- Mass Market Paperback: 470 pages
- Publisher: Bantam Books; Reprint edition (Mar 2007)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0553589938
- ISBN-13: 978-0553589931
- Product Dimensions: 10.6 x 2.5 x 17.4 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,964,032 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Shadow Man
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Product Description
Review
'Terrifically good, terrifically scary . . . very hard to put down' (San Francisco Chronicle 20060601)
'SHADOW MAN grabs you by the throat and yanks you along for a hell of a scary ride. A spellbinding read from first page to last.' (Faye Kellerman 20060601)
'Coldly, stunningly brilliant. Move over Thomas Harris, Mcfadyen has brought a new game to town.' (Lisa Gardner 20060601)
'SHADOW MAN is one of the most powerful and authentic portrayals of a serial killer and the people who hunt them I have ever read. It kept me riveted right to the last page. Cody Mcfadyen is the real thing.' (John Douglas, author of the #1 bestseller MINDHUNTER: Inside the F.B.I.'s Serial Crime Unit 20060530)
'The wildest night ride I have been on for quite a while...By the time you finish reading this book you'll be running on adrenalin you never knew you had. If you're sick of books about serial killers, SHADOW MAN is the cure. Mcfadyen's writing and characterization run long, deep and true. And, by the way, he is beyond scary. Not to be missed' (Bookreporter.com )
'Authentic...handled well with some unexpected twists and turns. Mcfadyen has drawn Barrett and her fellow FBI members tenderly and intricately' (Shots Magazine )
'As humane as it is violent...Barrett's anger, pain and determination infuse the novel with a raw passion...it will be among the best crime fiction you will read this year' (Washington Post )
'Disturbing ... a promising debut for Mcfadyen, who combines many conventions of the genre but with far more exquisite, intricate results than the norm . . . Pack[s] a visceral punch' (Publishers Weekly )
'A truly talented author' (The Sunday Times, Australia )
'I’m still reeling after reading this high-octane, heart-pumping FBI thriller...Brilliant. But not for the squeamish' (****Good Reading, Australia )
'This is one of the best serial killer novels that I’ve read. It’s up there with the early Patricia Cornwell novels, Primal Fear and The Silence of the Lambs – a stunning first novel' (Manly Daily )
'Mcfadyen has managed to deliver something fresh. His style of narration sucks the reader in from the first sentence and the story has enough plot twists to keep you intrigued to the last page. A superb debut novel, hopefully a sign of things to come from a truly talented author. In a word: chilling' (Herald Sun, Australia )
'If you like to be scared so witless you hold your breath for pages at a time, SHADOW MAN won't disappoint' (New Idea, Australia ) --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.
'SHADOW MAN grabs you by the throat and yanks you along for a hell of a scary ride. A spellbinding read from first page to last.' (Faye Kellerman 20060601)
'Coldly, stunningly brilliant. Move over Thomas Harris, Mcfadyen has brought a new game to town.' (Lisa Gardner 20060601)
'SHADOW MAN is one of the most powerful and authentic portrayals of a serial killer and the people who hunt them I have ever read. It kept me riveted right to the last page. Cody Mcfadyen is the real thing.' (John Douglas, author of the #1 bestseller MINDHUNTER: Inside the F.B.I.'s Serial Crime Unit 20060530)
'The wildest night ride I have been on for quite a while...By the time you finish reading this book you'll be running on adrenalin you never knew you had. If you're sick of books about serial killers, SHADOW MAN is the cure. Mcfadyen's writing and characterization run long, deep and true. And, by the way, he is beyond scary. Not to be missed' (Bookreporter.com )
'Authentic...handled well with some unexpected twists and turns. Mcfadyen has drawn Barrett and her fellow FBI members tenderly and intricately' (Shots Magazine )
'As humane as it is violent...Barrett's anger, pain and determination infuse the novel with a raw passion...it will be among the best crime fiction you will read this year' (Washington Post )
'Disturbing ... a promising debut for Mcfadyen, who combines many conventions of the genre but with far more exquisite, intricate results than the norm . . . Pack[s] a visceral punch' (Publishers Weekly )
'A truly talented author' (The Sunday Times, Australia )
'I’m still reeling after reading this high-octane, heart-pumping FBI thriller...Brilliant. But not for the squeamish' (****Good Reading, Australia )
'This is one of the best serial killer novels that I’ve read. It’s up there with the early Patricia Cornwell novels, Primal Fear and The Silence of the Lambs – a stunning first novel' (Manly Daily )
'Mcfadyen has managed to deliver something fresh. His style of narration sucks the reader in from the first sentence and the story has enough plot twists to keep you intrigued to the last page. A superb debut novel, hopefully a sign of things to come from a truly talented author. In a word: chilling' (Herald Sun, Australia )
'If you like to be scared so witless you hold your breath for pages at a time, SHADOW MAN won't disappoint' (New Idea, Australia ) --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.
Review
'Terrifically good, terrifically scary ... very hard to put down' -- San Francisco Chronicle 20060702 'SHADOW MAN grabs you by the throat and yanks you along for a hell of a scary ride. A spellbinding read from first page to last.' -- Faye Kellerman 20060702 'Coldly, stunningly brilliant. Move over Thomas Harris, Mcfadyen has brought a new game to town.' -- Lisa Gardner 20060702 'SHADOW MAN is one of the most powerful and authentic portrayals of a serial killer and the people who hunt them I have ever read. It kept me riveted right to the last page. Cody Mcfadyen is the real thing.' -- John Douglas, author of the #1 bestseller MINDHUNTER: Inside the F.B.I.'s Serial Crime Unit 20060702 'The wildest night ride I have been on for quite a while...By the time you finish reading this book you'll be running on adrenalin you never knew you had. If you're sick of books about serial killers, SHADOW MAN is the cure. Mcfadyen's writing and characterization run long, deep and true. And, by the way, he is beyond scary. Not to be missed' -- Bookreporter.com 20060620 'Authentic...handled well with some unexpected twists and turns. Mcfadyen has drawn Barrett and her fellow FBI members tenderly and intricately' -- Shots Magazine 20060620 'As humane as it is violent...Barrett's anger, pain and determination infuse the novel with a raw passion...it will be among the best crime fiction you will read this year' -- Washington Post 20060703 'Disturbing ... a promising debut for Mcfadyen, who combines many conventions of the genre but with far more exquisite, intricate results than the norm ... Pack[s] a visceral punch' -- Publishers Weekly 20060601 'A truly talented author' -- The Sunday Times, Australia 20060601 'I'm still reeling after reading this high-octane, heart-pumping FBI thriller...Brilliant. But not for the squeamish' -- ****Good Reading, Australia 20060601 'This is one of the best serial killer novels that I've read. It's up there with the early Patricia Cornwell novels, Primal Fear and The Silence of the Lambs -- a stunning first novel' -- Manly Daily 20060601 'Mcfadyen has managed to deliver something fresh. His style of narration sucks the reader in from the first sentence and the story has enough plot twists to keep you intrigued to the last page. A superb debut novel, hopefully a sign of things to come from a truly talented author. In a word: chilling' -- Herald Sun, Australia 20060601 'If you like to be scared so witless you hold your breath for pages at a time, SHADOW MAN won't disappoint' -- New Idea, Australia 20060530
--This text refers to the
Audio Cassette
edition.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Okay let's get this out of the way first: there is no doubt that Shadow Man won't upstage Hannibal but their similarities just cannot be avoided. A highly-intelligent killer dogged by a female FBI agent with "personal baggage". But in Cody McFadyen's first novel he portrays his characters, especially Special Agent Smoky Barrett, in a far more authentic light.
The opening chapter ends with Barrett contemplating suicide:
...."This gives me something to think about for the next three or four hours. Being crazy, I mean. Tomorrow is the day, after all.
The day when I decide if I go back to work for the FBI or come home, put a gun in my mouth, and blow my brains out"
So why would a successful FBI serial-killer hunter find herself in this position? The answer is that a madman terrorized her family, killing both her husband and daughter before turning his knife on her. Although Barrett was able to shoot him dead, the destruction of her family has left her utterly violated. None of this is giving the plot away.
Throughout the ensuing therapy sessions, Barrett believes she is slowly coming to terms with her personal horror but not yet ready to return to work. But a sadistic killer has other plans and issues her a personal message: a videotape of his latest hideous crime. One in which he leaves a child motherless by such a repugnant act of brutality that it leaves her mute. The gauntlet has been thrown down and Smoky Barrett accepts, waking the old Barrett -- the one who hunted killers for a living. But first she must face her old FBI buddies, a daunting task in itself.
There is a suggestion that Smoky's inner steel is slowly returning even if she seems to be forever misting over. But the killer is like no other she has hunted; and soon he claims more victims, all very close to home: a fellow agent, a woman and a mother.
Just how much more can Smoky take?
Much of the novel's plot is driven by Smoky's need to find the killer, as much for her own sanity as in catching him, and is handled well with some unexpected twists and turns. McFadyen has drawn Barrett her fellow FBI members tenderly and intricately.
The identity of the killer shouldn't come as too much of a surprise; it's rather elementary my dear Smokey. But the revelation is made all the more dramatic by almost allowing history to repeat itself.
The opening chapter ends with Barrett contemplating suicide:
...."This gives me something to think about for the next three or four hours. Being crazy, I mean. Tomorrow is the day, after all.
The day when I decide if I go back to work for the FBI or come home, put a gun in my mouth, and blow my brains out"
So why would a successful FBI serial-killer hunter find herself in this position? The answer is that a madman terrorized her family, killing both her husband and daughter before turning his knife on her. Although Barrett was able to shoot him dead, the destruction of her family has left her utterly violated. None of this is giving the plot away.
Throughout the ensuing therapy sessions, Barrett believes she is slowly coming to terms with her personal horror but not yet ready to return to work. But a sadistic killer has other plans and issues her a personal message: a videotape of his latest hideous crime. One in which he leaves a child motherless by such a repugnant act of brutality that it leaves her mute. The gauntlet has been thrown down and Smoky Barrett accepts, waking the old Barrett -- the one who hunted killers for a living. But first she must face her old FBI buddies, a daunting task in itself.
There is a suggestion that Smoky's inner steel is slowly returning even if she seems to be forever misting over. But the killer is like no other she has hunted; and soon he claims more victims, all very close to home: a fellow agent, a woman and a mother.
Just how much more can Smoky take?
Much of the novel's plot is driven by Smoky's need to find the killer, as much for her own sanity as in catching him, and is handled well with some unexpected twists and turns. McFadyen has drawn Barrett her fellow FBI members tenderly and intricately.
The identity of the killer shouldn't come as too much of a surprise; it's rather elementary my dear Smokey. But the revelation is made all the more dramatic by almost allowing history to repeat itself.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I love Serial Killer Thrillers and this book sure is one hell of a Serial Killer Thriller. We have the masked psycho, the brave but tortured FBI heroine and the cast of "loose moralled" women who star as the killer's victims. It's all there, regretably a lot of it has been done before but this doesn't have to spoil the read.
It's a very fast read which keeps you going from one page to the next not wanting to put the book down. McFadyen also has a way of making the killer seem really sinsiter and evil with the imagery he uses, something I found to be suprisingly effective.
There were a few things that let this book down for me. The first was the extreme nature of the characters. Everyone in the book was either the strongest, sharpiest, most intelligent, kindest, funniest person in the world . . . ever! This became a little tiresome after a while and also took away some realism from the book.
Another thing, a personal gripe perhaps. This book is written in the present tense and for some reason this stopped me from becoming really engrossed.
Thirdly, and the most damaging thing with the book, is the fact that the narrator is a female character but McFadyen's style of writing is very masculine and throughout the whole novel I really, truly couldn't believe in this character. I didn't believe in her wholly. Had this book been written in third person there would have been no problem. First person presented me with a big problem. Many people wouldn't recognise this.
Would I recommend this book? Yes. It isn't as grand and clever as other Serial Killer Thrillers but it is a good read. I await book number two.
It's a very fast read which keeps you going from one page to the next not wanting to put the book down. McFadyen also has a way of making the killer seem really sinsiter and evil with the imagery he uses, something I found to be suprisingly effective.
There were a few things that let this book down for me. The first was the extreme nature of the characters. Everyone in the book was either the strongest, sharpiest, most intelligent, kindest, funniest person in the world . . . ever! This became a little tiresome after a while and also took away some realism from the book.
Another thing, a personal gripe perhaps. This book is written in the present tense and for some reason this stopped me from becoming really engrossed.
Thirdly, and the most damaging thing with the book, is the fact that the narrator is a female character but McFadyen's style of writing is very masculine and throughout the whole novel I really, truly couldn't believe in this character. I didn't believe in her wholly. Had this book been written in third person there would have been no problem. First person presented me with a big problem. Many people wouldn't recognise this.
Would I recommend this book? Yes. It isn't as grand and clever as other Serial Killer Thrillers but it is a good read. I await book number two.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I'm astonished by all the good reviews, as this is one of the worst books i've ever read. The plot line was terrible, the murderer patently obvious, and main character downright annoying. For a team of the best FBI agents around they fail to follow the most obvious leads. All the information the killer has on them is passed off as easily obtainable, they ignore basic police procedure as smoky gets a "feel" on the killer, and the fact that she drags the daughter of a victim around is downright ridiculous. Jut when I thought the story couldn't get any worse this "top FBI agent" forgets to put security back on the girl after her first protectors were killed. Put all this together with a main character that spends page after page going on about how devastated she is about the death of her husband only to jump into bed with a man at the first opportunity, which then gives her a new hope in life truly made me want to give up reading it. But i'm a sucker for hanging on to the end, if only to have my expectations confirmed, which they were, in predictable circumstances.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A little disappointing
Just finished this book, I did enjoy it however I had a feeling who the killer was right from the start, I was right, so that was a bit disappointing the fact that it was... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Steph
Brilliantly shocking debut
I wasn't sure what to expect with this book so was really surprised to find how shocking it is! Of course we have the FBI agent who is damaged but it's still shocking to find out... Read more
Published 9 months ago by A. Douglas
Non stop rollercoaster ride
Must say was not expecting this book to be such a fast paced, edge of your seat read. Was drawn in right from the beginning and didn't stop reading until I was done. Read more
Published 13 months ago by november
Excellent thriller
The book is about this female FBI agent, who, after losing her family in a harrowing crime at the hands of a killer, has to deal with her broken life, as well as trying to catch a... Read more
Published 17 months ago by Juliana Apopei
Brilliant
The plot in this is very good. A few bits that maybe could have been written better BUT the plot kept you guessing and on reflection one or two pointers should have given the game... Read more
Published 20 months ago by Susie N.
The Shadow Man
A fantastic book - couldn't put it down and have now read all of his books. A brilliant story, superbly written. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Read more
Published 20 months ago by AV
loved it!!!
Smokey Barrett and her team are FBI agents on the hunt to catch dangerous criminals. The Shadow man starts with Smokey contemplating suicide, her husband and daughter were killed... Read more
Published 20 months ago by sbeugnies
tense and entertaining
I read this book in two sittings. It was my first time reading a Cody McFadyen novel, I was looking for a new thriller author and read the Amazon readers reviews and decided to... Read more
Published 20 months ago by G. Nolan
An Excellent Debut!
It's hard to believe that Shadow Man is Cody McFadyen's first thriller. His characters are very credible and multidimensional, the descriptive passages are vivid and graphic, the... Read more
Published 24 months ago by bobbewig
Excellent Thriller
Shadow Man is Cody McFadyen's explosive debut thriller. It features the detective Smoky Barrett as she goes through all kinds of personal turmoil while trying to track down a... Read more
Published on 29 Mar 2010 by P Woodburn
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