- Hardcover: 423 pages
- Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers; First edition edition (5 Jun 2000)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0002261081
- ISBN-13: 978-0002261081
- Product Dimensions: 23.9 x 15.7 x 4.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,776,539 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Killing the Shadows
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Our culture's obsession with serial killers as its own dark shadow sometimes obscures the fact that people kill for other reasons than sex. In Killing the Shadows Val McDermid's new detective, academic psychologist Fiona Cameron, has become something of a maverick because of her insistence on using other sorts of profiling as well as the standard psycho-sexual ones; she has refused to work for the Metropolitan police any more because of a murder they failed to solve because they took another psychologist's advice. Yet the woman murdered on Hampstead Heath preys on her conscience, along with her own murdered sister, as she works for the Spanish police on a killer who decorates the sights of Toledo with dead tourists. And then someone starts killing crime writers and Fiona's lover Kit is on the killer's list. Val McDermid's ingenuity and solid sense of how crime and investigation works have made her one of the dominant figures in contemporary British crime writing. Killing the Shadows is one of her best books yet, both for its powerful critique of modern policing and for the serious questions it asks about our fascination with the deadliest of criminals. --Roz Kaveney
Review
'She is the real mistress of psychological gripping thrillers; no-one can plot or tell a story like she can. The hairs on my neck literally stood up' Express
'McDermid has become our leading pathologist of everyday evil… The subtle orchestration of terror is masterful' Guardian
'Dark, clever and timely' Scotland on Sunday
Praise for Val McDermid:
'Val McDermid is a roaring Ferrari amid the crowded traffic on the crime-writing road' Independent
‘Manchester's answer to Thomas Harris’ Guardian
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Even for the most ardent McDermid fan, I'm sure this book came as something of a disappointment. An extremely contrived storyline, rushed and disappointing ending and an endless stream of pretentious references didn't make this a totally enjoyable read.
On paper I guess the plot idea looked quite interesting and it certainly would seem to be full of intrigue and originality. Not only have we got another serial killer on the loose, this is a serial killer who is killing the writers of novels that feature serial killers in them. And if that wasn't enough, we also have a sub-plot featuring a serial killer and another sub plot featuring another murderer. Mind you, you don't pick up a McDermid novel and not expect a great amount of blood and gore do you! Just to add another twist to the tale the main serial killer (the one that's killing the writers of serial killer novels) is killing the novelists in a fashion as described in one of their books. Confused? To be honest the novel reads quite straight forwardly so this convoluted mess does sort itself out somewhat.
But such a complex and manufactured story is going to take some sever writing skill to carry it off and I'm afraid that this time Ms McDermid just doesn't do the job. The characters are either carbon copies of previous ones or cartoon cut-outs with no real personality traits. The sub plots are at the best pointless diversion, why have the Spanish serial killer of tourists? How did this tie in with the main plot? Finally the technical accuracy of some of the tools and methods used are suspect to say the least.
The final disappointment is the rushed and almost incomplete ending, after slogging through 500+ pages of story I do expect something a little better than sneaking up behind the killer and then happy ever after. I must admit, contrary to some of the other reviews here, I didn't spot the killer, but there again I wouldn't have expected this character to have done it, in such a wild and fantastic plot development.
The book is very readable and any fan to thrillers will churn through it in a matter of days, but don't blame me if you're left with a slightly stale taste in you mouth when finished.
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I am a big fan of Val McDermid's works. No sooner have I finished one novel I find myself reaching for the next. I have read all the Tony Hill books and now all the stand-alone thrillers, the latest being Killing the Shadows. I'm sad to say it was my least favourite.
I ploughed through the first two-hundred-odd pages with growing excitement at the story's multi-layered action and the possibilities that lay ahead. Crime writers being picked off one by one, ritualistic murder in Spain, a good honest cop's efforts to put right a previously-botched murder investigation, and, playing quietly in the background, the unsolved murder of the central character's sister. Great stuff! I ploughed on.
My mistake, and the reason for my disappointment, was in thinking that all the events would remain relevant. Looking back it does seem unlikely that so much content could. How could so much believeably tie together in the end?
The second half of the story was a let down. I can see the faint relevance of the Spanish murder investigation to the story, but did it warrant so much attention early on in the book? The revealing of the crime-writer murder was surprising, but in a flat and disappointing way, and the motive for murder is far from convincing. The final confrontation scene is a little too unbelievable and the 500-page build up deserved better.
Val McDermid is a great writer - The Distant Echo in particular stands out as a truly rollercoaster of a ride right to the last page - but if you reading her for the first time I'd skip Killing the Shadows and start elsewhere to avoid disappointment. She has done much better.
I ploughed through the first two-hundred-odd pages with growing excitement at the story's multi-layered action and the possibilities that lay ahead. Crime writers being picked off one by one, ritualistic murder in Spain, a good honest cop's efforts to put right a previously-botched murder investigation, and, playing quietly in the background, the unsolved murder of the central character's sister. Great stuff! I ploughed on.
My mistake, and the reason for my disappointment, was in thinking that all the events would remain relevant. Looking back it does seem unlikely that so much content could. How could so much believeably tie together in the end?
The second half of the story was a let down. I can see the faint relevance of the Spanish murder investigation to the story, but did it warrant so much attention early on in the book? The revealing of the crime-writer murder was surprising, but in a flat and disappointing way, and the motive for murder is far from convincing. The final confrontation scene is a little too unbelievable and the 500-page build up deserved better.
Val McDermid is a great writer - The Distant Echo in particular stands out as a truly rollercoaster of a ride right to the last page - but if you reading her for the first time I'd skip Killing the Shadows and start elsewhere to avoid disappointment. She has done much better.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I read 'A place of Execution' last year on holiday in France and was struck by the originality of plot and good characterisation-a cracking read( 5 stars from me) which made me look forward to the new book with quite some anticipation.
Having purchased the paperback in Tesco,I was looking forward to the tedious commute to work being made more bearable for a while. But what a disappointment!!. The Plot was quite ludicrous (and predictable)whilst the motive of the killer seemed barely credible. There are far too many generalities, aside from copius ( and graphic)details of each death. It seems the author was far keener to detail gore than develop the characters who were mostly one dimensional. One wonders if McDermid has been reading Reichs and Cornwall and believes you can hook the book reading public by raising the gore count. The novel had far too many sub plots, most of which were not developed and therefore became quickly redundant. The identity of the killer was not hard to guess as everyone else in the novel could not have been the guilty party.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
MURDER, SHE WROTE...
This is a well-crafted mystery by a writer who understands the genre. She builds suspense slowly, allowing the reader to savor each richly nuanced, tautly written chapter of the... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Lawyeraau
An Unexpectedly Good Read
I have not read anything by Val McDermid before and I have to admit that the synopsis did not fill me with anticipation - A killer is on the loose. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Brett H
Formulaic rubbish
In all honesty I didn't finish this book because it was so bad. I was giving Val McDermid a second chance in getting this one; she'll not be getting a third chance. Read more
Published 12 months ago by J. Malone
Not Her Best, But, As Ever, She Breaks New Ground
Vari Sylvester reads "Killing The Shadows," one of Scottish mystery author Val McDermid's earlier publications, her fourth under her own name, and a standalone, although, as does... Read more
Published on 29 Dec 2009 by Stephanie DePue
Not Her Strongest, But Still Some Groundbreaking Innovations
"Killing The Shadows," (2000) is one of Scottish mystery author Val McDermid's earlier publications, her fourth under her own name, and is a standalone, although, as her Wire In... Read more
Published on 9 Dec 2009 by Stephanie DePue
Far from her usual standard
I have read a few of Val McDermid's books (the less gory ones), and thoroughly enjoyed them, in fact A Place of Execution is one of my favourite books. Read more
Published on 5 Dec 2008 by crime reader
Starts well but gets increasingly silly...
This was my first Val McDiarmid and perhaps reading the reviews it wasn't the best place to start (see the reviews under the pink/purple cover edition here on Amazon): this starts... Read more
Published on 29 Jun 2008 by Roman Clodia
disappointing
I'm a fan of Mrs. McDermid and A place of Execution and A distant Echo are my favorites, but here too much is happening in different places at the same time and all this layering... Read more
Published on 14 April 2008 by CC7
Excellent introduction to Val McDermid
I was on the lookout for a good thriller since the demise of Patricia Cornwell & James Patterson into my `never again' list. Read more
Published on 7 Feb 2007 by O. Doyle
Not the usual 5 stars but still very enjoyable
I love Val McDermid and look forward to going on the usually exciting and enjoyable journey of her thrillers. Read more
Published on 10 Jan 2007 by The Bavarian Countess
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