Gruesome! That what this story is.

A twisted tale of what can go on behind closed doors in a prison.

And a story of a woman who was abused at 16 and has lived her life always looking over her shoulder. But even though the guy is to out there somewhere she won’t allow him to win by giving in to her fear.
She will fight for what she wants and what she wants it a life where she can be happy.

Evelyn Talbot has spent her life trying to find out what makes a psychopath and how to better understand them, thus prevent deaths and know how to treat them once they are caught and convicted. She was tortured and almost killed by her high school boyfriend, Jasper, over 20 years ago and is dealing with that as best she can, especially as he has not been captured, she is always looking over her shoulder in case he shows up. Evelyn obtained funding for her project, Hanover House, a maximum-security facility located in a small Alaskan town which will be the home to the worst of the worst killers to be sent there for study to try to understand how their minds work. When a murder occurs in the small town where Hanover House is located, her facility is immediately under suspicion since it houses such horrific serial killers. When only body parts are found, it becomes apparent that there is more than one dead woman and both work at the facility. The investigation has Evelyn working with Sergeant Amarok to find out who is behind the killings, as well as trying to keep her safe. Is Jasper after Evelyn once again?

I read the prequel to this series back in 2018, so I had some catching up to do, but quickly was back into the story. Evelyn is a very flawed character. She has so much baggage from her attack and the killing of her friends twenty years earlier. She has cut herself off from everyone to protect herself emotionally and physically. She has a one track mind, and that is her work. Detective Amorak is very interested in getting to know Evelyn and have a relationship with her, but not only does she not want a relationship, but he is a lot younger than her and that is another stumbling block in her mind. There are issues at Hanover House that come to the forefront as the investigation into the murders takes place. I found this story very creepy and had chills often while reading and listening to it. It was easier to read it than listen to it. There are a lot of bad characters, and they are not all prisoners. As the story plays out, Evelyn is at risk physically as well as her job, and she has to fight back to prove she is doing a good job. This book is billed at romantic suspense by many readers, but I found it a straight up thriller with a bit of romance on the side. I will continue to read this series to find out what happens to Evelyn, Amorak and Hanover House.

I reviewed the entire Evelyn Talbot series in one post on my blog because I was addicted and could not stop reading! I read them all back to back.

It’s no secret that I love romantic suspense, so when I saw a romantic suspense series of books about serial killers set in a remote Alaskan town, I was extremely excited! I listened to the prequel novel, Hanover House, and then immediately dove into Her Darkest Nightmare. And then… I binged the rest of the series back, to back, to back. These books are pretty gargantuan and I read all 5 of them in less than two weeks. That’s monumental for me, considering I usually read about a book a week. So clearly, the story really sucked me in and I had to keep going until it was over. Because I read all of these books so close together, it’s a major struggle to review them all individually. I figured why not just lump them all together into one big spoiler-free review? As always, my main points are bolded.

1. This series starts off very strong. I flew through Hanover House, which I highly recommend. Prequel novellas (although, you can’t really call it a novella when it’s 244 pages long) tend to be a take it or leave it kind of a story, but I really think it’s paramount that you read Hanover House. It tells the story of Evelyn Talbot, her serial killer boyfriend from high school, and the reason she decided to make a career of studying the minds of serial killers. It sets the stage for the entire series and introduces you to a very important character named Jasper, who you really need to know. I also think it’s important that readers fully understand Evelyn’s past, because it sheds a lot of light on why she is the way she is in the rest of the books in the series.

2. Her Darkest Nightmare takes place about 6 months after the prequel. Evelyn has been lobbying to build Hanover House, which is a maximum security prison that houses the most dangerous serial killers, and it’s finally open. Its existence is the capstone of her entire career, and she is the driving force behind how it operates and who resides there. She works with a team of other psychiatrists, interviewing and running tests on these inmates with the goal of coming up with a cure or treatment program for psychopaths. She refers to them throughout the entire series as “the consciousless”. We meet Sergeant Amarok, Evelyn’s younger man love interest, in this book. He’s Hilltop, Alaska’s one and only member of law enforcement and has been against Hanover House since it was still a glimmer in Evelyn’s eye. He didn’t want his sleepy little hometown, which has been untouched by major crimes for over a decade, to become home to so many dangerous criminals. It’s out of his hands now, though, so he has to deal with it. And he was right. Hanover House brings a lot of death to Hilltop.

3. Evelyn… I have conflicting thoughts on her. She’s been through so, so much, and the resulting trauma would leave many unable to function, much less work with the very kinds of people who caused such trauma. In that regard, I saw her as strong and resilient. Her desire to make a difference and to help other people never experience what she went through is admirable. At the same time, though, she is also a little too stupid to live. Considering what she’s been through and all of her knowledge on serial killers, I feel like she should be smarter. She makes some very dumb decisions across this series. She says stupid things. She gets herself into situations that I feel could have been avoided if she had just thought a little first. Her stubbornness got on my nerves sometimes, and she has an unhealthy obsession with her work. She’s also incredibly hung-up on the age gap between her and Amarok, which is silly. It’s only 7 years and not a big deal. If the book were about a man dating a woman 7 years his junior, this would not have been a concern and that double standard has always bothered me. She talks like she’s robbing the cradle, and I found it to be pretty dramatic and annoying. Evelyn brings this up a lot throughout the series (even after the love factor is strong between them), and I got pretty tired of it. She is always trying to talk him into leaving her for someone else. Like it’s that easy. Give the man some credit. Either dump him for the shallow reason of being younger or get over it!

4. Amarok also gives me conflicting thoughts. On the one hand, Evelyn’s trauma matters to him and he is so patient and understanding. He gives her as much time as she needs to feel comfortable opening up and being more intimate with him. His sense of duty to his job and his dedication to keeping the people of Hilltop safe is great. I loved his dog, Makita, and their bond. But… he’s also very critical of Evelyn’s decision to study psychopaths. He, apparently, knows what’s best for her and has no trouble at all telling her on a frequent basis what a mistake she made choosing her career. I get it, Amarok. You want her to be safe and happy, and that’s great. But let the woman make her own decisions.

5. Hilltop, Alaska is isolated, dark for such a huge chunk of the year, and has no cell service. There’s a couple small businesses but for the most part it’s pretty empty. People come to Hilltop to rent hunting cabins and go off into the wilderness. The rest of the people have lived there forever. It’s really the perfect setting for a creepy series.

6. Her Darkest Nightmare was good for me! I rated it 4 stars, and was hooked on the story quickly. Each chapter starts off with a quote from a real serial killer, and those were creepy. This did not happen during the rest of the books, which left me both relieved and disappointed. Some of the quotes were upsetting so I was glad to not read more of them, but some of them were also interesting or just the right amount of creepy to set the stage for the chapter and I missed those ones as the books went on. The first half of the book is definitely better than the second half, but I was so intrigued by the over-arching mystery of Jasper that I flew through it anyway. The second half drags with Evelyn’s insecurities and repeated thoughts. The ending… left much to be desired. It didn’t go how I wanted it to, and felt a bit far-fetched to me.

7. I found a lot of the information on psychopaths interesting, and enjoyed reading it… until the author started re-using the same bits of info from previous books. Then it felt very repetitive.

8. Hello Again, book #2, also got 4 stars from me. This book centers on a serial killer named Lyman Bishop, who uses an ice pick to give his victims lobotomies and turn them into submissive vegetables that he can do whatever he wants with. He’s a brand new inmate at Hanover House, and Evelyn is eager to dive into his mind. He’s a brilliant cancer researcher, and claims he’s innocent. And new crimes show that he might very well be. Or is someone copying Lyman’s work to mess with people? Who knows? Is Lyman really a charming, wrongly convicted individual or is he also a brilliant psychopath who can play any part? There’s some triggery stuff surrounding his story and his past, including abuse and incest, so prepare for that. It was disturbing. Amarok’s ex girlfriend comes back in to town, and that added in some drama I didn’t like but oh well. Hello Again was pretty good!

9. Speaking of repetition… I do not recommend binge reading this series. You need to read a book, wait until you’ve forgotten most of it, and then read the next one. The author seems to think that her readers will not retain anything, even for a few chapters. Everything, and I mean everything, is repeated. Many times. Across all the books. What a psychopath is, what Hilltop is like, who various people are, what happened to Evelyn, etc. You will never ever be allowed to forget anything. I’m not pulling a direct quote, but this is the basic idea:

Guy at bar: I heard about a new inmate that’s been transferred to Hanover House. How’s that going?
Evelyn: Yes, we have Lyman Bishop at Hanover House now. I don’t know him very well yet.
Guy at bar: Wait. Lyman Bishop? The Zombie Maker? The man who performed ice pick lobotomies on his victims to render them vegetables?

…a few chapters later…

Evelyn: I spoke with Lyman Bishop today.
Amarok: You mean, the serial killer who used an ice pick to perform lobotomies on his victims and essentially turn them into shells of their former selves?

This kind of thing went on and on and on throughout the series, just about different people. There was constant repetition about who Jasper Moore is. This is not a spoiler. Readers learn very early on that Jasper Moore is Evelyn’s high school boyfriend who kidnapped her, killed her best friends, tortured her for three days, slit her throat, and left her for dead. She survived and he was never caught. And you will never forget these facts as long as you live. Long after these books are in your rear view and you have read hundreds more, you will hear the name Jasper and your mind will tell you who he is, verbatim, because you will read it so so many times in this series. Here’s another example of what I mean, although these are not direct quotes either. But they’re pretty close.

Evelyn: I’m concerned this could be Jasper’s doing. That he’s found me and is messing with me.
Secondary character: Wait. Jasper as in Jasper Moore? The man who kidnapped you, killed your friends, tortured you for three days, slit your throat, and left you for dead?

…a few chapters later…

Amarok: Evelyn thinks Jasper might have surfaced in Chicago.
His assistant: Are you serious? The man who kidnapped her, tortured her for three days, and left her for dead might be killing again?

…a few chapters later…

A serial killer: I see you have a scar on your neck. Is that from when your high school boyfriend, Jasper Moore, slit your throat and left you for dead after kidnapping you and torturing you for three days?

…a few chapters later…

A detective in another state: We’re looking for Jasper Moore, the man who kidnapped then 16-year-old Evelyn Talbot, killed her friends, held her in a cabin for three days while he tortured her between school and baseball practice, slit her throat, and left her for dead. He was never caught.

I’m not even kidding! It was this bad! Every person, every event, every thing that could possibly be deemed important information is repeated over and over again as though the author expects that nobody paid attention or remembered anything. I don’t know how this made it through editing! These books could have been so much shorter if things were not repeated so often.

10. I’d like to do a keyword search to figure out how many times “the lower forty-eight” is said across all five books, but oh my gosh. It’s like there’s Alaska and then the rest of the United States is just one big blob. People move there from “the lower forty-eight”, people want to move back to “the lower forty-eight”, people come on vacation from “the lower forty-eight”, Jasper is somewhere in “the lower forty-eight” killing again. It. Is. Constant. I dated a guy from Alaska. We had a long distance relationship while he was living there. Never once in our 6 years of dating did he ever say “the lower forty-eight”. I was very close to his family. None of them said it. I flew out to visit him. Nobody there said it. I’ve been on an Alaskan cruise and met many people who live and work there. Not one person said it. But EVERYONE says it in these books.

11. Face Off, the third book in the series, got three stars from me. I liked the overall storyline, but I can’t share much because I’d be spoiling a lot. Don’t even read the synopsis for this one without reading the first two books in the series because you’ll be spoiled. The suspense and the big moments were what I’d been waiting for, but it all came to a head so easily for me. And I can’t explain why because spoilers!

12. The romance didn’t do anything for me. I didn’t feel the love and the swooniness from Evelyn and Amarok that I needed. I never believed their story. She kept pushing him away for various reasons, and I felt like that made him want her even more. She was something to be won. Her fear of intimacy was a hurdle to be conquered. I never felt like she trusted him, and I never felt convinced he loved her and not just. the idea of her. The romance took a backseat to the crimes and the psychopaths, neither of which is a very romantic plot element. I would have preferred it if there was no romance in these books at all.

13. Blindspot, the 4th and final book of the series also received three stars from me. After 5 (if we include the prequel) books filled with repetition, Evelyn’s insecurities, Amarok’s poking and prodding, recycled info on psychopaths, and all the exact same characters, I was worn out. I just wanted to be done and see how everything ended. I can’t say much about this book because I don’t want to spoil anything, but Evelyn is abducted right at the beginning and the bulk of the book surrounds her being in captivity once again. I will admit, I was pretty invested. I had to know how everything ended. The person who abducted her is very creepy. Amarok furiously has all of Alaska hunting for her. It’s intense, and a bit disturbing. Again, though, the ending was just too easy. It all worked out so easily and perfectly and I couldn’t help but be disappointed after all the time I’d invested in this series.

14. There are some surprisingly disturbing passages in all 5 books in this series. Violent crimes are described in detail. Trauma is described in detail. I wasn’t expecting these books to be like this, and I think it would have been better for my own mental health if I had read them more spaced out (for multiple reasons). I found myself weighed down and feeling a little dark and depressed. I think that’s why I flew through the books so fast. A huge part of me wanted to read them all in order to resolve the dark in my mind and move on. Once things ended, I could stop thinking about them. There was also quite a bit of language, which surprised me coming from Brenda Novak.

Well. This review is a mess. LOL. Honestly, I read these books because I had to know what happened and not necessarily because I was enjoying them. Hanover House was enjoyable and I was so excited to continue. Her Darkest Nightmare didn’t resolve things that happened in Hanover House that I needed resolved, and my obsession grew. I have never read anything this fast, which I have to hand to Brenda Novak. She got me invested, in spite of all my reservations about these books. She had me tearing through the pages and staying up until 4 AM multiple times even though parts of them drove me bonkers. I became obsessed. That’s why I rated them higher than makes sense for what I’ve said here. But this was not a good obsession for me. lol. I should have slowed down and taken the story in smaller doses. Perhaps then I wouldn’t have felt so dark. I still would have noticed the repetition, though, so… who knows? All in all, I honestly have no idea if I would recommend this series. My initial gut reaction was, “Yes! I was obsessed! I’ve never read so fast!” but then… I remember all the little things that grated on me and the overall dark feelings I felt, and I think… I’ve read better romantic suspense that was actually romantic and not so upsetting. So I’m just going to leave my thoughts here and let you decide what they mean.

Dr. Evelyn Talbot has dedicated her life to gain a better understanding of the mind of a psychopath. Hanover House is a place that has opened after years of dedication and hard work. Evelyn runs Hanover House, but she can still be held accountable for her decisions.

Evelyn has been obsessed (that’s the only word to use here) with the psychotic mind since she was sixteen. Abducted by her high school boyfriend and subsequently tortured and raped, Evelyn was left for dead. It was only a stroke of luck that left Evelyn alive and able to get help. No one had a clue what Jasper was capable of, including Evelyn herself. That’s what got her obsession started. Ever since then, it has run her life.

Sergeant Amarok is the only law enforcement in Hilltop, Alaska. When a body turns up shortly after a storm hits and the power goes out, Amarok is sure that his fears about Hanover House have finally come true. Evelyn, of course, isn’t so sure. She is sure that Jasper is back to finish her off. All the signs are right there with how the body is left, how it’s someone close to her, and how the killer leaves clues that mock Evelyn.

Amarok isn’t a detective, but as he digs deeper, he is more inclined to believe Evelyn. He still thinks it has something to do with Hanover House, but now he thinks it is someone on the outside of the bars.

This was a psychological thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat. There were so many twists and turns that I felt like a pretzel. What I didn’t like is Evelyn’s obsession. It really seemed to overtake anything else in the book. The romance, the suspense, the mystery. It was just so prevalent that I couldn’t forget it long enough to really get into the book. I understood it, but things she did at the risk of her own life and safety almost made her TSTL.

It doesn’t matter enough that I’m not hooked. I love the idea of Hanover House and already read the chapter for the next book. It seems that Evelyn has a genius psychopath on her hands and I can’t wait to see them go head to head.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5.

(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)

Evelyn Talbot knows that a psychopath can look perfectly normal. She was only sixteen when her own boyfriend Jasper imprisoned and tortured her—and left her for dead. Now an eminent psychiatrist who specializes in the criminal mind, Evelyn is the force behind Hanover House, a maximum-security facility located in a small Alaskan town. Her job puts her at odds with Sergeant Amarok, who is convinced that Hanover is a threat to his community…even as his attraction to beautiful Evelyn threatens to tear his world apart.
Then, just as the bitter Alaskan winter cuts both town and prison off from the outside world, the mutilated body of a local woman turns up. For Amarok, this is the final proof he needs: Hanover has to go. Evelyn, though, has reason to fear that the crime is a personal message to her—the first sign that the killer who haunts her dreams has found her again. . .and that the life she has so carefully rebuilt will never be the same…

It has been a little while since I read the prequel story, Hanover House, which introduced us to psychiatrist Evelyn Talbot. It was a gripping, suspenseful read that made me want to read more...and this has done nothing to dampen that enthusiasm.

It is far too often that I read a book that is billed as a "romantic suspense" novel, only to discover that the book is so heavily weighed down with a "will they/won't they?" plotline, that they mystery/suspense is left far behind. Not in this one.

From the start, we already know a little about Dr. Talbot - and as the opening chapters of this book unfold, we find out a heck of a lot more. What happened to her when she was a teen and how that has affected the rest of her life, driving her towards psychiatry, only focusing on the worst of the worst criminals...

Sergeant Amarok is the perfect foil for Evelyn. His distrust and dislike for Hanover is clear - as clear as his interest in Evelyn herself. There is to-ing and fro-ing, but they keep the "romance" side of the story clearly in the picture. However, at no time does it override the story.

And what a story it is. Seemingly back from the past, a figure from Evelyn's teenage years re-emerges into her life - at the same time as a mutilated woman is found near Hanover. With winter closing in, and a race to make sure murder doesn't happen again, this story ticks a lot of boxes for me.

Definitely recommended.


Paul
ARH

This was a great introduction into Brenda Novak's work. Although I do own several of her ebooks and paperbacks and have done so for many years, this is the first book that I have ever read of hers, but certainly not the last one!

Dr. Evelyn Talbot runs a one-of-a-kind prison specifically designed to study psychopaths who have committed some of the most horrific crimes in modern history. She moves all the way from Boston to Alaska to have an isolated area where they can conduct their research.

This is much to the chagrin of Sergeant Amarok, a local state trooper, who cares very much about the small community and the people who live there. He believes bringing murderers and psychopaths from different parts of the country to their small town is only going to raise their crime levels.

Evelyn isn't deterred in the least despite the overwhelming opposition, because this research is incredibly personal to her. Having suffered a horrendous and brutal attack years earlier, she intends to get into the mind of psychopaths and discover exactly what makes them tick and better ways to identify them early on before they go on to commit violent crimes.

This book is highly entertaining and there's a steady rise in tension and suspense the further you read. I loved Sergeant Amarok's personality and sarcasm. He came off a bit jerkish in the beginning, but I really came to adore his character and over-protective personality.

Evelyn is a great heroine. She tries to do what is best for everyone even if that means putting herself in dangerous situations to save someone else. Although I didn't agree with every choice she made, I admired her fortitude and bravery.

There were other parts of the book that I found really fascinating. For instance, Brenda adds quotes from serial killers at the beginning of every chapter and considering the fact that I have a creepy obsession with learning about dangerous people, I found those quotes to add to the overall atmosphere of the book and it made it more realistic knowing these types of people really do exist.

The only reason I took off a star was because I felt the ending had a little bit too much going on. Other than that, this was a great book and I look forward to reading the rest of this series and more of Brenda's work!

Evelyn has built a life and purpose based on the tragedy she survived as a teenager. Now, has that past come back to haunt her all the way up in the wilds of Alaska? A finely drawn story that makes you really wonder who someone is and what drives them. Plot twists that were tricky and keep you guessing encourage you to keep reading to the finish. The developing relationship with Evelyn and Amarok is also a key focus. I did not realize that this book was a second to a series, and although it can stand alone, many references to the prior story line were made.

I tried this series and didn't like it. Love the author this is just not my cup of tea. Hope those of you who like this type of thriller enjoy the read and post good reviews.

I absolutely loved Her Darkest Nightmare, there is just something about Brenda Novak's darker themed books. She is one of my favorite authors and I was very excited to get this book after reading the novella prequel. The main character Evelyn is fantastic, she is smart and strong, and steadfast in her convictions. The story is suspenseful and detailed and I read the book in one sitting because I needed to know what was going to happen next, I can't wait to continue the series.

I enjoyed this romantic suspense that is the first full length novel in the series. I really liked the main character of Evelyn Talbot, and I love the Alaska setting. The story has a great premise, and the suspense was great. I'm looking forward to more in this series!

I had been eagerly waiting for Her Darkest Nightmare and it lived up to all my expectations. Dark, intense...fantastic! Loved it!

If you want suspense , murder, mystery, and romance then this is the book for you. It comes after the prequel which was great but this was even better. The author did drag out the age different thing that wasn't really that big of a deal to me but other then that it was a amazing read.