The Straw Men (Straw Men #1)

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Title: The Straw Men
Series: The Straw Men
Author: Michael Marshall
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Horror
Pages: 404
Format: Kindle digital edition







Synopsis:
A man's parents die and leave him a clue that will start him down a mysterious and dark path.
A young teen girl is kidnapped and a former cop, who's own daughter was abducted, is brought on board by an FBI agent to try to save the girl.
Both of these plots weave and twine together in a horrific clash of the worst of humanity.

My Thoughts:
I'd like to thank Runner for putting this book, and this trilogy, on my radar.

I was conflicted during the whole read. On one hand, it was gripping, well written and I DID NOT WANT TO STOP READING. On the other hand, dipping my mind, no matter how tangentially, into the cess pool of an insane killer who has formed a whole group of uber-rich killers of like mind, was disgusting and left me feeling filthy.

I also noticed just how bleak and hopeless everything was. I don't want that type of thinking to invade my mind. There is hope and there is meaning and there is purpose. As Browning wrote,

God’s in His heaven—All’s right with the world!

The above is why I gave this book 3 stars. On the writing side, it was a strong 4, maybe 4.5. I just couldn't put this down and wanted to read and read and read.  I'll be finishing the trilogy but after that I suspect I won't be reading any more by Marshall. Bleak and Hopeless aren't things I can deal real well with on a continual basis.

If you want a taut, horrific thriller, this is the book for you.