Customer Reviews

Fear Itself : A Novel

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"There is nothing to fear but fear itself, I'm fear itself," whispers the killer.

Dorie Bell is afraid. A year ago she attended a phobia disorders convention in Las Vegas, and since then three other attendees have died...all by ways they feared the most.

FBI agent E.L. Pender has decided to hang up his holster, until he receives the letter from Dorie explaining her fear of what has happened, and that she fears she will be the next victim. Pender begins looking into the deaths of the three victims and questions everything surrounding them, such as...How can a man with a fear of heights jump 19 floors? How does a woman with a fear of blood cut her own wrists in her bathtub? Why would a woman with a fear of suffocation drown herself, and why would no water be found in her lungs?
Pender knows someone, somewhere with a connection to the victims is out there, seeking them out, and preying on their worst fears. Can Pender stop the madman, or will Dorie be the next victim?

`Fear Itself' is a fast-paced, shock packed, jolts at every turn of the page thriller that will grab hold and not let go. The creepy plot unfolds on page one, and only gets creepier and more suspenseful with every turn of the page. The killer is twisted and clever, and one of the more original villans in recent novels. The only problem is that the killer's identity is known early on, and while it doesn't ruin the rest of the novel, it would have made a nice additional shock if revealed at the explosive climax.

Jonathan Nasaw is making a name for himself in the thriller genre writing scary, twisted, fast-paced thrillers, and with this follow-up to his best-selling novel `The Girls He Adored' he proves he is going to be around a long time.

A great read for thriller fans!

Nick Gonnella

This novel is another spin on the popular genre of serial killer tales.

Simon is a particularly malicious individual, in search of the ultimate adrenalin high. He discovers early in his sadistic career, that by inducing fear in his victims, the rush is the best he can attain. Mixing drugs and torture, he has found the perfect combination. Simon is a smart killer, sophisticated, and plans his fear games to the last detail. He is also rich and can spend full time exploring this deadly activity.

Enter Special Agent Pender, a large, witty and terribly dressed veteran of the FBI on the verge of his retirement. Pender is a likable fellow - he drinks too much, a live-alone divorcee, at the end of a long career. But appearances can be deceiving because this roly-poly officer of the law has been chasing serial killers for twenty years and knows how they think.

Dorie Bell is a middle-aged artist with an unusual phobia - prosoponophobia, fear of masks. Simon has her in his reptilian sights and when she least expects it, he strikes and his malevolent activities begin.

Nasaw writes his descriptions realistically and effortlessly. He's a visual writer, placing the reader directly into his scenes. As you turn the pages of this novel, the images of Simon's sadistic games appear before your eyes - Nasaw is a fly-on-the-wall- writer, which makes this kind of story that much more enjoyable.

As a fan of this genre, I'm intrigued how so many good writers out there can continue to come up with new spins on the ways and methods of the serial killer; Nasaw certainly ranks with the best of them. He seems confident with this genre and writes it superbly well.

"Fear Itself," by Jonathan Nasaw, stands out from other serial killer novels. Nasaw combines whimsical humor and terror expertly, without either element throwing the novel out of balance. His villain is an incredibly cold and malicious individual; yet, Nasaw fleshes out the murderer's personality so that we understand how he became so monstrous. All of this is packaged in a fast-moving, incredibly exciting and suspenseful story.

An unknown assailant is targeting a group of people who suffer from specific phobia disorders (fear of heights, snakes, drowning and masks are some examples). The killer makes the murders appear to be suicides, but one individual, a phobic herself named Dorrie Bell, suspects that these were no suicides. For example, an acrophobic (a person who fears high places) apparently jumped out of a twelfth-story window. Dorrie doesn't buy it.

Two unlikely candidates decide to help Dorrie find the out the truth. One is E. L. Pender, an overweight, fifty-six year old Special Agent of the FBI. Although Pender is on the brink of retirement, he cannot resist getting involved in one more case. The other is Linda Abruzzi, a thirty-five year old woman with a disability. Abruzzi stubbornly refuses to leave the FBI, even though her superiors have made it clear that they no longer value her services.

Abruzzi and Pender use their considerable skills to track their adversary, who is clever, ruthless and very dangerous. Nasaw ratchets up the tension almost unbearably as the book progresses. The scenes in which the killer confronts the phobics with what they fear most are not for the faint-hearted.

The dialogue and plotting in "Fear Itself" is terrific and the novel is perfectly paced. Nasaw depicts all of the characters, both major and minor, with care and they all contribute to the complex story. The author provides fascinating background information on phobia disorders, which helps the reader to understand and empathize with the plight of the victims. If you have a strong stomach, if you like nasty villains, and if enjoy a dose of both humor and horror with your suspense, pick up "Fear Itself." Just be sure to leave the light on.

Johnathan Nasaw has done it again. I stumbled upon his Girls He Adored quite by accident and absolute went nuts. When Fear Itself came out I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. I was not disappointed. By the time the last 3 chapters came around I had palpitations and had to remind myself to breath. I couldn't read fast enough and yet wanted to slow down to prolong finishing because I didn't want it to end. Agent Pender is wonderful and I hope we are treated to more of him in the future. He's one of the most believeable characters out there. Since Mr. Nasaw's earlier books are out of print, just this last week I tracked down some used copies in Amazon's used book store; can't wait for them to come. If you have never read Nasaw before, treat yourself. Shadows and World on Blood are the other titles I purchased and I expect them to be every bit as entertaining. Grab a copy of Fear Itself, pour yourself some coffee (or whatever) and settle back for a ride you won't soon forget.

"Fear Itself" is an excellent book.I read one or two books per week.(that's alot of books)I can easliy say this is now on the top of my favorite list. I haven't read alot by Jonathon Nasaw, but will from now on. The story moves right along and the characters are unforgetable. Each character is unique, not cookie cutter characters that so many books are enguled with today. This novel should be a must read for all mystery/thiller lovers.

The second E.L Pender novel by Jonathan Nasaw has a strong plot consisting of a serial killer attacking people with various phobias.
Pender nearing retirement recieves a letter from a woman in California who suffers from a phobia, but Pender and new F.B.I. liasson agent Linda don't believe she is with the MDA (Martian Defense Association I believe?)So Pender decides to "unofficially look into the mysterious suicides the letter writer informs them about.
Nasaw writes a creepy disturbing thriller, and what's more he makes the telling of the story effortless. There is real subtlety dark humor, touching moments and style in his prose. I read this novel in little over 24 hours that should be a hint about how intense, gripping it is, too many novels are dubbed "compelling" reads but if there is a case where cliche meets fact Fear Itself is that book.

While this is not up to par with Nasaw's previous "Girls He Adored", it is nonetheless an effective, if somewhat muddled, little thriller. The hero, E.L. Pender, continues to be an unconventional hero, overweight, balding, and not someone who stepped out of GQ. His replacement, Linda Abbruzzi, is likewise likeable, considering she has a life threatening disease and the FBI doesn't want her around. Add phobic Dorie Bell as a mask-fearing heroine, and you've got the setup for a tasty thriller.
Unfortunately, the sum is not as good as the parts. The villain, Simon Child, is nasty enough, and his relationship with his Down Syndrome sister Missy, is touching, yet repulsive. What hurts the book, I think, is that instead of a tense whodunit, it becames an example of police procedural, and let's see how long we can keep these people tucked away in the basement. Pender's romance with Dorie sometimes gets in the way of the action. Child's reunion with his childhood buddy Nelson Carpenter, is also drawn out to the point of losing its momentum. Although the deaths we share are gruesome and nerve-wracking, they are so coldly presented, they manage to lose some of their impact.
And Nasaw missed a great opportunity to finish off his villain. Way late in the book, Dorie remembers what Simon is afraid of--after all, they met a convention for phobics, which he put together to suit his dastardly purpose. Why didn't Nasaw use this fear in the end?
Oh well, I don't mean to sound too negative.
It's a good book that could have been better.

RECOMMENDED.

Jonathon Nasaw follows up a great read in ,"The girls he adored", with this book. It is an easy read though sometimes jumping from two or three different characters point of veiw. A must read for a Nasaws fan. This book is no disapointment after reading it. I recommend this read to anyone. It was a great twist as he used phobia as his target for fear. I look forward to his next creation.

I, too, stumbled upon Girls He Adored quite unlike my typical "I know what I'm looking for; I'm not gonna try a risky unknown--" then, looking at the publisher's logo and reading the backjacket, "oookay, mebbe this once..." Girls was exhiliarating! Thus, Ive been waiting for Fear Itself: A Novel like a child waiting to hear reindeer hooves and bells outside on Christmas Eve! omg-- Nasaw did it! Do not begin this book (Fear Itself) unless you have time to totally immerse yourself. I particularly like how Nasaw cleverly weaves a sense of humor (a very risky endeavor, this) into the dark, complex fabric of his characters; be they friend or foe. Keep 'em coming, Mr. Nasaw!

I liked this book just because it was different from every other serial killer/psychological thriller/FBI book out there - and there are a whole lot of those! Our hero was not fresh out of the academy, gorgeous, athletic and brilliant. He was overweight, old and made mistakes. He was feisty enough to become endearing, though. The female lead was not a Clarice Starling clone, she had MS and was deskbound! The book does not have a happy ending and that was just stunning to me after years of reading the same old plots and having them neatly wrapped up at the end, in a manner that surely does not happen in real life. The story unfolds in an unusual manner because the killer is revealed like four minutes into the story, but there's still plenty of book left and it doesn't turn out to be a letdown that you already know whodunnit. In addition, you learn some new things about phobias after reading this book. There are some nasty deaths in here, but not so gory that you have to skip paragraphs to get back to the story. And there's no detailed sex! Could be a drawback for some, but personally, if I wanted to read that, I wouldn't have picked up a novel. The phobia killings were an interesting hook but I only gave it four stars because the book wasn't intriguing enough to keep me running back for more. It's worth a read just to experience something different in fiction for a change.