Customer Reviews

The Killing Moon: A Novel

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The story takes place in the small town of Black Falls, Mass. Population 1,758. Since the closing of the paper mill, the town's economy is slowly dying. No supermarket, no ATM, no traffic lights and no cable or cell phone service. The police force has been cut from twenty men to two full-time and a few part-time officers. The Sergeant and highest ranking member of the force is Bucky Pail. Bucky has held this position since the death of his father three years before. Since Bucky came into power, the Department is corrupt. He and his employees terrorize the townspeople to the point that they are afraid to report any problems or complaints.

Only one member of the Police Department, Don Maddox, a part-time officer who works the graveyard shift three night a week, is ligit. With the help of the town's elder statesman, Stavros Pintopolumanos, otherwise known as Pinty, Maddox is embedded into the police force of Black Falls to bust this corrupt organization. Maddox is an undercover state policeman.

When a brutal murder stuns the town and a registered sex-offender goes missing, the state police homicide detectives arrive in town and take over the police station which of course does not sit well with Bucky. Bucky has enough problems, especially with his new employee, Maddox. Tension is high between the two men because Maddox will not play Bucky's game.

Maddox upholds his undercover status and at times appears suspicious to Trooper Leo Hess, the state police detective in charge. As the mystery unravels, Hess is convinced that the sex-offender, Dillon Sinclair, is the murderer. Maddox is not convinced since Sinclair is his informant.

This is my first Chuck Hogan thriller and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The story is very well-written, pacing is good and the climax is explosive. The murder scenes are a bit gory but do not take away from a most satisfying read.

I realy enjoyed this book, it is a must read for the crime fiction reader. The book is suspensful and informative at the same time. The mystery is gripping and makes it a real page turner. I would recommend this book to anyone connected with law enforcement

Chuck Hogan's "The Killing Moon", a convoluted thriller based on the strange circumstances occuring in the small dying rural Massachusetts town of Black Falls, reads like a written version of TV's "Twin Peaks". Homeboy Donny Maddox recipient of a town sponsored college scholarship returns to Black Falls after a 15 year hiatus. The town is in a state of decline since the closing of the mill some years ago, which providede the main source of employment. At the urgting of now retired police chief emeritus Pinty, a close personal friend, he joins the local police force on a part time basis.

Maddox soon discovers that corruption runs rampant within the local fuzz headed by the Pail brothers, Bucky and Eddie. Maddox is soon immersed in investigating a series of crimes involving violence and drugs. Clues point to a local man and sexual offender Dill Sinclair as being the driving force, however his whereabouts are unknown. When local new age internet salesman Randall Frond is discovered brutally murdered, the cesspool of town depravity boils over. The state police lead by macho man trooper Leo Hess are called in.

As the investigation continues, we discover that Maddox might have ulterior motives for his presence in town. As the state police and Maddox dig deeper, the full extent of the town's secrets become revealed.

Hogan jumping from one character to the other gives us bits and pieces of information to aid us in unravelling the mysteries behind this bizarre town.

Chuck Hogan's latest novel, a classic suspense thriller, crafts an amazingly insightful profile of a small New England town with nowhere to go but down. Sounds depressing but actually it's not. I'm a fan of Hogan's work and with The Killing Moon, he has treated readers to one of his finest yarns yet.

With the Killing Moon, Hogan has crafted a classic page turner (or is it page-turner?) filled with uncomplicated nuance and character. Hogan artfully builds the story, drawing the reader into a hidden sub-culture of drug-fueled depravity, sketching good guys and bad guys with such complelling humanity and depth, it's hard to know who the good guy really is until the very end. Which, for me, defines a classic suspense novel.

Kudos to Chuck Hogan. Please keep writing.

The Killing Moon is a phenomenally written, fast paced novel that you won't be able to put down until you are done. From the keep-you-guessing plot to the thoroughly engaging (some times creepy) characters this book will capture you from the moment you open the front cover. I highly recommend this terrifically suspenseful novel. You will be left eagerly awaiting in anticipation the next novel by Chuck Hogan!

I've had the pleasure of reading all four of Chuck Hogan's novels, and I've found each one to be more fast-paced and riveting than the next. "The Killing Moon" reads like a movie that I can't wait to see.

The characters are dynamic and well-executed, and the isolated setting of Black Falls is downright eerie, and I found the story pacing just as fluid as the swift, icy current of the Cold River. I disagree with the Booklist comment that found the narration to be bumpy. The point-of-view is clearly stated with chapter titles.

Mr. Hogan has a gift of writing powerful, visual stories that keep you hanging on his every word, your eyes glued to the pages. I gladly stayed up way past my bedtime to read this one, even though I was twisting in my seat at times! I recommend "The Killing Moon" to `Type A' readers who like to feel their pulse quicken while reading. You're sure to get a jolt from this suspenseful read.

I can't wait for the next thrill ride! Keep `em coming.

Don Maddox left Black Falls, Massachusetts on a community scholarship with the promise of returning to provide five years of service. He finally did come home fifteen years later to attend the funeral of his mother. Everyone assumed he would leave again as a town without an ATM cannot keep its young any longer.

However, Don fools the townsfolk when he decides to stay, which leads to speculation. Though with no law enforcement experience joins the police force renowned for their corruption and abuse; most locals conclude he must be dishonest too perhaps with drugs. However, his traffic patrol during the graveyard shift runs ugly when a murder occurs. Soon the Massachusetts State Police arrive to investigate the homicide and more at the same time the former police chief Pinty is trying to persuade them to look at his department and no one can figure out where the loose cannon Don fits, not even Tracey Mithers who is falling in love with him.

The small town cast make for a strong gripping and sinister thriller as readers learn who the bad guys are and what Don's secret agenda is. The ending is expected from the moment the readers follow Don's first shift driving the blue lights, but no one will care as fans will be hooked from that onset to learn what is going on in Black Falls under THE KILLING MOON.

Harriet Klausner

I really love Chuck Hogan's writing and was looking forward to this new book. Living in MA it is exciting that his writing reflexs places that are very familar to me. This book started out slow but grew in excitemnet quickly. I really enjoyed all the details the author puts into his stories. Each character is developed slowly and with lots of info that makes you feel like you know them. You can picture in your mind what each person looks like and feel like you know them personally by the end of the book. I love that when I thought I had it all figured out, the plot and ending, Chuck Hogan does it again and takes you in a different direction totally. His ending are not precictable in his books and that is the same with this book. I found myself reading the last 50 or so pages in one sitting because it got too good to put down. It was worth the late night to finish it. This is one I will recommnend to my book club.

Hogan is as good as Crais, Coben and Connelly. He captures the flavor of a small dead milltown and the hopelessness of its people (reminds one of Russo's towns) while spinning the web of a terrific mystery.

The mystery builds slowly. The reader knows immediately that there is the good new guy on the police force - Maddox - and the police force is lousy with corruption. It is also apparent that Maddox is the hometown wonder boy who left years ago who returned for his mother's funeral. No one knows why he stayed and became a part-time policeman. Slowly, the plot developes. It is told in the perspective of many characters, which keeps the book moving even as events plod too slowly for all involved - good guys and bad guys alike.

Eventually the mystery unfolds and then the book, which was tight with tension, flies into a fast-paced action-packed ending without being contrived. This change of pacing, which Hogan does so smoothly, separates this mystery from run-of-the-mill entries in this genre.

The characters are all good. Maddox in particular is interesting. Although close-mouthed (like so many good heroes) he is the classic "still waters runs deep" Gary Cooper type.

This is highly recommended. Well-written mysteries with good plots are always a great find.

The book definitely holds your attention and certainly has more than a few twists and turns, but almost feels too similar a cousin to the "King of Thieves". Certainly a great beach ride for Hogan fans, but not earth-shattering.