Good Samaritans

 

By Will Carver

British Crime Fiction

'Carver weaves these strands together for an unsettling but compelling mixture of the banal, the horrific and, at times, the near-comic, wrong-footing the reader at every turn'

— Laura Wilson, Guardian

My Review

While his wife Maeve sleeps alone upstairs, insomniac Seth stays up late randomly phoning strangers hoping someone will talk to him. One night a crossed line finds Seth chatting to a young suicidal woman, Hadley Serf, who mistakenly believes she's calling The Samaritans. In due course Seth and Hadley arrange to meet. Then Seth decides to bring Hadley home. . .

Good Samaritans is dark and extremely brutal. It contains graphic descriptions of sex, murder and disposal. The writing style with its concise sentences and short chapters takes a while to get used to but works very well. I wasn't sure where the story was heading until suddenly. . .BAM! I'm left questioning everything I thought I knew.

The book is a character-driven narcissistic read. It's unpredictable and twisty — a deadly game of cat and mouse. It most definitely shocks and disturbs but ultimately stands out as being original and insightful.            

Book Source: Purchased copy

My Rating ⭐⭐⭐

Buy From: Amazon UK | Amazon USA

Paperback: 318 pages

Publisher: Orenda Books (15 Nov 2018)

Genre: Crime

The Blurb

One crossed wire, three dead bodies and six bottles of bleach

Seth Beauman can't sleep. He stays up late, calling strangers from his phonebook, hoping to make a connection, while his wife, Maeve, sleeps upstairs. A crossed wire finds a suicidal Hadley Serf on the phone to Seth, thinking she is talking to The Samaritans.

But a seemingly harmless, late-night hobby turns into something more for Seth and for Hadley, and soon their late-night talks are turning into day-time meet-ups. And then this dysfunctional love story turns into something altogether darker, when Seth brings Hadley home.

And someone is watching.

The Author

Will Carver is the international bestselling author of the January David series. He spent his early years in Germany, but returned to the UK at age 11, when his sporting career took off. He turned down a professional rugby contract to study theatre and television at King Alfred's, Winchester, where he set up a successful theatre company. 

He currently runs his own fitness and nutrition company, while working on his next thriller. He lives in Reading with his two children.

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