Blog Tour: The Chill of Night by James Hayman - REVIEW

Hi there!

Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers!

Today we welcome to the site day one of two for a blog tour via Pump Up You Book Promotions featuring the work of an up and coming author making a comfy home for himself in the Fiction Thriller genre.  With one remarkable work under his belt, this second installment in his "detective" series had many waiting with baited breath, hoping against hope it would be as good as the first.  Was it?  Let's just say that their waiting (mine included) was not in vain.  Today's blog tour guest and book of choice is....

The Chill of Night

by

James Hayman

Detective McCabe is BACK and this time there's a twist you won't soon forget.  We begin with an ambitious young lawyer by the name of Lainie Goff.  She is determined (one way or another) to make it to the top.  Partnership is what she seeks professionally, and if it takes one or two in a personal nature along the way to get there, so be it.  (Let that be a warning to the kiddies, this book is not for young readers!)  All seemed to be going well, the partnership was within reach, the celebrations and high living waiting in the wings...but as is more often than not, when things are going too well, you're long over due for a fall.  The fall of this woman is greater than most....rock bottom comes in the form of a brutal slaying and utter exposure to the world in more ways than one.  But who would do something this heinous?  Abby Quinn knows...or rather she knows WHO as opposed to why. 

It seems this young woman unwittingly witnessed the murder, an ace in the whole for police, right?  Not so much.  You see, Abby has a questionable history in regards to her mental stability and like the young boy that cried wolf, people are not very inclined to believe what she says especially if it tends toward the crazy side of things.  Will anyone listen in time to stop this killer from running rampant through the city?  Let's hope so since not only did Abby see the killer, but the killer saw Abby...making her a potential target on their "to-do" list.  McCabe and his partner Maggie are on the case...let's just hope they find Abby before the killer finds them all.

First and foremost, a brief WARNING....this is not for the little kiddos.  There are sexual references both in relation to crimes committed and during personal moments in the story...I wouldn't really want a younger reader happening upon these scenes personally, so just be forewarned.  Now on to my thoughts....

I had the chance to read the author's first novel in this series, The Cutting, in conjunction with a blog tour earlier this year.  (My review, in case you're curious.)  It was to say the least a thrilling ride and a welcome introduction to McCabe's character. With a grade A experience the first time around, my expectations were set fairly high for the next installment as was my anticipation of it's release.  As soon as I saw it mentioned on the Pump Up Your Book Promotions site, I jumped at the chance to play host on the tour.  Lucky me, I was just in time and so the adventure back into this world of darkness and mystery began.

Now I did enjoy the book and we'll get to that, but let's dispense with my one criticism first.  I was a tad disappointed in the lack of connection built between the baddies and the reader.  Okay, so I know that sounds odd, but let me explain.  In book one, it alternated viewpoints between chapters here and there...that is to say a few sections would be all McCabe and the ongoing search/investigation, then one chapter would be dedicated to what was happening with the victim or their abductor.  It allowed you to get inside their heads a bit more without revealing their actual identity (a major feat indeed).  This book, we really only get that insight once in the last 50 odd pages of the book, and it's really only a brief moment of plotting.  Call me crazy (okay, not really...don't want an influx of comments or emails saying that now), but I liked that writing trick and it was pulled off quite well so I had hoped for some version of it to be carried on.  *SIGH*  Alas, it was not....such is writer's privilege.  Moving on....

Author James Hayman is showing a knack for creating characters...with flaws.  Now I mean this in a good way...they are human, realistic, can even be TOO human at times.  How so?  Well, the main victim (I said main...doesn't mean there are or are not additional victims, have to read it to find out...hehe) has a rather dark past.  Though it's not uncommon in today's world (which is HIGHLY unfortunate), it was so "real" I almost had to stop reading for a few pages.  Seriously.  That realism carries on in his descriptions of future events (for better or worse) as well as when seeing through various characters eyes.  It's easy to slip into McCabe's character too...okay that sounded creepy on too many levels, but what I mean is he's an "every man"; easy to relate to both in actions and thoughts for both male and female (*raises hand*) readers...although his photographic memory is far superior to anything my mind can do.  Imagine being able to piece together a situation from so many odd years ago in crisp clear detail, all from memory.  (Second thought...that might not be handy in a few occasions, but overall I still think it's appealing.)

Story wise....surmise it to say that you won't know where to turn for the answer to the over lording question of "who done it".  The answer is there...then it's not.  It pops back up...and then disappears.  The moment you think you have it figured out, nope...think again.  Frustrating?  Not in the least.  It keeps it fresh.  It keeps it real.  It keeps readers entertained and turning pages to devour the story until finally uncovering the truth.  I mean do you really prefer a book that hands you the ending and says...here, you do something with it.  I think not.  Give me a bit of mystery, a bit of thinking to do...just not so much that I need to be an actual detective to follow along, and this series strikes a perfect note in that vein. 

For those of you out there that haven't read the first installment (though I suggest you do...it was good!), you won't be entirely lost should you choose to pick this one up all by it's lonesome (see that....it would be lonesome if it didn't have it's bookish partner in crime....hehe).  It certainly can stand on it's own, though a few of the prior case references will lose some meaning, it doesn't make or break for following this story...certainly a plus when being introduced to a new-to-you author.  Recommended reading for fans of mysteries, thrillers, and crime fiction in general; think along the lines of the works from John Sanford or Jeffrey Deaver....

Special thanks to Dorothy at Pump Up Your Book Promotions and author James Hayman for the ARC for review.  (THANKS!)  For more information on this tour and future ones, visit the promotion site or follow along on Twitter!  To see what the author is up to next, check out his site.  For a sneak peek at chapter one of this book, simply click on the title of the book near the top of this post and it will link you over to the author's site for a quick read....

Today, a review of the featured title.  Tomorrow, an interview with the man himself, author James Hayman, about this, about that, and a little insight into the next installment...and there just might be a chance to win involved there too...ya never know, I'm sneaky like that.  Stop by tomorrow to check it out!

Until next time...happy reading!