Do you know what? I really enjoyed it. I read some negative reviews which personally I think are pretty unfair but each to their own. The narrative told from multiple points of view is easy to follow and incredibly insightful. The way the story unfolds and then pulls back together at the end is exciting. I think it’s definitely on par with The Whisper Man.

Alex North is one of my favourite authors and this was another brilliant read.
He manages to blend a mystery with a little bit of the supernatural and he was spot on with The Half Burnt House .
Loved it!

Thankyou NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest opinion

This is Alex North's latest offering, in the UK it is titled The Half Burnt House, is an atmospheric, great, if disturbing read that ventures into horror territory and the paranormal, but with such a complex story where it takes a while before the pieces start to connect and come together, you may need to prepare for the fact that it requires a great deal of patience from readers. Kate has lived to regret and be haunted by an ill advised decision in the past to not accompany her brother Chris to be with her boyfriend, leaving him to face a devastating attack alone. Chris might have survived, but the invisible scars he carried went significantly deeper than the physical ones on his face. In a book that shifts from the past and the present, Kate is now married to Sam, and has a young child, but she has been estranged from the troubled Chris for a while.

Then Kat is presented with an opportunity to assuage the unbearable burden of guilt she has carried with regard to her her brother through the years, but she has no idea just how much danger she will find herself in. Detective Laurence Page finds himself with an odd crime scene with the brutal murder of academic Alan Hobbes, a well known and wealthy philosophy professor who focuses on the nature of free will and fate, residing in a half burnt mansion, despite having the resources to fix it. A man obssessed with a notorious serial killer, Jack Locke, reputed to be able to see into the future, Hobbes appeared to be aware that he was going to die, but does nothing whatever to prevent it, all Page has is Chris Shaw on CCTV.

Here, as can be seen from his previous books, North pulls together scarily well plotted storylines, with multiple threads that surprisingly eventually emerge as connected, creating a wide range of characters, with a narrative designed to give readers the creeps. This is a thrillingly dark and compulsive thriller, tense and suspenseful, of the past seeping into the present, family, Jack Locke, the 'Angel Maker', a serial killer, a number of issues are raised, such as the mystery of the driver of a red car. This is likely to appeal to the many fans of the author and readers who enjoy complicated and edgy novels laced with horror. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

I really enjoyed Alex North’s previous book, The Whisper Man and so I was excited to receive the ARC for The Half Burnt House. I did approach with a bit of caution though, as I didn’t enjoy another book of his, The Shadow Friend as much – thinking that the simple premise had been over complicated by multiple POVs which led to a confusing read.

I think The Half Burnt House also suffered from the same problems as I had experienced with The Shadow Friend. There’s a lot of character points of view throughout the chapters and some of them are kept vague on purpose. I struggled to keep in my head what was happening for which character in which timeline and what was relevant to the plot. I didn’t really feel like I got to know any of the characters very well either which certainly didn’t help to keep them all straight in my head.

The book has a paranormal aspect to it, with a character who can potentially see into the future and changing timelines, but no-where is this particularly explained and there isn’t really a payoff for this either, so it just felt like a convenient plot device to explain away plot-holes rather than a proper sci-fi or horror element. I have a lot of questions that weren’t really explained properly, and I don’t feel like some elements were well explored.

Overall, The Half Burnt House was disappointing – unnecessarily confusing with characters I didn’t particularly care for. Thank you to NetGalley & Penguin Random House – Michael Joseph for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 1.4/5

I have now read all three books by Steve Mosby that he has penned under the name of Alex North and I would have to say that it has been a disappointingly mixed experience. His first book, "The Whisper Man" received quite a few plaudits, but I was less convinced and found the first half of the book decidedly tedious. Book two, "The Shadow Friend" was significantly better and much more to my liking. Based on that experience and an enticing premise, I had no hesitation in coming back for Alex North's third novel, "The Half Burnt House" ... but I really wish I hadn't!

As I mentioned, I liked the premise and there was certainly the potential for this to be an intriguing read that posed some interesting philosophical questions along the way, but at no point did this ever grab me and draw me in. I was critical of "The Whisper Man" for being too tedious in the first half of the book, but "The Half Burnt House" has tedium running throughout the entire novel. There are some occasional scenes that are suitably atmospheric, but they are simply too few and far between.

The various plot threads and the switches in time frame are convoluted and do not work well. I enjoy a well-executed complicated mystery - there is something very satisfying when it all ultimately makes sense. However, that sense of worthwhile satisfaction does depend on the author skilfully handling the various plot threads throughout the story and ultimately pulling the strands together in a convincing manner. That doesn't happen in this case. Yes, the plot is complicated, but I felt no sense of gratification at the end of it all - it just left me feeling empty.

As ever, I would still like to convey my thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review. It is a pity I was not in a position to pass more favourable comment on this occasion.

This was a quite cleverly worked story though I did have to pay attention, particularly in the first half. More of a slow burn than I would have liked too.

I enjoyed the philosophy element but boy Determinism is a depressing concept isnt it!

I did enjoy this book but I think it suffered as my expectations were high after reading his previous books and it unfortunately didn’t meet them.

Thanks to Michael Joseph, Penguin Random for the chance to read an early copy

I usually love this authors work but this was a strange read. I was confused at times and to 're read several times it did make sense in the end and yet I have still have so many unanswered questions. Not one of his best reads.

As much as I enjoyed this book there were times when I got a bit lost about where I was in the overall time line.
The story is great. The concept of a sister looking into the intrigue around her brother, the victim of a violent crime she blames herself for when he was a young teenager, who has been troubled ever since. He’s gone missing after being on the road to recovery.
At the same time the police have identified him as the main suspect in the murder of a man with strange philosophical views, a man who seems to have predicted his own death

The story not focus on one person, many character share their pov, there are back and fort timeline, need focus to understand the storyline. The story complicated like tangled thread, one piece connect to another piece. Everything is connected below the surface. How disturbing and scary they think murder is god will, faith be tested. At the end of the book, i hope there is no murder born after read the journal.

Thank you to NetGalley for provide this book, it is pleasure to review this book.

#TheHalfBurntHouse #AlexNorth #MichaelJoseph #PenguinRandomHouse #NetGalley #ARC

3.5⭐️

After loving The Whisperman, I was all over a new book by this author.

The previous books have flirted with a supernatural element, this one jumps in with both feet.

There are quite a few characters and strands which doesn’t make it easy to keep track, I’d go as far as to say I found it confusing. It’s slow and rambling, and rapidly moves time frames. It’s complex with very subtle hints and clues, you need to really concentrate. I found with shadow friends it needed reading twice to appreciate it fully. I feel this one is probably the same. However life’s too short to have to read books twice to get the most out of them.

There’s a serial killer who knows the future, a victim Alan Hobbes a philosopher who lectures on Determinism, that life is pre ordained. As he waits to die he thinks about three people whose journeys are interlinked with his own,
Siblings Kate and Christopher, Kate is still traumatised by an event earlier in her life which Christopher bore the results of.
DI Laurence Page who is investigating the murder of Hobbes.
I found this one weird, the themes explored seeing into the future, life being predestined and parallel universes felt like an overload although I can appreciate that they are linked theories.

I’m beginning to think that the author isn’t going to be able to match The Whisperman for me. So anticipating that this will be my last early read, I’ll wait for others to rave about a new book before giving it a try.

Wow! I could just leave it there as that one word sums up The Half Burnt House perfectly. I've read The Whisper Man and The Shadow Friend and love them both, but Alex North's new book is on a whole new level. It's definitely a book that you have to give your full attention to as there are quite a few different characters' stories to follow but as Detective Laurence Page alludes to regularly, the pieces of the jigsaw are all there. It's an immersive read and I felt as though I was in the story. The philosophy element was intriguing and added another layer to the story, challenging my thinking in the process. A stunning read!

I really enjoyed this book. Katie has always felt guilty that something really bad happened to her brother, Chris, when she was supposed to be looking out for him. Since then, Chris has gone off the rails ,suffering from addictions and living rough. But now he has contacted their mother and seems to have turned his life round. Police are investigating the murder of an elderly man, Alan Hobbes, and Chris has been picked upon CCTV at the man's property. This is an edge of the seat story that will keep you guessing to the end. Thanks to NetGalley for a preview copy.
Copied to Goodreads.

Alex North is an author I do enjoy reading. I love his writing style and how dark his books can get. As always, his books centers around violence towards kids, so if that is a trigger for you, then you'd do best to stay away, though The Half Burnt House actually wasn't graphic, so let me just add that. Previous books, I recall him being quite graphic and this is definitely toned down.

This has a really interesting plot and the opening chapter immediately draws you in as we have this violent crime that happens to Chris. We then jump to the present where we meet a grown up Kate (Chris's sister) who quickly learns that something is wrong and her brother may need her help.... For Kate, this may be her redemption act, because she feels it's her fault that her brother got hurt all those years ago....

So the story is about Kate and Chris....and then we also have quite a few characters, some are ominous, some are murdered, some are murderers.... and our timeline flits between the 50's, 80's and present day. I have to admit, I got really really confused and could not actually keep track of who was who and where I was. Eventually I figured it out or hoped that my memory wasn't failing me.

I think the beginning of the book dragged a bit as Alex needs to flesh out quite a lot around the characters and their histories and how (if they are) linked in anyway. Once we get to the last third, the pace picked up a bit. There are some plot twists I didn't see coming, I was halfway there, but he got me with the one.....and then I felt like I had a few unanswered questions in the end. Like the book was perhaps just missing a chapter?

The slow start and the unanswered questions cause me to rate this book lower, but overall an interesting read and quite an intricate plot.

This was a very well-written, complex and complicated story. It all comes together but requires paying attention and being patient to get to that point. It's not an easily digestible thriller but it's worth it.

What an amazing book! The first parts had me a little confused about who everyone was, who's voice I was reading in each part and how it was all connected. This was very skilfully sewn together in the remaining chapters and brought to an incredible finale where all was explained.
The writing is engrossing and the characters well drawn so you get a feeling for them as a whole person which helped me to figure out who to root for achieving their 'happy' ending.

This is the third book I have read by this author and this one I found the most challenging by far due to a very complex plot that takes some figuring out. The book to me felt like a jigsaw I had all these pieces filling my head and try as I might I couldn’t fit any of them together but as I got to around halfway through the read slowly the plot began to fit together. So you have a lot of random happenings, a whole heap of characters, different timelines and all of those things niggling at your brain and you know they fit together it’s just HOW !
It’s a very cleverly written book with an underlying feeling of menace that keeps you hooked but for me it was not an easy read I reread some parts to try to get my head round who was who and just what the heck was going on but all of that lead to a very satisfying conclusion.
Excellent writing from Alex North, fabulous characters and as I say a plot to keep you on your toes what more could you ask.
My thanks to NetGalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for giving me the opportunity to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I really enjoyed The Whisper Man but this book is much more complicated and a slow burn .There are plenty of good characters, it is atmospheric and quite scary at times .It starts with the murder of Alan Hobbs a wealthy eccentric but this is only the beginning of a very clever and complex plot which is intriguing with lots of layers an excellent read.Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC.`

This was a very dramatic modern gothic novel, with a number of well developed characters and a fast paced plot with a number of different elements, brought together expertly. I enjoyed it a lot.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for an advance copy of The Half Burnt House, a stand-alone thriller set in England.

Christopher Shaw was attacked as a teenager and his sister, Katie, who was supposed to be looking after him at the time, has felt guilty ever since. Different lifestyle choices mean that they haven’t seen each other for a few years. DI Laurence Page is investigating the murder of wealthy, retired philosophy professor, Alan Hobbes, in his fire damaged home and Christopher is a person of interest. Laurence is interested in catching a murderer, Katie is interested in saving her brother.

I found The Half Burnt House a difficult novel to navigate, but, equally, I am appreciative of the clever plotting and the way the writer makes it compulsive.

The novel is told from various points of view and the timeline slips between the 2017 present and various points in the past, which reveal more about the characters’ personal histories and past actions. For much of the novel I felt myself asking who these people are and how they link together. The answer is extremely clever and some of the twists involved caught me by surprise, while others were a bit more guessable. Still, I desperately wanted answers so that kept me turning the pages.

There is a philosophical theory at the root of this novel that the author explains a bit too much for me - I left the heavy thinking arena years ago. I’m not going to name it or discuss it in case of spoilers but it’s nonsense to me. There is also the hint of otherworldliness in the novel, Alan Hobbes knew he was going to die that night, just as he knew in advance about other events. Weird, but not enough to be supernatural.

The Half Burnt House is a demanding but ultimately worthwhile read.

This is a book cram full of macabre and creepy elements. A retired philosophy professor is found murdered in the titular half burnt house and the subsequent investigation unearths some decidedly mysterious elements that are somehow connected, but how?

Unfortunately for me it's the plethora of mysterious elements that meant I struggled to engage; the serial killer and his sons who lived at the house in the past. A teenager who was brutally attacked 17 years earlier, and his sister who fears she let him down. The philosophical ideas about determinism. There were just too many threads to keep my interest, none of which were satisfyingly developed. I found that the disjointed pace of the book marred by enjoyment as well. Tension would build and then be slowed down by the odd philosophy ramblings that did not hold my interest.

As the story reached its climax I found my interest piqued again, but overall this wasn't a book I would recommend.

My thanks go to the publishers and Net Galley for the advance copy in return for an honest review.