Book Review: The Angel Maker by Alex North – A Working Mom's Take

As a busy mom, I love a good thriller that pulls me in from the start, and The Angel Maker by Alex North did just that. This dark, gripping story revolves around Katie Shaw, whose brother was violently attacked years ago, and now she’s drawn back into a chilling mystery when a notorious killer resurfaces. The book weaves together past trauma, fate, and unsettling secrets in a way that keeps you guessing.

The suspense kept me hooked, and the emotional layers kept me connected and interested. It’s a perfect blend of psychological tension and heart.

Final Thoughts: The Angel Maker is a twisty, fast-paced thriller ideal for moms looking for an engrossing escape. With its blend of suspense and emotional depth, it’s hard to put down!

I enjoyed this sampler of chapters. North does a good job of juggling the multitude of characters; although, they sometimes seems to blur together because there are so many of them. Will I read the entire novel based on this sampler? Probably, however, it's not a top priority. Still, a fun read.

Very intriguing! Can't wait to read the entire novel. I only wish that I had been approved for the full book!

The sample chapter piqued my interest, but ultimately, after reading the book, this is my review:

I honestly wanted to love this book so badly because The Whisper Man holds a special place in my heart and is still one of the best and creepiest crime books I've ever read--however, I just couldn't really get into it the way that I wanted and found myself to be confused for most of it.

The story, and the different perspectives and timelines were extremely confusing and hard to keep track of. I found myself having to re-read and re-listen to different parts in order to understand the story, and doing that really made me lose my interest in the stiry. I also really struggled to get into the narrator's story-telling, and found her voice to be distracting and annoying, at times.

I honestly just think that there was too much going on here and, even though I wanted to, just could not get into the story the way that I hoped. By the end, which took time to get to for me, I wasn't left with any grulling questions--but I also wonder if there are things that I missed because it was such a struggle for me to read, and stay invested in.

2.5 rounded up.

Review: The Angel Maker ★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆
Author: Alex North
Publication Date: 03 January 2023
Publisher: Celdon Books
General Fiction (adult) | Mystery & Thrillers


I received this book from Alex North and Celdon Books as an advanced eArc for my honest review any opinions that come from this review are my own. Thank you to both the Author and the publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

Exceptionally Slow Paced

I had the hardest time getting into this book it took me so long to finish. There was so much hype surrounding this book and it fell flat. The potential was there for this to be a great book but because of the storytelling and the way the book was formatted, I was at a loss. This book was so chaotic why was there a need for so many characters and so many different time periods. The jumping back and forth gave me whiplash sheesh.

The characters to me were not developed well at all which led me to not have any kind of connection with them so if one of them fell off the top of the roof and died I honestly wouldn’t have cared because I couldn’t for the life of me form the slightest connection with any of them. Like what was the purpose of some of the characters in this book? And as far as the main characters I’m still trying to figure out what the hell they really wanted.

this book left me scratching my head and super sad because it had the potential to be so much more.

I was a little disappointed in the Angel Maker. There was so much hype about this book I think I set my expectations to high. Although it had suspenseful moments, I found myself lost and confused. The jumping back and forth. The twists. I had to go back and read certain sections again to follow the story completely. Although disappointed in this book, I won’t be swayed from reading more of Alex North’s books.

Interesting sample that made me want more. I have loved all of Alex North’s books so I have no doubt that anything he writes would be amazing.

The premise is intriguing and I like the writing style. Alex North’s books have always felt very atmospheric and spine chilling. I love the dual POV and timelines. I will always pick up this authors work.

This was an intriguing sample that left me wanting to read more to see where the characters lives lead after a life changing event.

I was super excited to see I got an ARC for The Angel Maker! At first, but after I started reading it I found it a lot more difficult to follow than I had anticipated. I usually enjoy books with multiple time lines but this felt a bit disjointed and hard to follow. I found myself having to scroll back to earlier parts to put things in order. I also found it hard to grow attached to any characters. I wasn't rooting for anyone which felt unusual for me as I tend to be over empathetic and get very invested in characters stories.

There was a lot more trudging through to the end on this one for me at least.

I am not intrested in this book. I have not really liked anthing I've read by Alex North! Knowing that this sample wasn't for me, just made me see how much Alex North's writing isn't for me. The Angle Maker preview was also kind of boring.

Katie had a great life and her future looked bright. Until a terrible event happened and it deeply affected her family. The tragedy that occurred happened to her younger brother Chris, who she adored. She moved away from her hometown started a new life. Her brother Chris turns up missing and there are no clues to this crime. Another crime happens and the police are trying to piece together these events. A serial killer is on the loose and the killer has a special skill set. A compelling horror suspense story, a fast-paced page turner and has appealing characters. The author is my automatic buy for horror/suspense stories.

Disclaimer: Thank you NetGalley and Celadon Books for this review copy and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I'm very excited for this novel! This is just a chapter sampler and I have not finished the book yet, so wait for a full review.

While I was so wanting the full book but was denied I grabbed this 5 chapter sampler of The Angel Maker by Alex North. It was an interesting start to the story. His books always involve family with a creepy storyline twist. I now have the full book from the library, can’t wait to see how the full story plays out.

I am so sad that this sampler was only around 60 pages! Just from this there was enough mystery and subterfuge to keep me intrigued. A sister looking for her missing brother who may be in trouble, and possibly involved in a murder. A detective trying to solve said murder, it seems like it is going to be an intense book. Since I’ve enjoyed the author's previous books I can not wait to jump into the full version!
Thank you to Celadon Books for the sampler, it's a great tease to what I'm sure is an amazing book.

This was a really intense read, especially for only a sampler. I’m new to this author but I’m looking forward to picking this up, as well as some of his other works. The writing style is very compelling.

A nice sample of what I believe is going to be another phenomical thriller from Alex North. Really love the atmosphere.

Was very excited to read the excerpt from this upcoming novel. It definitely kept my attention, and I cannot wait to read it in its entirety.

I love Alex North books and I am denfinately going to be reading the entire book
Thanks to Net Galey in return for an honest review.

I've loved every book by Alex North. After reading this sampler I immediately wanted more and pre ordered the book!