There’s no safety in numbers . . .

Eve Singer needs death. With her career as a TV crime reporter flagging, she’ll do anything to satisfy her ghoulish audience.

The killer needs death too. He even advertises his macabre public performances, where he hopes to show the whole world the beauty of dying.

When he contacts Eve, she welcomes the chance to be first with the news from every gory scene. Until she realizes that the killer has two obsessions.

One is public murder.

And the other is her . . .

This is my first experience reading a book by Belinda Bauer and what a great read it is. I adored her writing style. Keeping it very tense and chilling, but including some real tongue in the cheek humor, which complemented the story beautifully.

In no way is this your average, normal serial killer, if there is such a thing, but the killer likes a stage, wants people to watch and see the atrocities, killings created.

Eve Singer is a brilliant character. Forced to move back home when her father is deteriorating with Dementia. There are some very sweet and moving moments in these scenes and once again the genius humor portrays. In no way laughing at the condition, but the reality of what it must be like living under those circumstances.

It kept me very alert and intrigued. I thought it was a shift from a mainstream psychological thriller or crime fiction, just a bit different and quirky. Extremely clever writing, cleverly plotted and you get a real feel for the characters. A real intriguing, suspenseful page turner.

Certainly recommended! I enjoyed it - A good 4* ( )

The Beautiful Dead is a fast paced thriller about the hunt for a serial killer in the days leading up to Christmas. He first appears on December first and murders a young woman who is working in her office alone on a Saturday. He doesn’t target a specific gender or age but does treat all of his killings as artwork. He calls them “Exhibitions” and sets out flyers advertising them in advance.

His attention is taken by Eve Singer a television reporter who he sees as simpatico and he draws her into his sphere. At first she is quite flattered by his attention and the benefit to her career, but she soon realizes that the last thing she wants is to be his enabler. Angered by her lack of attention he kidnaps her father who is afflicted with Early Onset Alzheimer’s and threatens to kill him if she doesn’t sacrifice herself to him instead.

As always Belinda Bauer delivers a chilling, scary story that she enhances with touches of humour and some strong characters. I am getting a little tired of serial killers who are so clever that they are always a step ahead of their pursuers for about 250 pages but this seems to be the norm for serial killer stories. If you haven’t read this author before I strongly recommend that you begin with Blacklands which is fantastic. ( )

SWEDISH REVIEW

Jag måste erkänna att jag hade helt fel bild av Eve Singer innan jag började läsa denna bok. Jag såg framför mig en kallhamrad reporter som skulle göra allting för sin karriär. Men Eve är så mycket mer än det. Hon är inte en av blodtörstig reporter som är beredd att kliva över lik för att nå framgångar. Faktum är att hon har problem med blod och det märks väldigt tidigt i denna bok då när läsaren för första fången möter henne så kräks hon pga. av att scenen hon precis har sett. Men hon måste göra ett bra jobb, måste tillfredsställa sin chefs behov av sensationer för att få behålla jobbet. För hon måste ha jobbet. Hemma har hon sin sjuka far, vem ska ta hand om honom om hon mister jobbet och sin inkomst?

Tyvärr så får hon stora problem på halsen när en seriemördare fastnar för henne och beslutar sig för att kontakta henne varje gång han planerar att döda någon. Så hon ställs inför ett dilemma informera sin chef om denna kontakt eller ej. Men ju mer tiden går desto säkrare blir hon att hon måste kontakta polisen, innan mördaren ger sig på henne.

De vackra döda är en spännande thriller, men det är också en bok om relationer. Eve Singer kämpar varje dag med att ta hand om sin sjuka far, samtidigt som hon måste göra ett bra jobb. Runt omkring henne finns det de som vill hjälpa henne, om hon bara släpper in dem i livet. Men hon tar på sig så mycket. Och så får hon ett videoklipp skickat till sig som förändrar hela hennes liv. Hur ska hon tackla faktumet att en mördare verkar ha blivit besatt av henne? Kan hon verkligen gå så långt att tjäna på en seriemördares besatthet av henne?

Boken är fantastiskt bra och jag ser fram emot att läsa fler böcker av Belinda Bauer och eftersom detta är den första jag har läst av henne så har jag en hel del kvar att läsa!

Tack till Modernista för recensionsexemplaret!

ENGLISH REVIEW

I have to admit that I had a completely wrong picture of Eve Singer before I started reading this book. I saw in front of me a cold-hearted reporter who would do everything for her career. But Eve is so much more than that. She is not a bloodthirsty reporter who is prepared to step over corpses to achieve success. In fact, she has a problem with blood and very early in this book is she vomiting because of the scene she just saw. But she has to do a good job, must satisfy her boss's need for sensations to keep the job. Because she must have the job. At home, she has a sick father and who will take care of him if she loses her job and income?

Unfortunately, she gets into a big problem when a serial killer gets obsessed with her and decides to contact her every time he plans to kill someone. So she faces a dilemma, informing her boss about this contact or not. But the more time goes, the surer she becomes that she has to contact the police before the killer gets on her.

The Beautiful Dead is an impressive thriller, but it's also a book about relationships. Eve Singer struggles every day to take care of her sick father while doing a good job. Around Eve are the people who want to help her if she just lets them into her life. But she takes on so much. And then she gets a video sent to herself that changes her entire life. How will she tackle the fact that a murderer seems to have become obsessed with her? Can she really go so far that she would earn money on a serial killers obsession of her?

The book is fantastic and I look forward to reading more books by Belinda Bauer and since this is the first one I have read of her I have a lot to read!

Thanks to Modernista for the review copy! ( )

It begins with the stabbing of a woman who made the mistake of working on a Saturday when her office building was deserted...except, that is, for a verse-spouting serial killer. First to arrive on the scene of the murder is Eve Singer, who works for one of London’s TV news networks specializing in “if it bleeds it leads” reporting. I didn’t particularly care much for Eve. She was a member of the press that we have far too much of today. Get the story, report the story...never mind who the story might hurt. Her news agency didn't have many morals either. Eve’s editor kept threating to replace her with a younger, (Eve is a ripe old 30), reporter...preferably a blond. The killer welcomes Eve’s publicity at first...but that soon changes. As the murders...each staged as an “exhibition” ...mount up, the killer’s game with the police and Eve grows more suspenseful. The reader begins to suspect we are going to be handed another predictable ending...again we are wrong. ( )

Ongelooflijk spannende thriller - ook voor iemand die niet gek is op het genre -. Knappe pen, warme tekening van de Londense buurt, wervelend verteld. Kortom een aanrader! ( )