Book of Shadows [Hardcover]

Alexandra Sokoloff (Author)

Book Description

Release date: June 8, 2010

Homicide detective Adam Garrett is already a rising star in the Boston police department when he and his cynical partner, Carl Landauer, catch a horrifying case that could make their careers: the ritualistic murder of a wealthy college girl that appears to have Satanic elements. 

The partners make a quick arrest when all evidence points to another student, a troubled musician in a Goth band who was either dating or stalking the murdered girl. But Garrett’s case is turned upside down when beautiful, mysterious Tanith Cabarrus, a practicing witch from nearby Salem, walks into the homicide bureau and insists that the real perpetrator is still at large. Tanith claims to have had psychic visions that the killer has ritually sacrificed other teenagers in his attempts to summon a powerful, ancient demon.  

All Garrett's beliefs about the nature of reality will be tested as he is forced to team up with a woman he is fiercely attracted to but cannot trust, in a race to uncover a psychotic killer before he strikes again.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

At the start of Sokoloff's solid crime thriller, the discovery in a landfill of the mutilated corpse of Erin Carmody, the 18-year-old daughter of a prominent Boston businessman, presents homicide detective Adam Garrett with a particularly sensitive case. Marks on the body suggest the killer was conducting Satanic rituals. When Adam and his partner, Carl Landauer, question the prime suspect, Jason Moncrief, a college friend of Erin's, Jason chants the name of the demon Choronzon, then assaults Carl. Despite what appears to be an open-and-shut case, Adam can't discount the claim that Jason is innocent made by Tanith Cabarrus, an attractive witch who comes to police headquarters to report that she dreamed of other murders—and who believes that supernatural forces are behind the slaughter. As usual, Sokoloff (The Unseen) does a good job keeping the reader guessing whether a supernatural agency is really at work. (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

“A wonderfully dark thriller with amazing is-it-isn't-it suspense all the way to the end. Highly recommended.”---Lee Child

Praise for The Unseen

“Sokoloff keeps her story enticingly ambiguous, never clarifying until the climax whether the unfolding weirdness might be the result of the investigators’ psychic sensitivities or the mischievous handiwork of a human villain.”---Publishers Weekly 

“The suspense starts on page one, tightening the noose on every page with increasing velocity to a stunning, fearsome climax. Ms. Sokoloff has created a chilling, fantastic supernatural thriller that will have you fearing what you can’t see.”---Allison Brennan, New York Times bestselling author of Sudden Death

“A spine-tingling story that has every indication of becoming a horror classic . . . this is a chillingly dark look into the unknown. 4 1/2 stars.”---RT Book Reviews

“A masterful blend of fascinating fact and chilling fiction . . . an unsettling and highly entertaining horror/thriller read.”---BookBitch.com 

 

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press; First Edition edition (June 8, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312384718
• ISBN-13: 978-0312384715
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #730,542 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Alexandra Sokoloff is the Thriller Award-winning and Bram Stoker, Anthony, and Black Quill Award-nominated author of the supernatural thrillers THE HARROWING, THE PRICE, THE UNSEEN, BOOK OF SHADOWS, THE SHIFTERS, and THE SPACE BETWEEN, and the Amazon bestselling new FBI thriller series HUNTRESS MOON. The New York Times Book Review called her a "daughter of Mary Shelley", and her books "Some of the most original and freshly unnerving work in the genre."

As a screenwriter she has sold original horror and thriller scripts and adapted novels for numerous Hollywood studios. She has also written two non-fiction workbooks: SCREENWRITING TRICKS FOR AUTHORS and WRITING LOVE, based on her internationally acclaimed workshops and blog (ScreenwritingTricks.com), and has served on the Board of Directors of the WGA, west and the Board of the Mystery Writers of America.

Alex is a California native and a graduate of U.C. Berkeley, where she majored in theater and minored in everything Berkeley has a reputation for. In her spare time (!) she performs with Heather Graham's all-author Slush Pile Players, and dances - anywhere, any time, any style, with anyone. At all.

Learn more at http://alexandrasokoloff.com

Follow:

http://twitter.com/alexsokoloff
http://www.facebook.com/alexandra.sokoloff

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

(What's this?)

#17 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Horror

#98 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers > Mystery

#17 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Horror

#98 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers > Mystery

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Shadowy Elements = "The Book of Shadows" January 27, 2011

By Emily

Format:Hardcover

I'll admit--I haven't read a mystery in ages--and as I was gazing at my bookshelf Tuesday night desperately trying to find something quick to read--I stumbled across this book that I received as an ARC many moons ago at a public library convention. I read the back cover and thought...Witches? Grimoires? Murder?...that isn't my usual fare, but I wanted to try something different, so I grabbed it off the shelf and took it to the gym with me where I devoured the first 100 pages in an hour on the treadmill. I figure if I have to slave away at burning calories, I might as well enjoy myself. But I digress....
Book of Shadows puts detective Adam Garrett against the forces of evil, conjured up by a novice witch who unknowingly releases a power much greater than himself known as Choronzon. Garrett and his partner, Landauer, are investigating the murder of an upper class college student, Erin Carmody, when they discover satanic carvings and evidence of ritualistic crime associated with Satanism and Witchcraft. Although the two quickly have a suspect in custody, a local witch and psychic who is convinced the police have the wrong character enters the picture. Tanith is mysterious, sexy, and holds a number of answers to the information the detectives are seeking. The plot moves along quickly as another young woman goes missing and the detectives race against the clock (and Chorozon) to save her....or find her remains.
I found this book entertaining and fun to read. It was like biting into a great piece of cake that you want to savour for a long time and enjoy its sweetness. But it is cake--and that's ultimately what I took from it. A fun way to spend an afternoon and a bit of a guilty pleasure.
The sex scenes played out like a steamy (and raunchy) novel and were quite full of cliche's...and the ending was a bit cheesy for my taste as well and somewhat hard to believe. But all in all, I had fun with this one, and that's what it's ultimately about, right???

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Homicide, Witches,Demons, Detectives, Oh My! July 9, 2010

By W. Bentrim VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

Book of Shadows by Alexandra Sokoloff

A brutal murder becomes a paranormal nightmare for a pair of Boston homicide detectives. Adam Garrett finds himself unwilling to believe and yet unwilling to turn away from "wicked" help is solving some horrific murders.

Adam is a solid skeptic who struggles with inexplicable behavior. Garrett's internal strife between his burning ambition and his overwhelming need to serve justice provides a lot of the tension in this book. A high profile murder with an easy solution seems like an ideal situation to feed his ambition and sate his "perfect" girlfriends need for a status successful mate.

Landauer's gruff concern for Garrett's well being and his stalwart loyalty were laudable emotions aptly illustrated by the author. She did a great job at creating believable characters and seemingly rational explanations for irrational behaviors.

I've never been a fan of satanic evil fare but this book combines a solid mystery and main stream acceptable protagonists with the, oh too popular, paranormal strife in a highly readable format. I liked it.
I recommend the book.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Amazing Premise With a Less Than Stellar Execution January 11, 2011

By silenceiseverything VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

I totally should have loved this book. I mean, it's a mystery and I love mysteries. In fact, there's only one thing I love more than I love mysteries and that's everything and anything to do with witches. I'm serious. This all started with my anything but brief obsession with Charmed when I was 11 years old (and Charmed was in its first season). Ever since then I have been drawn to books about witches (whether it be fiction or non-fiction) and books about the occult. I just think that it's a fascinating subject. Book of Shadows was a mystery with a paranormal aspect to it. Lots of magic, lots of witches, and lots of suspense. Plus, I've read three of Alexandra Sokoloff's books; two I really loved and one that I thought was just okay. So, this book had "ME!" written all over it. Yet, I didn't really love it like I expected to.

Book of Shadows reminded me a bit of The Unseen in that it started a bit slow. It took about an hour to get through the first twenty pages because I kept falling asleep (although that could've been because I was just really, really, tired). It got better after that and I was intrigued 200 pages and then the book started dragging a bit again. It was just a bit repetitive, especially that whole thing with Garrett and Tanith. Garrett is stumped by something. He goes to Tanith for help. She explains the situation to him. He's skeptical and doesn't believe. He concludes that she's crazy. Now this is all fine and dandy...the first time. But then Garrett keeps going to Tanith for help and then keeps concluding she's crazy when she explains the unexplainable to him. This happened like three or four times. And that led me to conclude that Garrett...yeah he's a bit of an idiot...and annoying.

Besides the slogging and the idiocy of the main character, I did like Book of Shadows overall. It's pretty obvious that Sokoloff was meticulous in her research of the occult. Again that's a subject that has always fascinated me so my favorite parts were when Tanith (who oddly enough reminded me of Paige from Charmed with the whole dark hair, dark eyes, but pale as hell complexion thing that was described of Tanith) was describing the whole thing with the demon and what the triangle meant. I love crap like that.

So overall I think that Book of Shadows was an okay read. It wasn't my favorite book from this author (The Price was), but it wasn't my least favorite either. I think that the subject was great, but the execution was a bit less than stellar.

P.S. Kick-ass cover!