Into the Dark by Rick Mofina
Pros: the book had some interesting characters
Cons: absolutely nothing thrilling about it
Bland. No spark whatsoever. Definitely not “thrilling”. Such is the case, with Rick Mofina’s Into The Dark.
Serial killer on the loose. Cops haven’t a clue. Yeah, Yeah, we’ve heard it all before. But normally these books keep something hidden from the reader, something that the reader can’t wait to be revealed. Something that will come as a very cool surprise, worth the wait.
But not this book. Mofina lets us in on the secret almost from the very beginning. That’s right. We know exactly who the bad guy is. No hidden identity. No false clues. No red herrings. Just a blatant, linear story about a serial killer, his clueless family, and the equally clueless cops.
You’ve got a wife with some past baggage trying to move on with her life and start a new family. At least she was pretty cool… I liked her and really felt for her. You have friends and co-workers who haven’t any idea. And you have the serial killer who is well aware of the horror of his “secret life” but who doesn’t try all that hard to change it. And his near-super-hero ability to thwart detection at every turn. And, finally, you have the cops running around like chickens.
Until, finally, the cops start to get smart and piece things together. In fact, it was horrifying how many mistakes the cops made early on in the investigation. Let’s hope this is truly a work of fiction!
In the end, there’s really not a whole lot here to recommend. I like my thrillers to thrill. I enjoy clever surprises. But Into The Dark has none of that. So beware going in – if you like a point A to point B story about a serial killer, go for it. But if, like me, you like to zig and zag, give this one a pass.
I kept waiting for the exciting twist. There wasn’t one.