I am the Night by Ethan Cross
Originally Published 2011 as The Shepherd
Shepherd Thriller #1 or Ackerman Thriller #1

Graphic, gritty and gruesome some of the opening scenes had me cringing and thinking about not continuing the story BUT I chose to keep going even though I wondered how Ackerman could do the things he did. I did eventually find out a bit about Francis Ackerman Jr. but am sure there is more to be learned in future books. Then there was Marcus Williams – a man that seemed the complete opposite of Ackerman. Why are they in the same book and what purpose, if anything, will their meeting up have. Once I got into the story I couldn’t put it down and have to say I am eager to tackle book two if/when I find a copy to read.

What I liked:
* The writing: felt like I was there within the story
* The twists and turns – there were many
* That I was surprised at the end of the story – I tend to read the end before I reach the last page and was still surprised
* Marcus: a good man that carried a heavy weight
* Ackerman: in spite of how wicked he was he grew on me and I really want to see what will happen to him as the series progresses.
* That though this is a serial killer story it is not like most of its genre
* That I will be thinking about this story for quite a while.

What I did not like:
* Ackerman’s father – a heinous creature even more evil than his son
* That so many suffered and lost their lives…painfully

Did I enjoy this book? In the end I really did…in spite of the cringing and wanting to look through my fingers at times
Would I read more by this author/in this series? Definitely

Thank you to NetGalley and Head of Zeus-Aria for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars ( )

Buchinfo
Ich bin die Nacht - Ethan Cross
Taschenbuch - 400 Seiten - ISBN-13: 978-3404169238
Verlag: Bastei Lübbe - Erschienen: 20. Dezember 2013 - EUR 9,99
Kurzbeschreibung
Mein Name ist Francis Ackerman junior. Ich bin das, was man gemeinhin einen Serienkiller nennt. Doch ich töte nicht wahllos, und jedes meiner Opfer bekommt eine faire Chance, denn ich fordere es zu einem Spiel heraus. Wer gewinnt, überlebt. Ich habe noch nie verloren. Die meisten Menschen werden mich verabscheuen. Einige, die mir ähnlich sind, werden mich verehren. Aber alle, alle werden sich an mich erinnern. Mein Name ist Francis Ackerman junior. Ich bin die Nacht, und ich möchte ein Spiel mit Ihnen spielen.
Bewertung
Mich hat der Thriller richtig gepackt. Gleich von der ersten Seite an kommt Spannung auf und man wird auch gleich ins Geschehen geworfen, ohne sich erst noch durch 100 Seiten zu kämpfen müssen, bevor es richtig los geht. Das gefällt mir!
Der Schreibstil von Ethan Cross ist sehr flüssig und fesselnd. Ich habe das Buch innerhalb kürzester Zeit gelesen, da ich unbedingt wissen musste, wie das Ganze ausgeht und da kann ich nur so viel verraten, dass man da nie von alleine drauf kommt und so etwas vermuten würde. ( )

Read this book in one day.
On the one hand that's a good sign, for it was interesting enough to keep me readingwanting to know how the story ended.
On the other hand, reading it till the end I was left with a sense of disappointment. The end was not what I had hoped for, felt like the author was stuck and fabricated an ending just to get out of the story. ( )

The Shepherd. Ethan Cross. 2011. There was not enough plot or character development this novel to keep me interested. I had high hopes for a really good serial murder book like Silence of the Lambs, I get bored with the lack of anything but gruesome violence. I didn’t find it “intense” or “superbly crafted.” I think I tried to read a prequel to this that didn’t work either ( )

In Cross’ mystery novel, ex-cop Marcus Williams is familiar with the pain of a broken career and the feeling of overwhelming guilt. But with notorious serial killer Francis Ackerman makes Marcus’s Colorado town his own personal playground, Marcus puts his feelings aside and teams with the local sheriff to put an end to the crime spree. But soon Marcus finds himself on the other side of the sheriff and the lines between good and bad become blurred. Tapping into his darkest instincts, Marcus moves forward determined to end the nightmare even if it costs him everything.

A fast-paced hard to put down read. ( )