Redheads Paperback – November 5, 2013

Rob’s Critical Book Review: “Redheads,” by Jonathan MooreThough I’m sure to upset some authors and publishers who, understandably, want five-star reviews, I’ve my own definition of the five-star system.*One Star: A crime against God and man.*Two Stars: Poor, or otherwise not ready for publication.*Three Stars: A solid work worth the money/read.*Four Stars: A superior, award-worthy achievement.*Five Stars: A standard setter, a work to stand the test of time, a work to be studied and read again and again….A thriller? A procedural? A horror novel? Just pure page-turning fun--from the dark side!Fishing through Amazon's nearly endless supply of books, I came across this recommendation and took the plunge. And why wouldn't I? Look at the cover, and the title.Totally eye-catching.(Big props to cover designer Angela Waters.)The next thing that grabbed was a plug on Amazon by author phenom Jack Ketchum:“This is accomplished and exciting work, which at times seems to channel the best of Michael Crichton in its attention to believable, telling detail. Moore’s a major new talent, I promise you.”Then the book arrived and was about to be put in my ever-growing to-be-read pile, and act that would've relegated the reading experience to some months in the future. So what happened? I decided to thumb through the front-matter and came across an expanded plug by Ketchum that said (in part):"The first hundred pages or so of this damn book kept me up until three in the morning, and then it just...got better. ..."Yeah, right, Jack.Like readers have never heard something like that before.Thus the decision was made to start that night, at bedtime, to read a few pages, you know, just to prove that blurbs are just flavored praise.Damned if Mr. Ketchum hadn't called it.I finished "Redheads" in three sittings, with that first night taking me through to page 120 (and then stopping only because of dire need of rest).Here's the book's description:A killer far worse than insane.Chris Wilcox has been searching for years, so he knows a few things about his wife’s killer. Cheryl Wilcox wasn’t the first. All the victims were redheads. All eaten alive and left within a mile of the ocean. The trail of death crosses the globe and spans decades.The cold trail catches fire when Chris and two other survivors find a trace of the killer's DNA. By hiring a cutting-edge lab to sequence it, they make a terrifying discovery. The killer is far more dangerous than they ever guessed. And now they’re being hunted by their own prey.My score for this book?Three Stars ... meaning a solid work worth the money and the read.But it's tempting to give it four.Very.Of a truth, this novel was nominated for the Bram Stoker Award.Should it have won?I don't have that answer, but I do understand the nomination, and anyone that picks up this bullet-fast book and gives it a try is going to be hard-pressed to be disappointed.I, for one, believe that Moore did everything right for this particular tale, the prose, the pacing, the delightful way he kept "the bad guy" in the shadows for so darn long.Moore, for "Redheads," I applaud you.And for Jack Ketchum: Sir, apologies for doubting your words.

Redheads started off like a fairly standard police procedural/thriller, with one man's search for the serial killer who murdered his wife. The details were gruesome but not overly-so by today's standards, so I settled in, thinking I knew where this story was going. I quickly found out how wrong I was as the plot took an unexpected turn and became a full-blown horror story. From that point there was no putting it down as I followed the characters to exotic locations all over the globe in search of a monster who prefers redheads. The action was fast-paced and the unfolding story truly creepy, imparting increasing paranoia as it became apparent just how far in over their heads the characters had gotten, despite their various elaborate attempts to remain hidden and protected. If you enjoyed Guillermo del Toro/Chuck Hogan's collaboration, the Strain trilogy, you will like Redheads.

Far too 'bloody long in the middle, far too short at the end. Great premise though - what a shame it was not developed more. My feeling is the author tried to outdo Lincoln and Childs but failed - a real pity because he actually could have left them in the dust if he had not rushed the ending and tried to show how clever he is with getting his characters out of certain situations all through the middle. Wish Mr. Moore would have taken his time to develop his undoubted incipient talent and would certainly buy his next effort to see if he has matured in his plot development but ultimately this book leaves you with a weird combination of feeling cheated and wanting more.

I got this book for Christmas and had no idea what to expect, but Moore's debut was without a doubt one of the hardest books to put down. The publisher is known for horror, but this book's genre is hard to pin down. It is more of a grisly crime thriller, than horror. With a villain you'll never forget. I highly recommend you pick up Redheads. It was the kind of book where right after I finished I went to figure out if he's written anything else. Two more books are on the way! It's like discovering Stephen King when the only book he had out was Carrie.

I have just finished devouring this book with the same voraciousness of its villain. Having grown up in Texas and having visited places like Oahu, San Francisco, and Edinburgh, the thing that gets you the most is the geographical accuracy. It grounds the story in realism and allows you to walk the streets with the heroes. This lends, in turn, the more fantastic elements increased veracity. This book is not for the easily nauseated. But it is a gripping tale and I could barely put it down. It's a very suspenseful thriller with a soupçon of horror.Joe Bob says Check it out.

Great, captivating macabre storytelling at a clip with not a jot of those cringe-worthy bad writing moments typical horror fictions is so rife with. Moore has an impressive command of language, character and plot, such that I found myself having finished the novel in a day. I think it's particularly unique in its appeal to a combination of thriller and horror readers--two categories of enthusiast that do not always go together. This is his first published novel, but with writing like this, you better believe it will not be his last.

This is the first book that I have read by Jonathan Moore. I have to say it was like reading an Indian Jones story written joy Stephen King, or even Dean Koontz! I used to be an avid reader of Koontz, but haven't found any for some time. Moore is great and I enjoyed this book very much. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes horror and mystery, and has a strong stomach 😳

Redheads is the debut novel by Jonathan Moore and has already been nominated for Superior Achievement in a First Novel by the Bram Stoker Horror Writers Awards.Chris Wilcox is tracking a particularly insane killer, a killer who thrives on the fear of his victims, a cannibalistic murderer who tortures, mutilates and consumes parts of each of his targets, a killer who leaves no trace and is seemingly as adept at hiding his tracks as he is in taking lives.His targets are female’s with Red hair, generally in ports to allow for easy escape and Chris’s wife was one of his victims but Chris now has a bead on him. He discovered this killer likes to revisit the crime scene and this leads to a DNA sample with unbelievable results.Chris picks up help during his investigation, including Julissa, the twin sister of another victim, yes a redhead and Westfield an ex-serviceman, whose wife was also taken but they might just be up against something over and above what they can possibly handle.It’s not till around half way into the book that we see through the eyes of the killer, what he’s actually capable of and he’s certainly a chilling adversary, with some terrifying talents that have aided his rampage for many years. This is where the book really picks up, not to say it was slow before but when we see exactly what our protagonists are up against its macabre but definitely fascinating.I won’t give any more away but this is a very well written thriller/horror that deserves its nomination and I will be looking out for more work from this author.A 4.5 Rating, Recommended.

Guess what? It was a monster! Ho hum, you can see where Moore got the idea for "The Poison Artist" from but this is very much an experiment that doesn't work.

Read this in a day. Agonisingly addictive. Great characters, gripping story line and just the right balance of horror and thriller.