt down the killer on board the cruise ship. Often the story feels like it’s waiting for its actors to commence their scenes instead of being lived in and grounded in real life.

Nevertheless, the thriller writing duo definitely delivers on the promise of a fast ride with unexpected twists and turns. Red herrings abound, and Butler is creepy enough to satisfy the requirements of any antagonist. Those looking for a quick read in the genre will definitely want to pick this one up.

These are new authors for me and I found their book to be very well written even though it was a bit verbose. The plot was well executed and the characters were well developed. It is definitely not a book for the lighthearted as there are some graphic scenes.

I received an ebook ARC from Netgalley to review but I read a hardback copy from the library. This is my voluntary, honest review.

This review is a bit difficult as I don’t want to give any spoilers.
Maria was on a jury with 11 others. Their job was to pass judgement on a man accused of being a particularly heinous child serial killer. Much of the evidence was circumstantial.
The jury ended in a mistrial as one juror could not bring herself to convict based on the evidence.
Needless to say the parents of the murdered children were understandably very angry at the mistrial.
The jurors were hounded relentlessly by the grieving parents trying to find who the ONE juror was that voted not guilty.
Eventually Maria stood up and took the blame. This caused a lot of changes in her life, requiring that she take a year off work. And try to stay away from the limelight.
As her year off comes to an end, she, her two children and her fiancé all take a cruise to celebrate the future they are planning. The wedding, her return to work and hopefully a NORMAL life.
Unfortunately, the cruise ship has a killer on board, and this brings back all of Maria’s worries about the families and the attacks that occurred after the trial.
Although if you look really hard you can see the plot is a little worn in some areas, I would have to say this is a pretty decent read. Keeps you guessing and is suspenseful.

This is quite the thriller with a lot of gruesome details on the murders that occurred before and during the cruise. I didn't really warm up to Maria and found her decisions to lure the killer unbelievable, what mother would knowingly leave her children during the pursuit. She also seemed to not really trust her fiance. However the ending was satisfying and I will give the next book in this series a read.

This was a quick, interesting thriller read. A juror is the sole not guilty vote on a murder trial, setting the alleged killer free. Almost a year later, a family cruise turns deadly and we suspect the set free killer is on the same ship starting over with his patterns again.
There are some graphic murder scenes described including children, which may be alarming for some readers.
I read this book quickly, found it fast paced and well done even with the murders.
Thankful for the ARC!

The Stowaway

A well planned mystery, The Stowaway will capture your attention and have you ready to blame the innocent for ship board atrocities.

Former juror and college professor, Maria Fontana, takes her family on a well deserved transAtlantic cruise. Things begin to quickly fall apart on board when several deaths alert the staff that there’s a killer about. Maria thinks she knows who it is, but is her conjecture even possible? Who will believe her?

Speaking of atrocities, I must add a caveat for squeamish readers. Some scenes were very gruesome, and unnecessarily so in my opinion, and some heinous acts may offend.
All the same, this is a good “who done it” which will keep the reader engaged.

A perfect read. It has a heartbeat all its own. It builds in just the right way. It constrains the hero a cop with seasoning whose found a safe harbor only to have it breached by a killer no one can describe. A psychologist who specializes in profiling, and on the killer list to impress. A ship full of victims who cannot come to port soon enough . Ahhh the stuff of thrill seekers everywhere.

The stowaway was a fast paced thriller. Sucked me right in… Maria is a juror who lets a child killer go free and then is stuck in an ocean cruise from hell. A great fall read

Maria Fontana was a member of the jury that failed to convict a serial killer when one juror voted not guilty. Now, Maria, her two children, and her fiancé are on a transatlantic cruise, hoping to enjoy some family time. But, within a few days, a death occurs and Maria is concerned that the killer the jury set free is on the ship. Halfway across the Atlantic the passengers and crew are trapped with a maniacal killer and nowhere to hide.

The Stowaway is a fast-paced book with enough twists to keep the reader guessing right up to the very last page. I enjoyed the setting and the descriptions of the ship. There are some rather graphic episodes that could be difficult for some and some things were left unexplained. But, overall, I enjoyed this book and would give it a solid 3.5 stars.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book for review.

Maria sat on a jury where alleged child serial killer, Wyatt Butler, was set free. Maria was outed publicly as the juror who found Wyatt not guilty, thus setting him free and causing Maria’s life to be turned upside down.

Now, a couple of years later, Maria is trying to rebuild her life and her family have decided to take a two week transatlantic cruise, but when things start to go awry on the trip Maria is left to wonder if the past is coming back to haunt her.

This was a really fun thriller and an interesting take on the whole locked room mystery vibe. Was it overly believable how it all played out? No, not really. Did I care about that? No, not really. It kept me hooked right from the start, made me doubt everyone and made me want to not put it down, which are all big ticks from me.

It is worth knowing before going in that there is some very violent scenes in this book and some pretty graphic details about murder scenes, including those of children (though you can absolutely skim through these sections without losing any of the story).

Reading this book felt like watching a high energy movie play out on the pages and was just the fast paced, fun thriller I needed this month.

I read and enjoyed this duo's AWAKENED trilogy - originally drawn to them not only because I adore a good creature feature, but also because one of the authors is "Murr" from IMPRACTICAL JOKERS. Their latest, this serial killer thriller, is a bit different but no less entertaining. It's a gripping read that really reels in the reader from the very start when the main character, Maria, is on a jury for a serial killer case. The trial's ending leaves the jury becoming famous in their own right. Continuing to be haunted by the case, psychologist Maria eventually takes a leave of absence from her work. With her twin children and her fiancé, they embark on an Atlantic cruise. But what's supposed to be a pleasurable escape soon becomes a locked room mystery on the high seas.

The plot takes a few genuinely surprising turns - and definitely has some horrific violence. The ending suggests that this might not be the last we see of Maria, too, which is exciting as I grew to quite like her. The police on the cruise ship are also well developed. I really enjoyed reading this one and definitely always found myself eager to pick this one back up. It's fast-paced and I imagine would be best enjoyed while actually being on a cruise! A great summer thriller!

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

TW for child murders.

I know Murr from Impractical Jokers and I though that it was pretty cool that he had started writing books. This one was a fast paced thriller that started with a jury trial that did not go the way people wanted it to go, to the cruise ship where the rest of the story takes place.

This is a good book to pass the time, either on a beach day or a rainy day. It is dark and disturbing so be prepared for that. But it is one of those books that is hard to put down. I had to keep going because I needed to know everything.

I'll definitely keep reading his books.

Thrilling at every turn! The first book I've read by this author and definitely will not be my last. Phenomenal writing and storytelling.

The Stowaway
October 4, 2021
Book Review

The Stowaway
Darren Wearmouth & James S. Murray
reviewed by Lou Jacobs



readersremains.com | Goodreads


Wyatt Butler stood accused of the most heinous crimes: the brutal and senseless murder of eight children. The twelve jurors were forced to listen and view evidence of these heinous dismemberment murders of these eight innocents. Gruesome photos of the mutilated and dismembered children defiled their vision, but there was no DNA evidence and the police sketches provided by several eyewitnesses all looked different and didn’t resemble the so-called monster standing before them.

After weeks of deliberation the jury was still deadlocked, and one more final vote was made.

One juror voted to acquit, and the judge was forced to declare a mistrial and “the monster” was set free. The media and the victim’s families were outraged, as reflected in daily salacious headlines. They demanded to know the identity of the lone juror. All the jurors and their families were relentlessly harassed. One of the jurors, Maria Fontana was especially haunted by the situation.

Maria is a psychologist, and the head of the department at Columbia University, and took it upon herself after months of haranguing in the press, and even being confronted by a victim’s mother, to call a press conference. She declares that she was the lone juror, and implores everyone to stop the harassment of the jurors and their families. She’s forced by Columbia University to take a year-long sabbatical, while “things blew over.”

Just before returning to work, she and her twins, Christopher, and Chloe, along with her new fiancé Steve decide to take a “healing” vacation to get away from everything—a two-week long transatlantic cruise from New York to Southampton, England. A book has already been published by Jeremy Finch: “Wyatt Butler, The Ultimate Truth.” It contains an entire chapter devoted to slurring and bashing of Maria. Unfortunately, Maria can’t contain herself and confronts Finch at a bookstore signing session, where she makes a “spectacle of herself” by yelling that he’s a liar.

Once aboard the ship, events start to escalate in horrendous fashion. She’s already nervous that someone on board will recognize her. The passengers are talking amongst themselves: a rumor was spreading like wildfire. In one of the compartments a severed head of a man is found, casually placed upon the center of the bed, with a child’s Yankee baseball cap placed next to it. (Later we learn from the ship’s security team that a typewritten note was found: “If the judicial system can’t stop him …Who will?”) Soon after, a ten-year-old boy goes missing. Security footage of the ship’s cameras reveal his body going into the sea. A futile search by the crew in the icy Atlantic waters is to no avail. Shortly followed by the grisly discovery why the soft serve ice-cream machine has stopped working. The mechanic gets up on a ladder and removes the machine top, only to discover a collection of severed child body parts. Security has finally admitted that a “killer is on board.” Maria has long before come to this conclusion: “It’s him. He’s here.”

Murray and Wearmouth weave a suspenseful tale filled with escalating dread and unexpected twists and reveals. Multiple breadcrumbs and red herrings are strewn about for the reader, in this compelling page-turner, highlighted by well fleshed-out multi-layered characters. The well-executed prose drives this high-octane, adrenaline-soaked mystery, as a cat and mouse game develops between “the killer” and Maria.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing an Uncorrected Proof in exchange for an honest review. Hopefully we will see more taught mysteries from this budding partnership.

A fast paced thriller with violence involving children. A jury trial where almost everyone believes the accused is guilty. When the votes are cast, there is that one person who believes the accused may not be guilty. After stepping forward and taking much heat from the community,, one of the jurors, along with her family, sets forth on what is supposed to be a wonderful cruise. What follows is a journey unlike any other.

Wow, don’t start reading this if you don’t have much time because you won’t want to put it down! This was at times gruesome, sometimes nail biting but always exciting. Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC, this is my honest review.

I devoured this book. I liked the suspense. I liked the gore.

I received an ARC from the publisher and NetGalley for an honest review.