acidraineburns's review
2.0
Honestly, even after reading the book, I am not entirely clear what it was really and truly about. What I know is that a series of murders are happening that appear to be in the style of an old mob killer. However, according to all reports, the hitman is dead. The police department’s poster boy, Adam White, is on the case. His investigation leads him to Heath Grim, the masked and disfigured owner of the apartments across from the crime scene. This tangled mess of a story involves two warring mob families, death, horrible violence, and the supernatural.
I’m not even sure where to start with this book. The idea was interesting; however, that’s where it stopped. The beginning was rather engaging. Unfortunately, it went from meh to ugh pretty quickly. It might be easier to break it down.
The Good
*The whole serial killer angle was a big draw
*I like the supernatural element that was behind a lot of the motives
*The casino game near the end was well played
*The use of masks was an interesting idea
The Bad
*Voorhees and Myers cross streets in front of Grim’s apartment complex was way too obvious. Further, on the next page, White compared Grim to Jason Voorhees. In addition, the stripper being named Gemma Jamerson was a *facepalm* moment. And, sadly, that isn’t the worst of it. The author makes pop culture references to Batman, movies, and so on; however, he suddenly changes the name of well known comic book characters, movie titles, and an actress. Why? I’m sorry, but that was just way too much for me.
*There were a lot of inconsistencies throughout the book. One of them was Grim’s Rosacea. On one page, he says that it appear a few years ago and doctors didn’t know why; however, on the very next page, he tells White that he has battled with it his whole life. Huh?
*Bruno’s cussing was too much. While I understand a character cussing like a sailor, when it interrupts the flow and halts the reader, it is way too much.
*As the book neared its conclusion, I found myself heavily reminded of The Dark Knight and Red Dragon by Thomas Harris. Grim, in a weird fashion, was an archetype of Bruce Wayne: his parents were taken from him, he lost someone dear to him, made a bargain to get revenge, and acted as a masked vigilante. And, if Grim was Bruce Wayne, Adam White was Harvey Dent. Along with the Batman theme, Grim’s comment about his girlfriend thinking he didn’t smile enough was just like Joker. As far as Red Dragon, the split personality/possession reminded me of Francis Dolarhyde.
*I didn’t like the pacing of the book.
All in all, I just didn’t like Grim. For me, it really wasn’t original and pulled too much from other sources. In addition, the grammar really tripped me up. I think, given some time and work, it might be better. Unfortunately, at this point, it felt like ripping teeth to finish the book, and it didn’t do it for me. Further, some of the violence seemed a little too over the top.
I’m not even sure where to start with this book. The idea was interesting; however, that’s where it stopped. The beginning was rather engaging. Unfortunately, it went from meh to ugh pretty quickly. It might be easier to break it down.
The Good
*The whole serial killer angle was a big draw
*I like the supernatural element that was behind a lot of the motives
*The casino game near the end was well played
*The use of masks was an interesting idea
The Bad
*Voorhees and Myers cross streets in front of Grim’s apartment complex was way too obvious. Further, on the next page, White compared Grim to Jason Voorhees. In addition, the stripper being named Gemma Jamerson was a *facepalm* moment. And, sadly, that isn’t the worst of it. The author makes pop culture references to Batman, movies, and so on; however, he suddenly changes the name of well known comic book characters, movie titles, and an actress. Why? I’m sorry, but that was just way too much for me.
*There were a lot of inconsistencies throughout the book. One of them was Grim’s Rosacea. On one page, he says that it appear a few years ago and doctors didn’t know why; however, on the very next page, he tells White that he has battled with it his whole life. Huh?
*Bruno’s cussing was too much. While I understand a character cussing like a sailor, when it interrupts the flow and halts the reader, it is way too much.
*As the book neared its conclusion, I found myself heavily reminded of The Dark Knight and Red Dragon by Thomas Harris. Grim, in a weird fashion, was an archetype of Bruce Wayne: his parents were taken from him, he lost someone dear to him, made a bargain to get revenge, and acted as a masked vigilante. And, if Grim was Bruce Wayne, Adam White was Harvey Dent. Along with the Batman theme, Grim’s comment about his girlfriend thinking he didn’t smile enough was just like Joker. As far as Red Dragon, the split personality/possession reminded me of Francis Dolarhyde.
*I didn’t like the pacing of the book.
All in all, I just didn’t like Grim. For me, it really wasn’t original and pulled too much from other sources. In addition, the grammar really tripped me up. I think, given some time and work, it might be better. Unfortunately, at this point, it felt like ripping teeth to finish the book, and it didn’t do it for me. Further, some of the violence seemed a little too over the top.
gigianne's review
5.0
The Adventures Within RABT Host
Grim blew me away, the whole entire time I was reading it I thought I was watching a movie. Especially with all the thriller and suspense parts, It was an easy read but it does feel like its a long book only because Mr. Spencer added so much detail and depth into the characters and pretty much everything else that would get your imagination going. I enjoyed it way more than I thought I would, Once you get about 15 pages into the book you sort of get glued to it or basically go into the book yourself.
Grim is one of those books that you can't put down and once you finish it you want to start it over again, the storyline was amazing. Anyone who loves to read Paranormal crime thrillers will be so intrigued by the synopsis.. Well more for what is in the pages, this was a first for me because I have never come across something like this. I would definitely chip in money just to get this to be made into a movie, and to see the characters come to life. It sure is movie worthy in my opinion. My favorite character would have to be Heath i have no Idea why but I liked him alot more maybe because he was a bit creepy. All in all it was a fantastic read which left me wanting more so that is always a great thing.
Grim blew me away, the whole entire time I was reading it I thought I was watching a movie. Especially with all the thriller and suspense parts, It was an easy read but it does feel like its a long book only because Mr. Spencer added so much detail and depth into the characters and pretty much everything else that would get your imagination going. I enjoyed it way more than I thought I would, Once you get about 15 pages into the book you sort of get glued to it or basically go into the book yourself.
Grim is one of those books that you can't put down and once you finish it you want to start it over again, the storyline was amazing. Anyone who loves to read Paranormal crime thrillers will be so intrigued by the synopsis.. Well more for what is in the pages, this was a first for me because I have never come across something like this. I would definitely chip in money just to get this to be made into a movie, and to see the characters come to life. It sure is movie worthy in my opinion. My favorite character would have to be Heath i have no Idea why but I liked him alot more maybe because he was a bit creepy. All in all it was a fantastic read which left me wanting more so that is always a great thing.
ctorretta's review
5.0
I finished this book and then went and immediately looked up Joseph Spencer. I am now a huge fan!! I mean, I had doubts about reading this, not because he’s a debut author and this is his first book, not because the face on the book kind of threw me off (although I totally love it after reading!) but because I’m not into the whole mystery/crime genre. It’s just not my thing. But this book, oh man! This book was fantastic!
There’s a lot of back and forth between the main characters so you get to see what everyone is thinking. This threw me off at first. Joseph Spencer has quite a few characters, but as I started to get to know them I was entranced. It also amazed me how visceral this was. I mean!! There is blood and guts everywhere!! And I do mean everywhere. But I really was taken aback by how this started. It’s raw, in your face, intense, so even while you’re trying to get to know everyone you’re still totally sucked in.
The characters are captivating. You can’t tell who is the villain and believe me there are multiple, but who is THE villain exactly?! At around 80% of the book I knew but I also knew that I was cheering for one of them. And isn’t that great? When an author can make you cheer for a villain?
So, Adam is amazing. He’s the White Knight of the city. Really reminded me of Harvey from Batman. This guy can do no wrong but in his mind it’s a lot to deal with. He’s such an in depth guy and yes he does have issues of his own, of which he’s trying desperately to work through. It’s his commitment to find his wife’s murderer that keeps him motivated. And the really cool thing, he’s so calm and collected that nobody sees how much he’s going through!
And then you have Heath. Wow… This character is intense. His story is amazing to read. There’s so much about him and as you get to know him you want him to win even though you’re not sure what side he’s on. But whatever side he’s on, I wanted to be on it! He has an interesting life but mainly because of the scars on his face and learning about those scars was another level to the book. Getting to know the real Heath behind the mask was the best part! The story behind him all has to do with Egyptian Mythology. I love how much is in here! There’s so much about Gods, Angels and Demons that again, I was entranced and I know my mythology. But there is stuff in here that I’ve never heard of before. And it was all enter-twined so well that it didn’t drag the book down at all. It brought another dimension to it that again was exciting and needed!
This guy can write!! I’m a huge fan now. Mysteries, I’m still iffy on, but this guy? Yeah, I can’t wait for book two to come out! But now I”ll read anything that Joseph Spencer writes!
Although this sort of reminded me of a comic book hero type of book, it was fabulous. Like horror and some blood and guts? This is definitely your thing!
There’s a lot of back and forth between the main characters so you get to see what everyone is thinking. This threw me off at first. Joseph Spencer has quite a few characters, but as I started to get to know them I was entranced. It also amazed me how visceral this was. I mean!! There is blood and guts everywhere!! And I do mean everywhere. But I really was taken aback by how this started. It’s raw, in your face, intense, so even while you’re trying to get to know everyone you’re still totally sucked in.
The characters are captivating. You can’t tell who is the villain and believe me there are multiple, but who is THE villain exactly?! At around 80% of the book I knew but I also knew that I was cheering for one of them. And isn’t that great? When an author can make you cheer for a villain?
So, Adam is amazing. He’s the White Knight of the city. Really reminded me of Harvey from Batman. This guy can do no wrong but in his mind it’s a lot to deal with. He’s such an in depth guy and yes he does have issues of his own, of which he’s trying desperately to work through. It’s his commitment to find his wife’s murderer that keeps him motivated. And the really cool thing, he’s so calm and collected that nobody sees how much he’s going through!
And then you have Heath. Wow… This character is intense. His story is amazing to read. There’s so much about him and as you get to know him you want him to win even though you’re not sure what side he’s on. But whatever side he’s on, I wanted to be on it! He has an interesting life but mainly because of the scars on his face and learning about those scars was another level to the book. Getting to know the real Heath behind the mask was the best part! The story behind him all has to do with Egyptian Mythology. I love how much is in here! There’s so much about Gods, Angels and Demons that again, I was entranced and I know my mythology. But there is stuff in here that I’ve never heard of before. And it was all enter-twined so well that it didn’t drag the book down at all. It brought another dimension to it that again was exciting and needed!
This guy can write!! I’m a huge fan now. Mysteries, I’m still iffy on, but this guy? Yeah, I can’t wait for book two to come out! But now I”ll read anything that Joseph Spencer writes!
Although this sort of reminded me of a comic book hero type of book, it was fabulous. Like horror and some blood and guts? This is definitely your thing!
More...