I'm Hooked

This DS Nathan Cody guy is so frustratingly complex... Yet it's a frustration that's become a tractor beam for my imagination. CAUTION... DO NOT START THIS SERIES ANYWHERE OTHER THAN BOOK 1 - "A Tapping At My Door". While the clever whodunnit stands alone in this serial killer puzzle, the inner workings of Cody demand the setup in the first book. And those workings have captured me enough to wait impatiently for April of 2018 when I expect the next DS Cody will drop from David Jackson's keypad to my downloader.

Oh, BTW, this ain't a book for the feint of heart. Yep, it gets brutal. Not to worry, there's always another "Murder She Wrote" somewhere that you can buy if you feel a need for a warm murder tale :-)

Oh yeah, I can't imagine this ensemble from any lips but Jonathan Keeble's. He nails it.

13 people found this helpful

Scared me witless!!

I love Nathan Cody - he is someone I wish I knew personally. Great police officer, honest, lovable. His tormentors are terrifying and I am not kidding around. I listen on my way to/from work and had to pause the book a couple of times to take it in. Am happy it wasn't dark when I got to those parts! The narrator is top notch and I could understand every single word! He brings all the characters to life. Please hurry with the next installment!

9 people found this helpful

Great book!

It was a great book to listen to. I really enjoy the characters and the follow on from the previous book in the series. There is good dialogue and the story is engaging. I got very excited to get in the car to continue listening. I highly recommend it. If you haven't read or listened to the first book you should check that out first. The performance was spectacular. One of the best.

6 people found this helpful

Drags in the Middle

The first DS Nathan Code book was a winner as far as I was concerned. There was horror and a touch of humor and the relationships between the characters was intriguing. However, DS Cody's second outing is not nearly as interesting.

It began with a brutal murder on the grounds of a Cathedral in Liverpool. Is it a one off or part of a future series? Did the killer know the victim or pick her out at random? And the more that Cody learns about the victim, the less likely it seems that someone would choose her as a murder victim.

Then things slow down and get far less interesting..Too much time is spent on the relationship between Cody and his former girlfiend who appears to be getting on with her life. However she still seems to be hung up on Cody. Then there is her fiance who is handsome, well off and devoted. Add to that some unlikely suspects and Cody's boss whose attitude toward Cody has not been explained. But the excitement and the sense of threat that filled A Tapping at My Door is missing. There was one scene in Tapping in a pub where Cody and his partner had to face off against some dangerous thugs that hated cops that I thought was nothing short of brilliant. There are no moments like that in this book.

Things do pick up at the end but it's too late to save the book in my opinion. I'll read the next one but I will be more wary about picking it up.

4 people found this helpful

Great book and awesome narration..

I love the storyline of these books but I just hate the ongoing story about the clowns and phone calls to Nathan Cody. I’m good with the serial killer so I don’t need to read about the hero’s failing mental health. At only 42% I was wondering if I was even going to finish this book. If it weren’t for the narration I probably wouldn’t have. I knew, however, if this was still a problem at the end of this book I wouldn’t be reading any more from this author.

At 71% we finished with another long episode of Cody and the clowns. They keep scaring him witless and he can’t even concentrate at work. He’s even alienated Megan. She didn’t want a thing to do with him.

I mean, really? Who wants a hero with mental problems? First in A Tapping at My Door and now it continues in this book, with no end in sight? As much as I enjoyed the serial killer stories in these two books I’m completely done. I’ll make up my own ending, rather than think about Cody being on the verge of insanity in every book, and not knowing when the next part of the story is going to be published.

I’m rating this book on the serial killer part ONLY. The latter part of this review was my own personal rant about the lousy way this was written, as far as Cody was concerned.

The story was very good and very exciting and I love that you have no idea who the killer is until near the end. And throughout the book I felt so sorry for him. It was so hard to read his story and I could see why his head was so screwed up. What a dysfunctional family that was.

He killed three women, all the while killing one woman in particular, but never having the nerve to kill THAT one. The solving of the case was taken away from with Cody’s mental problems.

As to the narration: Phenomenal. Jonathan Keeble gets better with every book he reads. His emotions are just incredible.

3 people found this helpful

Looking forward to Book three

Would you listen to Hope to Die again? Why?

No, it was fun, not deep.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Not the edge of my seat, but interesting enough to listen to in one day.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Send in the Clowns

Any additional comments?

Speaking of clowns, if we get book three, I hope he winds up this story line.

3 people found this helpful

No Book 3 ?

Can't believe there is no book 3. Maybe one coming? A wonderful gripping story with a brilliant narrator. If Jonathan Keeble reads them I'll listen to them. :)

2 people found this helpful

4

This turned out to be the thinking
detective vs the thinking suspect.
Lots of other stuff going on but
the author keeps us focused on
outsmarting the criminal. This
volume follows the first in series
volume I just read. I think reading these two in order is a big
help in making vol 2 such a really
good listen. Now I'm impatient for vol. 3. This work is good and it has the potential to be really, really good. Good author and
fine narrator. :-)

1 person found this helpful

Great grisly fun!

What about Jonathan Keeble’s performance did you like?

Jonathan Keeble gives a powerfully dramatic reading which flirts with going over the top but never does. I was quite swept away by his work. Will be looking for his name again.

Any additional comments?

David Jackson is a clever writer that knows how to hook the reader into his plot quickly. Detective Nathan Cody is deeply damaged by the horrible events of the previous book, where he was tortured by clowns, yes clowns, who also murdered his partner and were never caught. Jackson makes it all work in a creepy funhouse Steven King way. The additional murder case Cody struggles through is eventually resolved (I didn't guess the plot twist, good for Jackson) but killer clowns continue to stalk and torment him right through the last page. Ends with a cliffhanger that ensures fans will be waiting with baited breath for the next installment. Great, grisly fun!

1 person found this helpful

I Want More DS Cody!

Would you listen to Hope to Die again? Why?

Yes. I want to listen to hear more clues about the crimes and I like the suspense and build up of the story

What did you like best about this story?

I like that I figured out who the killer was and I liked the introduction of Grace..she was funny and a little sad

Which scene was your favorite?

When DS Cody talked the killer out of killing his Mom

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I was sad at the end because DS Cody is still so unhappy and alone

Any additional comments?

The narration is superb! Hurry and write the next installment? Will it have a happy ending for DS Cody? Will be get back with Megan or Devan? Can't wait!

1 person found this helpful