What a scary read!

Katie and Christopher Shaw are bother in sister; Katie always felt she was second to Chis when it came to attention from her mother, as well as always being told to look after Chris. Well, the day Katie decided to put her wants and need before Chris is the day all their lives changed.

Chris gets brutally attacked which disfigures his face and he ends up turning to drugs and living on the streets. Katie gets married, has a child and tries to stay away from her brother's drama until her mother calls her that Chris has now gone missing. Katie has a feeling her daughter is in danger and it may have something to do with Chris, so she decides to go looking for her brother. Life as Katie knows it is no more, she goes down an unknown rabbit hole of danger.

This was a very well written book I thoroughly enjoyed. Alex North has written another masterpiece!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in return for my honest opinion.

Alex North has become one of my new favorite authors! I always look forward to reading his work. My customers are already waiting in line for it! It did not disappoint!

10 stars out of 5!

The layout of the story got a little confusing at one point, but as you keep going the author did an excellent job of putting the pieces into place.

There was one specific storyline within the book that ended very abruptly. I thought it could've used a little more explanation.

All in all it was a great story, and I plan to purchase a physical copy for my collection when it's released!

The Angel Maker is a twisty, dark thriller with a complex plot that will keep you on your toes. There is a serial killer that can predict the future, which is unique, but for me, the story moved slowly at times. Overall, I liked the story a lot and enjoyed trying to put all the pieces together.

I sadly did not enjoy this book. The multiple storylines and abundance of male characters was hard to keep track of.

Thank you to Celadon Books and Alex North for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

You guys. Thrillers are always a hit or miss for me. I need them to capture my attention immediately and keep it throughout the book. And that is EXACTLY what The Angel Maker did. I was hooked from the very first page and I never felt bored. The book seamlessly transitions throughout the lives of several characters, and flashes back to several different points in time, that all come together in a cohesive way. I was trying to piece together the story and how everyone connected throughout the entire story (and although I did guess SOME of it, I was also surprised by a good portion). I also liked the end of the book and how it left a little bit of magic and speculation surrounding some parts of the story. Overall, I seriously can’t say enough how much I loved this book.

Fate…or just pure evil

When I first started reading The Angel Maker, I was convinced I was delving into a YA story about a romance between two teenagers. But when the question arose, "If you could see into the future, would you want to?" I was intrigued because who hasn't asked themselves that question?

The story jumps ahead to the future and the mystery ensues - why has a wealthy man let go of his staff just before he died? Who murdered him, and did he know it was going to happen?

There were a lot of characters which at first was confusing, but I knew there would eventually be connections.
The book felt to me like it was written in the era of Jack the Ripper, or Sherlock Holmes. It had an atmosphere of dark alleys, crumbling, moldy, mansions, and antiquities. The horror was just under the surface.

Many thanks to NetGalley/Bookish First and Celadon Books for an advance reader’s copy!

This book was a bit of a mix for me. Just in the first few chapters we’re introduced to a lot of characters in different timelines, and the short time spent on them so early in the book made it really hard to remember who everyone was and keep track of that while continuing through the book. I felt like I spent too much time trying to remember who was who/in what timeline certain people existed. I wish we had more background on Jack Lock in his own timeline with his sons, and felt like that could’ve been fleshed out more. The ending of the book felt abrupt and some things weren’t cleared up, including a whole character’s story. All that said, there were things I definitely liked about this book, like the spooky/creepy vibes I was hoping for. The exploration of choice and free will was really interesting and I liked how that concept was woven throughout the story. The last 1/3 of the book really picked up the pace and as more of the pieces fell into place, I couldn’t put the book down. Overall this one was ok, but I think my hopes were too high going into it.

“People choose their own paths, and however much you love them there comes a point when they have to take responsibility themselves for the journey they’ve embarked upon.” 🙌🏻

Katie Shaw lived a charmed life in the English countryside. At the cusp of graduation, she had big dreams, her devoted boyfriend Sam, and a little brother she protected fiercely. Until the day a violent stranger changed the fate of her family forever. 

Years later, still unable to live down the guilt surrounding what happened to her brother, Chris, and now with a child of her own, Katie struggles to separate the real threats from the imagined. Then she gets the phone call: Chris has gone missing and needs his big sister once more.

Meanwhile, Detective Laurence Page is facing a particularly gruesome crime. A distinguished and wealthy professor of fate and free will has been brutally murdered. All the leads point back to two old cases: the gruesome attack on teenager Christopher Shaw, and the despicable crimes of a notorious serial killer who, legend had it, could see the future.

“It is a parent’s job to guide their children gently and hope for the best, not to control them.”

Ever since I read The Whisper Man, @alex had been an auto-buy author for me. So I was elated when I was given both the ARC and ALC of his newer book! And it did not disappoint. This is a multi faceted story spanning multiple generations with both deeply disturbed and supremely honorable characters. Initially I was not sure how these different stories intertwined but what a joy that ah ha moment was when it all came together. There were a few twists I had an inkling about and some I did NOT see coming. A solid thriller!

The audiobook was fantastic and narrated with just the right amount of emotion to have you feeling the angst and fear and determination of the characters.

Thank you to Netgalley, Celadon Books, Macmillan Audio, and the author for the advanced copies in exchange for an honest review.

I can say with certainty that anyone who loved The Whisper Man and The Shadows will eat this up in beautiful excruciating ways. If you’re on the hunt for something mind bending and in the need for a story to turn around and pick YOUR brain, this is the one you’ve been searching for. I think the storyline was very full considering the multiple povs. It at times came across a bit overwhelming and I think at certain points it did take away from the story for me. But I wouldn’t say the details were lost in that, I was still able to make it to the end with an understanding of what had happened. It just took some trial and error to understand it all. This is full of twists and turns and so many bumps in the road you’ll have to fasten a seatbelt. The authors glorious writing makes up for the distractions and he molded a story that will definitely be a favorite of many.

I love Alex North's writing because he writes creepy page turners, while still being smart and realistic. I really liked The Whisper Man and was excited to receive an ARC of this book.
This book was one of those books that make you want to stay up late and finish it in one sitting. I found it very compelling, and when I did have to stop reading it, I was very motivated to get back to it. It was a complicated story with lots of different characters and moments in time that jumped around somewhat sporadically. I didn't find it too hard to keep track of everything, but if you had to read it in smaller chunks, it might be.
I enjoyed this book right up to the end, which left me thinking, 'was that it?'. I re-read the last few chapters thinking I must have missed something, but I do not think I did. The way it all came together left me wanting something more... a little more cohesion and a little less determinism.

Definitely worth reading if you enjoyed The Whisper Man, but when you do, can we discuss the end!?

3.5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, Celadon Books, and Alex North for this ARC.

Alex North will have you scared to turn the page, while at the same time anxious to see what happens next in “The Angel Maker.” Quick, cunning & terrifying, this thriller takes the meaning of “family” to an entirely sinister level. Leave the lights on. Or better yet, lock the door & curl up during the daytime. This one will keep you up at night.

I absolutely LOVED this. This is the kind of smart, meticulous, puzzle filled crime book I’ve been looking for for so long. Yes there are quite a few characters and sub splots, time jumps into different parts of the past, and mysteries on top of mysteries but this truly all came together SO WELL.

I was at the edge of my seat from the beginning, I just couldn’t turn the pages fast enough but I also wanted to absorb all the careful details and bends North sprinkles in.

If you’re looking for a quick popcorn thriller or crime, this isn’t it. I so often find myself bored with the obvious traps and crimes found in many crime and thrillers lately but not so here!

This is crafted expertly with small clues meant to embed themselves in your mind and keep you guessing and working. It’s truly like doing a puzzle where even though you know you’ve found the right piece for a section, you have to turn it a few ways to get it to fit. You can’t tune this out or be distracted while reading this. To really appreciate the story, this demands and for me, definitely captured my full attention.

This will definitely be one I recommend again and again as crime fiction that feels like a real return to the genre and move away from the cheap crime thrillers and obvious detective stories that have been saturating the genre. The audiobook is narrated so well that really elevates the reading experiences, immersing you in the tension expertly and really ratcheting up the emotions. Thank you so much Celadon for my galley and ALC!

The Angel Maker takes you on one twisting turning roller coaster of a ride. you have to pay close attention bc there’s so many characters that it was hard to keep up sometimes, but I eventually figured out who everyone was lol. Following the detectives, the family that survived a killer years ago, and two brothers who are connected to a different serial killer, we get a story of how all of these folks are connected, while seemingly strangers on the surface. This is a book that starts the action on page one and doesn’t let you stop until you’ve reached the end. I’m still not sure on where I stand on some of the more mystical aspects of this story, but it fully shows that belief can do more damage than reality. Great thriller!

Ok so I was expecting something different .. this book did throw me a bit . At times it was hard to read because there's soooo many POVS going on.. too many tbh. The transition from one person to another sometimes was confusing & left you wondering if maybe you missed something in the multiple plots .
I love Mr Norths previous books & this one is different from those . I feel more of a religious aspect than horror ?? 🤔
Overall I felt this book was original . Cultish horror ? So def props for that but it wasn't my fave 😐

Thank for for the chance to read this Arc . 🖤

Thank you to Alex North, Celadon Books, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. This plot was good in theory, however the execution is the reasoning for my rating. Normally, I enjoy multiple POVs but the transitions to other POVs was not well done. It felt chopping and the pacing between the three was not exactly the same which made it harder to want to continue reading. It broke up anytime I felt like I was on a streak and added to the slow pacing of the book. The twist was pretty predictable as well. Additionally, I wish I had looked for trigger warnings, I found some of the subject matter especially in relation to small children, disturbing and that took away from the story for me too. Overall, the story had promise but fell a little flat for me personally.

I freaking love Alex North so I was surprised when the early reviews of this novel were coming back unfavourably. After finishing it, I have come to the conclusion that the lack lustre reviews are less about the actual quality of the novel and more having to do with how different it is from his previous work.

This was a dense plot with a lot of moving parts and complex characters which is something I have come to expect from North, and one of the reasons I love him. There were a lot of moments where I went “wait, what??”, but any momentary confusion was ultimately explained as the story unfurled.

The Angel Maker was definitely the least creepy of North’s work, which I think may be where peoples disappointment is stemming from. Personally, I actually enjoyed how he tried something different and went more philosophical, playing with the theory of determinism, an idea that, when you really think about it, is rather terrifying.

I will also say, I started to listen to this on audio and had to switch to the physical copy. I did not like that the multi POV - mostly male characters I might add - was read predominantly by a woman; I kept thinking that Chris and Lawrence’s POVs we’re Katie and ultimately abandoned it. If a novel is multi POV, I NEED a full cast!

If you’re able to separate what you’ve come to expect from North subject matter wise, this was still very North-esque; it was expertly plotted, had fleshed out and flawed characters, an original plot that made you think, and plenty of twist and turns along the way. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for this ARC!

Absolutely loved this creepy horror-thriller! Alex North did it again!

This book follows Katie Shaw who really has it all until a stranger hurts her brother. After this attack her brother is lead into a life of drugs. Years later Katie finds out her brother is now "clean" and is back in touch with their mother but has now gone missing. Katie feels she owes it to her brother to find out what happened even if that means putting her own family in danger.

I really enjoyed this book, often finding it hard to put it down. This book does have many POVs and at the beginning you may be confused. BUT stick with it! Everything comes together in a beautifully twisted way!

Fate or free will? Can we change the future or are we helpless to what is yet to happen to us? This is the perpetual theme as Katie races the clock to unravel the mystery of the past that has sucked her brother in.

I loved this book! The Whisper Man is one of my favorite thrillers from last year and I had high expectations for this one, which it definitely lived up to. This is such a masterpiece of taking multiple strings of story and weaving them together to leave behind a full quilt of story that fits together perfectly. North is a master of this and I now can’t wait to go back and read The Shadows! I highly recommend this for lovers of suspense and mystery!

TW: kidnapping, violence, child abuse

🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 - 5/5

I loved this book! This was my first by Alex North and I was definitely impressed. The twists were great and I never knew where it was going.