This is a thoroughly gripping debut novel for this author. A serial killer is on the rampage committing many horrendous murders using the mo of convicted notorious serial killers from the past. Some parts of the book can be pretty gruesome so this isn’t for the faint hearted. I hadn’t anticipated the ending which threw up the nature versus nurture argument for me and left me with more questions than answers however, I think normal, functioning, law abiding people will always fail to understand the motives of someone that can kill without remorse. All in all I would recommend this book as a good read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Echo Man is a fast paced thriller, full of gory detail and serial killer references. It tells the story of a string of murders that appear to be perfectly executed copies of infamous serial killer murders, hence the killer becomes known as the 'Echo Man'. At the same time, Jess' house is burnt to the ground and her husband is killed; she is wanted for his murder so flees the scene and finds comfort with disgraced Detective Griffin. They soon realise that Jess' situation is linked to the recent killings and it becomes a race against time to protect loved ones and uncover the killer before the body count increases even more.

This book goes into lots of grisly detail about murder and is quite disturbing at times. I liked the main characters and found myself invested in their story; it was a book that I got through quite quickly.

One annoyance of mine is how two people not working for the police seem to be superior at solving clues and working out the killer's identity. But this aside, I did enjoy the story.

My thanks to NetGalley and the Publishers for sending me an ARC in return for an honest review.

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Thankyou #netgalley #samholland #harpercollinsaudio for the audiobook copy of this book for a honest review.
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A bit of a let down with the narrator.
She doesn’t engaged much with the story but just reading it. The story sounds bland and no spice at all .
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⚠️Explicit description of murder killings on this one.
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It was a good story. I would say great but some of the parts has a lacking or quite bland . Especially at first to second chapter.
I don’t feel the ooohhss and the ahhhs on each story. Then I switch the story into reading rather that the audiobook itself and everything falls into place .
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But still,some of the detective wording doesn’t justify the story. In such a intelligent killer may cause mayhem and doesn’t think through make me question why?
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❤️Shaye.reads

The echo man review- ARC received from @netgalley ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sam Holland’s debut thriller grabs the reader by the throat from the outset and doesn’t let go. Many brutal murders occur in the first few chapters of the book.

“Tonight it’s different, the blackness closes in on her. She feels the loneliness claw at her insides”

Some more murders occur throughout, brutal, calculated and vicious. Jess (who’s a victim of a crime) gets even deeper into the murders. She befriends a detective who is obsessed with solving these murders. It’s not until her concussion is clearing that Jess realises all the murders are linked, she’s seen these murders before. Being a true crime fanatic she’s now out two and two together. She’s figured out that this is the work of one serial killer.

This serial killer is a copy cat of multiple well known serial killers. The recent murders are identical copies of older cases.

I can’t believe how gripped I’ve been with this book. I love true crime, always have. I find it fascinating but also very scary that these terrible crimes actually occurred.

Please read this book if you get chance!

I am very impressed with this debut.
Maybe I am not a fan of how the ending resolved but I am not here to spoil anything..
Very well written, easy to go through. I was half listening to the audiobook, half reading the paper copy and I found myself enjoying the female narrator the most.
Defo looking forward to the next book by the author, I believe she will be the a great thriller writer ;)

One of the best books ive listened to in years!
I love everything about it, everything from the constant guesses of who the killer is to the evidence piling up throughout the story.
Im a huge true crime fan myself so to hear the level of research done for the echo man to copy the serial killers before them is very impressive.

Cannot wait to see what comes next from this author because i will jump at the chance to see whats next!

Description 🔖

There are murders happening across England and nobody is seeing a link between them. They’re all different but equally gruesome and brutal.

Jess Ambrose is dragged into it after her house is set alight, killing her husband and hospitalising her and her daughter. The police are pointing the finger at Jess, so knowing that her daughter is in safe hands, she’s makes a run for it. The only person who seemingly believes that she’s innocent is suspended detective Nate Griffin.

It doesn’t take the two of them long to figure out that these murders do have something in common. They are all copy cat crimes of notorious killers from years gone by. The so called Echo Man doesn’t plan on stopping at copying though, he is planning something huge. Something that will shock and disgust even more than anything that has come before.

General Thoughts 🤔

I love me some gruesome reading and this book didn’t disappoint. The crimes described in this book were horrific and there was no holding back with the descriptions. As horrible as it was to read, I appreciated the detail. I can sometimes get annoyed by books that skim over the details, I need the details.

The storyline was very twisty, very turny and there were lots of red herrings thrown at us readers to confuse us and put us off the scent. Every time I thought I knew who the serial killer was, I was proved to be wrong. The moment I started quizzing myself about who had done it was when I knew I was going to binge listen the rest of the book.

Characters 👫👭👬

I had some firm favourite characters from The Echo Man. The first being Jess. I felt so sorry for this woman. She was really put through it and at times I don’t think I would have blamed her for just giving up and quitting. I think if she hadn’t had her daughter, she wouldn’t have continued to go on trying to avoid arrest and prove her innocence.

Nate was my second favourite. Another damaged character which is probably what drew him and Jess together and bonded them. He had battled through so much and understandably had become quite obsessed with finding out who the killer was. I felt bad for him as I didn’t think that his colleagues gave him enough credit and had written him off as damaged goods.

Writing Style ✍️

As I’ve already said (but it needs to be said again), this book is gruesome. It’s not for the feint hearted and if you’re queasy stomached or get spooked easily, then this probably isn’t for you. Fortunately, I gobble this stuff up. I fall asleep to murder podcasts, so I loved all of the gore.

Sam Holland did an absolutely fantastic job of weaving together this story and bluffing the reader. I don’t think any of the story was predictable and the pace of the entire book was spot on. I couldn’t stop listening and was finding myself listening into silly o’clock with droopy eyes just to try and find out what was going to happen next.

Conclusion & Scoring 🎖

I thought that this was an impressive debut from Sam Holland and I can’t wait to see what comes next. Yes, some of it was far fetched and maybe a bit over the top, but it’s a thriller, I want to be thrilled! I want to feel on the edge of my seat and escape from realism. I think this was a great book and I hope to see a sequel.

The Echo Man is a debut audiobook that will thrill all those who love a dark macabre gruesome tale. The story surrounds an evil psychopath serial killer who is on the loose imitating infamous killings from well known murderers in true crime. It’s DCI Cara Elliot’s job to catch this maniac aided by DS Noah Deakin and her brother DS Nate Griffin . But the killer becomes more confident as time goes on and the murders escalate and become more shocking than the last. I have to say this book is not for the faint hearted and is incredibly graphic and leaves little to the imagination! It’s disturbing and intense but I could not put it down!! The narration was done by Sarah Lambie and Leighton Pugh - a great team! There’s one thing for certain - Sam Holland is here to slay!!! Thanks Netgalley and Harper Collins for my copy.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins UK Audio for this audiobook ARC.

What do you get when a killer copies other serial killer murders from previous years?? The Echo Man. Sadistic, horrific, horrendous and unforgiving acts and murders.

Fast paced, full of action with some head scratching this has made for a great listen. Sam Holland has pulled off a really suspenseful read which will give you Goosebumps. Some really dark scenes and probably not for anybody prone to triggers. The character building was amazing, felt like you knew each main person and could relate to how they were feeling. I didn't feel like the ending was predictable at all.

The narration was really great and the dual narrators really gave great feeling to this audiobook.

Highly recommend if you like dark mystery thrillers!

Highly graphic at times almost to the point of being gratuitous with the violence, I’m no shrinking violet but at least make it relevant to the story, I didn’t like the characters and I appreciate that may be deliberate by the author but to be honest it made me adopt a could not care less attitude with them, the male narrator was annoying to say the least