Title: Chasing the Boogeyman
Author: Richard Chizmar
Publisher: Gallery Books
Release Date: August 17, 2021
The New York Times best-selling coauthor of Gwendy’s Button Box brings his signature “thrilling, page-turning” (Michael Koryta, author of How It Happened) prose to this story of small-town evil that combines the storytelling of Stephen King with the true-crime suspense of Michelle McNamara.
In the summer of 1988, the mutilated bodies of several missing girls begin to turn up in a small Maryland town. The grisly evidence leads police to the terrifying assumption that a serial killer is on the loose in the quiet suburb. But soon a rumor begins to spread that the evil stalking local teens is not entirely human. Law enforcement, as well as members of the FBI, are certain that the killer is a living, breathing madman - and he’s playing games with them. For a once peaceful community trapped in the depths of paranoia and suspicion, it feels like a nightmare that will never end.
Recent college graduate Richard Chizmar returns to his hometown just as a curfew is enacted and a neighborhood watch is formed. In the midst of preparing for his wedding and embarking on a writing career, he soon finds himself thrust into the real-life horror story. Inspired by the terrifying events, Richard writes a personal account of the serial killer’s reign of terror, unaware that these events will continue to haunt him for years to come.
A clever, terrifying, and heartrending work of metafiction, Chasing the Boogeyman is the ultimate marriage between horror fiction and true crime. Chizmar’s “brilliant...absolutely fascinating, totally compelling, and immediately poignant” (C.J. Tudor, New York Times best-selling author) writing is on full display in this truly unique novel that will haunt you long after you hear the final moments.
What a great way to write a book!
Richard Chizmar is starting his career as a writer. He moves back to his childhood home with his parents in the small town of Edgewood after finishing college. He is saving money for his wedding to his high school sweetheart.
Just before he moves back, a young teenager is found strangled near her home. The police get quickly involved and start trying to piece together the crime. Then another young teenager goes missing. The town is shocked. Something like this has never happened before. Who is doing this? What kind of monster? The Boogeyman?
Young Rich can't leave it alone. He and his friend, Carly Allbright start investigating the case. He knows the culprit has to be near. But it is safe? Someone is calling his home and hanging up. Then, he feels like someone is following him. Lastly, he believes the murderer is seeking him out. But why?
Excellent! It had me entertained from beginning to end. The story felt so real!
The author makes you believe everything he is saying happened way back when he was a young man fresh out of college. A serial killer is on the loose and Ric is in the middle of it.
Cliffhanger: No
5/5 Fangs
A complimentary copy was provided by Gallery Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
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