Max Hardy (2)

This one was a shocker!
Angels Bleed is the first book in a trilogy. All three are available in print, but Angels Bleed is the only one on audio at the moment.
D.I. John Saul is sent to a murder scene in a secluded country house. It turns out to be a set-up. An unknown caller gives Saul 24 hours to present the murderer of the body displayed. If he doesn't, a box wired to explode in 24 hours, will kill the unknown person contained in that box. Twisted, right? It gets more complicated.
Rebecca Angus has already confessed to the evil murder and is incarcerated in a psychiatric facility.
In alternating chapters, Rebecca's horrifying story is gradually revealed from her point of view while D.I. John Saul races against the clock to uncover the truth. Saul is a complex character, and his personal life is a mess. But it's going to get a whole lot worse.
Angels Bleed is a well executed crime / psychological thriller with excellent, well developed characters. It has lots of twists and turns and keeps you guessing all the way through. The ending was totally unexpected. It left me with more questions than answers though, and I am now desperately waiting for the audio release of Her Moons Denouement, book 2 in the series.
A word of warning: this is the sort of book that you have to go into with an open mind and a willingness to suspend disbelief.
It is sexually explicit containing scenes of voyeurism and sadomasochism. However, the scenes are all relevant to the story. Reading/Listening to a lot of thrillers and also erotic romances, I am not easily flustered. But there were a couple of scenes here that were stomach churning. If you can cope with the extremely dark side of human nature, however, then this is a great thriller. The author also publishes poetry, and that was apparent in his lyrical descriptions.

The narration was ok. It took me a while to get into it because it was difficult to tell the characters apart. I had to really focus on who was saying what. For Rebecca's part especially, I would have liked a more female sounding voice. But I know that's a personal preference, as some listeners like narrators who don't act but just narrate.
Alex More has a crystal clear Scottish tone that was easy to understand and pleasant to listen to. His pace was excellent. There were no issues with the production.

Not for the fainthearted, but well worthwhile if you enjoy dark, gritty and fast paced and if you can cope with some sordid scenes.
Thanks to Max Hardy and to Audiobookreviewer.com for providing me with a free copy of the audiobook in exchange for an unbiased review.… (plus d'informations)

ABR's original Angels Bleed audiobook review and many others can be found at Audiobook Reviewer.

This one was a shocker!

Angels Bleed is the first book in a trilogy. All three are available in print, but Angels Bleed is the only one on audio at the moment.

D.I. John Saul is sent to a murder scene in a secluded country house. It turns out to be a set-up. An unknown caller gives Saul 24 hours to present the murderer of the body displayed. If he doesn’t, a box wired to explode in 24 hours, will kill the unknown person contained in that box. Twisted, right? It gets more complicated. Rebecca Angus has already confessed to the evil murder and is incarcerated in a psychiatric facility.

In alternating chapters, Rebecca’s horrifying story is gradually revealed from her point of view while D.I. John Saul races against the clock to uncover the truth. Saul is a complex character, and his personal life is a mess. But it’s going to get a whole lot worse.

Angels Bleed is a well executed crime / psychological thriller with excellent, well developed characters. It has lots of twists and turns and keeps you guessing all the way through. The ending was totally unexpected. It left me with more questions than answers though, and I am now desperately waiting for the audio release of Her Moons Denouement, book 2 in the series.

A word of warning: this is the sort of book that you have to go into with an open mind and a willingness to suspend disbelief.

It is sexually explicit containing scenes of voyeurism and sadomasochism. However, the scenes are all relevant to the story. Reading/Listening to a lot of thrillers and also erotic romances, I am not easily flustered. But there were a couple of scenes here that were stomach churning. If you can cope with the extremely dark side of human nature, however, then this is a great thriller. The author also publishes poetry, and that was apparent in his lyrical descriptions.

The narration was ok. It took me a while to get into it because it was difficult to tell the characters apart. I had to really focus on who was saying what. For Rebecca’s part especially, I would have liked a more female sounding voice. But I know that’s a personal preference, as some listeners like narrators who don’t act but just narrate. Alex More has a crystal clear Scottish tone that was easy to understand and pleasant to listen to. His pace was excellent. There were no issues with the production.

Not for the fainthearted, but well worthwhile if you enjoy dark, gritty and fast paced and if you can cope with some sordid scenes.

Audiobook provided for review by the author.… (plus d'informations)