Cody McFadyen

Este es el tipo de libros que nos hace a los lectores llegar a ser fanáticos de este género, tiene todo lo que debe contener una buena novela negra, una serie policiaca y un thriller de crímenes sin parangón.

Una protagonista agente del FBI que tiene su historia personal fuerte, amarga, dolorosa y de pesadilla, pero que agradezco a McFadyen que a pesar de tener los ingredientes que tienen estos personajes no la ha presentado como un ser perdido, amargado, solitario y además alcohólico o show more drogadicto, sino más bien como una mujer fuerte, decidida a enfrentar su historia y a agarrar el toro por los cuernos, inteligente, fuerte, amable y vulnerable, creo que nunca me había topado con un personaje tan bien definido.

Tiene un asesino en serie de esos que venden, dignos de este género, inteligente, aterrador, frío, un ser horrible capaz de meterle miedo al cuerpo tanto de los actores del libro como de nosotros los lectores.

Un Thriller que no da pausa ni respiro y si bien en mi caso no hubo grandes sorpresas eso no lo ha hecho merecer menos.

En pocas palabras este es un libro digno representante del género, de los que atrapan, no te dan tregua, te quitan el aliento y te mantiene con los pelos de punta.

No es solo Smoky, nuestra protagonista, es cada uno de los personajes que se presentan en esta historia, los miembros del equipo, sus familiares e incluso las víctimas tienen un papel importante, fuerte, bien definido.

El estilo narrativo es increíblemente bueno, con un ritmo sin prisa pero sin pausa, una vez que comienzas a leer es imposible soltarlo.

Decir que lo recomiendo es poco, para todos los que somos amantes de este género, este es uno de esos libros que se agradecen y que se exige a los editores que no tarden en traducir y publicar la serie completa. show less

This is the first book by McFadyen for me and I was gripped from the very beginning. I loved the characters that he has created and felt I got to know them and understood what was going on in their heads. Smoky, the main character has a traumatic background with some harrowing history but is dealing with her demons the best she can. Murders are being committed in their hundreds and the only link is that all the victims had a dark secret that they had shared with someone. How the killer show more accesses this information is a mystery that Smoky needs to unravel. Yet she has a secret that she’s never told to anyone before, will this hinder or aid her search for the murderer? When the killer’s methods are described it makes for cringing reading. I felt the pain and fear of the victims, and their sense of helplessness. There is also a strong religious theme running through this storyline that is sure to spark many discussions. This is a tale of love, loss, pain and grief, with a strong sense of endurance and hope. show less

I've listened to six audio books so far this year, and Shadow Man, by Cody McFadyen, proved itself to be the best of the lot. Shadow Man is exactly the kind of book I used to read a lot when I worked in the Sahara Desert, one of those crime thrillers that really does focus on giving you a thrill every few pages. It's not the kind of reading that I do much of these days (having been back in Houston for the past five years) but I have learned that books like this one are the best kind to be show more listening to at 5:30 in the morning when I head to work and in the rush hour traffic that I face on the way home. My mind doesn't seem to drift on one of these.

The book concerns a female FBI agent who has had her husband and daughter killed by a serial killer who came into her home specifically because she works for the Bureau. Although she managed to escape death, Agent Smoky Barrett ended up being scarred and disfigured by the killer in the process. Understandably, she ends up being suicidal and is unfit to return to work in the early chapters of the book. It's only when a second serial killer commits a crime as horrible as the one that took her family that Barrett feels drawn back to her job. When she finds out that this particular crime was committed specifically to get her attention and to taunt her back to work she has no choice but to lead the hunt for him.

I don't want to give away any more of the plot because there are numerous shockers, surprises and twists throughout the book. I will warn any potential readers or listeners that this novel is very graphic in the way that it describes crimes and what happens to the victims, some of them young children. You probably already can tell whether or not you would "enjoy" this one.

Congratulations to Kate Reading who reads this eleven disc audio book (13 hours, 16 minutes long) for making the various characters so alive and memorable. If Shadow Man had not been made available as an audio book I would never have touched it. But as an audio book, it's a damn fine listen.

Rated at: 4.0 show less

It seems like ages since we last caught up with FBI agent Smoky Barrett & her team but if you thought the author was going to ease you back into their lives, think again.

As the book opens, a very pregnant Smoky & her violent crimes unit travel to a suburb north of Denver where a once sleepy little cul-de-sac now resembles something out of a horror movie. Three houses, three dead families. The killer also left a couple things for Smoky….a bloody message and, well, that would be telling. show more
What immediately follows will take your breath away & quite possibly have you checking the locks on your doors. The hits just keep on coming as it becomes clear a complex, insidious plan has been in the works for years. Those responsible have a simple goal. They just want you to tell the truth.

I was a quarter of the way through before my heart rate returned to normal. Then the story settles down as Smoky, Alan, Callie & James try to deal with the trauma they’ve endured. There is a mountain of information to sift through with tentacles that stretch in surprising directions. Real life events of the past 30 years figure into the plot which adds an uneasy truth to the story.

This entry has a different, less linear format than previous books in the series. We spend the middle section largely in Smoky’s head as she revisits old cases, her personal history & everything she knows about serial killers. The author has obviously done extensive research on the subject & doesn’t shy away from providing the gory details.

Hence, the following warning. This is a dark, disturbing read full of graphic violence, coarse language & sexual depravity. More than once it shoved me way outside my comfort zone & I wouldn’t recommend it for those with triggers in these areas. The second half follows a more familiar path as the investigative process takes over & picks up speed. I have to give Mr. McFadyen credit. Despite many scenes that made me squirm, I kept reading because I HAD to know how it would all play out. The plot is incredibly intricate & full of WTF moments. But nothing beats the unmasking of one particular character & I freely admit my delicate little jaw did a runner as I grasped what I’d just read.

Do people like this exist? God, I hope not. The great irony is that this tendency to deny the presence of evil in the world is exactly what the killers’ message is all about.

But in the end, after so much darkness, there is hope beaming out of the final pages. Hope for Smoky & for us as it’s clear her story isn’t finished. Perhaps the author (whose own life is a mystery in itself) isn’t done with her yet. show less