A Quiet Belief in Angels (Unabridged) [Audio Download]

Despite its rather grim plotline - the story of a man who is haunted throughout his life by a vicious child-killer - this is a very good book which I enjoyed despite my initial suspicion.

The novel's narrator is a likable, multifaceted character, and the others characters are mainly very strong. I genuinely liked most of them, and yet simultaneously suspected all of them. It managed to keep me guessing as to the killer's identity right up until the last few pages - a rare feat for a book. RJ Ellory does a brilliant job of conjuring up an atmosphere of suspicion and fear, whilst setting it against the ordinary happenings of everyday life.

The writing is elegant and almost poetic in sections. However, at times I found it a little frustrating as it became bogged down in digressions or descriptions when I was desperate for it to get on with the plot. It also had a slowish start, although I did warm to it quite fast. As the story is narrated retrospectively it sometimes gave just a little too much hindsight, which did get annoying at times.

However, by the end of the book I was completely hooked and stayed up much later than I should have because I couldn't stop reading. It is gripping and compelling, and yet also manages to be thought provoking. This isn't a lightweight thriller - there is real depth to the characters and storytelling.

The subject matter (the murders of over 30 little girls) makes for uncomfortable reading at times, as you would expect, and the book is unflinching in describing the horror of these crimes. I found it deeply haunting, chilling and disquieting - the sort of book you lay awake thinking about.

Overall, a very powerful though somewhat upsetting book, which manages to combine a strong emotional element with a (mostly) page-turningly gripping plot.

This is a book with a terrific plot ... in a small town in Georgia young girls start to disappear and then are found brutally raped and murdered. No one knows who the killer is and the authorities seem to have no suspects.

Jospeh Vaughan is a young man growing up in the midst of these killings. His father has just died and the first world war has broken out in Europe. He is struggling to come to terms with death as he sees it all around him. The murders of the girls affect him deeply and he is encouraged by his school teacher to write about his experiences. He calls together a group of friends to become 'Guardians' who vow to look out for and protect all the little girls in the area.

The murders remain unsolved, although we know from the beginning of the novel that at some stage - many years after the first killings occurred - Joseph realises who is responsible for the killings. Interspersing the main story chapters are mini-chapters which gradually outline Joseph's eventual confrontation with the killer.

Ellory is a great storyteller. He sets the scene for this novel perfectly - you're there in Georgia at the outbreak of the first world war, you can see the schoolroom where Joseph learns his lessons, you feel the anguish of the people of the town as little girls are taken and killed and no one knows who is doing it. For the first 200 pages I could hardly bear to put the book down.

HOWEVER ... [I'm keeping details vague here so I don't spoil the story for anyone who hasn't read the book yet ...]

After the first half of the book, you start feeling it's never going to end. There's so much repetition that you begin to skim over lines. I didn't get the whole 'Guardians' thing ... it seemed to me like a contrived attempt to make the novel into a 'Stand by Me' kind of story. I don't think that the 'Guardians' group was ever sufficiently established to justify why Joseph kept returning to it in his head years later.

One of the plot twists - what happens in New York - seemed bizarre to me. Why would the killer have done that? It wasn't in keeping with the rest of the story at all and in my opinion was a real weak point.

Although I did enjoy this novel it's never good to find yourself thinking 'get on with it now ... I'm getting bored' and I found myself thinking that a few too many times. Ellory just tries to keep you hanging on and guessing and it irritated me.

I've given this book a rating of 3 stars, but I think 3.5 would be fairer. It's better than an average read, but in my view the story is just too contrived to make it worth a 4.

Not a traditional thriller, this book is in a category of its own. The sense of place and social commentary create a background of small town living that makes the horror to come even worse.
Did I want to know who the murderer was? It certainly did not seem the most important part of this novel. Although I was glad that there was a resolution for the main character. His journey is a very bumpy one and he and the killer seem to almost be as one.
I particularly liked the whole innocent idea that as a small boy he could keep his community safe with the help of his friends. His own personal need to safeguard his next door neighbour makes the inevitable events even more shocking.
The delicacy of the writing and the way that you can see into the thoughts and feelings of the characters as they are slowly revealed makes this a very compulsive read. I highly recommend this.