This is a great read, and I thoroughly enjoyed it! Everyone wants somebody to love, but is the risk worth the reward? In this time of hookups and instant gratification, many look to the internet for the opportunity to feel close to someone or just to hook up with someone. However, sometimes you just have no idea of who is on the other end of that instant message. There is violence and abuse and hook ups between gay men. If any of that bothers you, then this is not the book for you, but if you are looking for a well-written thriller, you will enjoy this book. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the opportunity to review this book. I am looking forward to reading other books by this author.

IM by Rick R Reed.
Chicago Police Department detective Ed Comparetto is called to a scene. A man is dead. The Victim is Tony Evan's. The person who discovers the body is Timothy Bright. Ed finds out he is gay. He logged on to Men4HookUpNow.com.
It's a gay site. Ed is going to find the killer. He's determined. He's killed Tony Evans, David Westhoff, Milt Weinsap, John Austin, and, maybe Mark Dietrich.
A brilliant read. I had no idea who the killer was. What a twist too. I didn't see that coming. I liked Ed's character. 5*.

***I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Netgalley and NineStar Press.***

This book has an interesting premise, one that is becoming more relevant as the idea of social networking and hook up culture gains ever more steam. It plays on a lot of fears that people have. One side is spurring you on a hormonal rush to an anonymous lover, the other is wondering just how do you know the person you’re meeting isn’t a psycho? Ultimately, the book had it’s good points but it wasn’t done very well. The characterizations had a lot of inconsistencies, the story had gaping plot holes and the entire ending was written in a way that confused me as to what was going on.

One of the good things in this book was Peter. I really enjoyed him. I found him funny, sardonic and at times wise beyond his years. His romance with Ed was very sweet. I was rooting for the two of them because they were both nice guys that desperately wanted a relationship more meaningful than just hooking up.

I also really enjoyed that this book didn’t shy away from the depravity within its pages. Sometimes when an author feels uncomfortable writing something dark they tend to do a “fade to black” just when things are getting serious. I always admire an author that has the courage to see the depravity through. As an amateur writer myself I have written scenes that made myself feel ill and they are really hard to write. I was uncomfortable reading this book, so well done to the author.

Unfortunately, I just couldn’t get over some big things with the book. The first problem was the ever growing cast of narrators. Virtually every other chapter was “Meet Guy 2, he’s lonely and wants to hook up with a dude from online. He is wary that the person won’t be anything like they described themselves. Ahhh, he’s going to kill me.” Then the killer kills them and we move on to a chapter about Ed being frustrated with finding a killer. It got repetitive and boring, and the constant shuffling of narrators who were subsequently killed made it difficult to connect with the story emotionally. It’s hard to get an emotional investment in a character who is only around for ten pages.

There was also a very huge problem with the characterization of the killer. Sometimes he is portrayed as a victim of abuse and neglect, getting back at the homosexual world that had so richly abused him over the years. Then other times we’re treated to narratives about him being a psychopath and torturing animals as a child, or torturing lovers because the pain is a turn on. Those two things don’t really mix very well. Which one is he? I had a hard time reconciling both in my head as being the same person. Violent psychopaths typically don’t make for very easy victims.



SPOILER ALERT: The following paragraphs contain some minor spoilers.



A few of the big plotholes took away from the story for me too. First, the circumstances that Ed finds himself in with his job were weird. It literally made no sense and was never explained. Ed gets fired for allegedly “fabricating” the witness who discovered the first body. They allege that he had no witnesses so he made one up to make it seem like he had a lead. But here’s the problem. The witness was seen by several people. Several other people talked to him before Ed even arrived. When Ed arrived, he is directed to the witness by one of those people. But then the person is just too upset about the crime scene to remember clearly? That was very weakly done. There are plenty of options for having Ed be terminated through crooked means but this was just dumb.

I had a big problem with exactly how the killer seemed to be a full head (or more) shorter than everyone he killed, but it wasn’t a problem. He is described as “elfin” about a thousand times. He’s so short that he sometimes can’t be seen through peepholes. But yet, he physically overpowers and kills multiple men who are larger, more athletic and stronger than him. How does that happen? I have no idea. All the book told me is that he does. It’s not explained how that happened at all.

The ending was really confusing. I was being told about a lot of things happening at once and the way it was written made it all seem jumbled. All of a sudden Ed would be jumping up to attack the killer and I was thinking “Wait, but wasn’t the killer over by the door? How did he get here all of a sudden?” I started to skim it for the high points because I just didn’t follow it.

I think there are a lot of good bones to this book. The writing shows a lot of talent and the idea is a good one. It really needs a good edit or two.

This one did not pull me in as much, compared to other books by Reed that I've read. The writing was well done as always though. Although the multiple points of view threw me off at times.

Wow… okay, I’m not an extremely critical reader, so things that might bother other people about IM didn’t really bother me. Like the fact that Ed lost his job at the CPD with little or no investigation. I would hope that’s not the norm… Okay, so maybe it bothered me a little bit, but only because it was totally unfair. It left Ed on his own to find out what really happened.

Ed figured out who the serial killer was, but it was impossible to prove. Especially since the person he suspected was supposedly dead. So… searching for a dead man is Ed’s only lead.

I’m one of those readers that likes alternating POVs and IM contained quite a few. The ones that stood out the most were the POV’s of the actual victims. IM actually begins with one of these chapters. I kind of liked that unique approach. It definitely added to the suspense.

A touch of romance, a suspenseful mystery, more than a little danger… everything I love in a good suspense. I’ve read more than a few Rick R. Reed ARCs lately and some of them have been hits, some of them have been misses… IM was definitely a hit.

Representation: largely gay cast
TW/CW: murder, violence, body mutilation, graphic sex, pedophilia, sexual assault, necrophilia, child/domestic abuse and neglect


Okay, first thing's first. This is a book in which many gay men die.

I know this is something that some LGBTQIA+ readers find upsetting, particularly as the sole plot device of the book. If so, this book isn't for you. I am unsure where my feeling exactly land in this dilemma. But as Reed is a predominantly LGBTQIA+ author, I see no harm from the outset personally.

This is all I will say on this discussion throughout this review.

I love messed up, gory, creepy characters. Or I love hating them at least. And this is where Reed got me hooked in this story.

Reed's development of Timothy Bright, our main creepo & serial killer, was a fascinating character. There are some pretty graphic scenes with him, so just a heads up if this isn't your thing. And while the character certainly wasn't fleshed out as much as I would have liked and there something a little thrown-together about his eventual backstory, I did enjoy him as a character.

Our other characters - namingly, our MC, Ed, and his love interest, Peter? Left me a little wanting. The relationship was very insta-romance, which didn't fit the story at all. And Eds entire career situation is riddled with plot holes.

The story itself, while mostly enjoyable, was fairly generic as far as a serial killer plot goes. I guessed the twist about a third of the way in and it wasn't anything special. IM is a quick to digest book but by the second half I was pretty underwhelmed.

If you want something quick to jump through and a creepy-as-all-heck antagonist - maybe you should check this out. Just don't be hoping for a gob-smacking plot ending to write home about.

I received this eARC of #IM by Rick R. Reed from #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is essentially a serial killer murder mystery, with the killer targeting gay guys he meets on an online 'dating' website (hence the title IM, being instant messaging). The main protagonist is our hero cop Ed Comparetto (also gay and recently single) who is set up by the killer from the get go, and suspended from his job on the Chicago PD. It's one of those stories where you know who the killer is quite early on, but spend a lot of time thinking is it actually him? There is of course a back story of abuse and mental illness, so look out for lots of triggers.

The book is told from multiple POVs which can get annoying at times, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Lots of creepy moments too, where I thought maybe I'd carry on reading in the morning rather than at bedtime 😀

There's a nice little side storyline romance for our hero, which was a welcome relief from (an awful lot) of blood and gore and torture and general nastiness.

Other triggers include: rape, abuse, child abuse (off page and remembered), graphic violence.

3.5 ✨✨✨

I am incredibly sorry to say that I DNF'd this book a little under 60% of the way through. I really wanted to love this book and had all the elements that I normally would but I didn't.

This story has an amazing premise that hints at mystery, the unknown, and the possibility of the supernatural. The reason I didn't like it as I thought I would is two-fold. The first being that we switch perspectives a lot. Almost every new section is told from a different character's point of view, which made it incredibly difficult to connect to any one of them - especially the main character. We don't get to spend enough time with the main character to really emphasize with him. This is highlighted by the fact that he is dealing with a homicide case that hits really close to home and I didn't care how he felt about it.

The second part follows the first. One if the perspectives we read from is the killer's. I feel like this is already an incredibly difficult point of view to write from because the author has to get us to understand their killer's motives without making it seem like a cartoon/over exaggerated version of one. In this book, that was not helped that there is kind of this possible mysterious/supernatural feeling to the character. the beginning of the book, we are made to question if the killer had actually died and someone was posing as them or if something else was going on. But we find out pretty early on who the killer is and this negates any mystery towards the killer. I feel that this could have been helped some if the author learned into this supernatural/spooky aspect and not had the killer be a POV we read from. Maybe kept it to the detective's POV and make us wonder/the detective wonder if the killer was really who he thought it was, if someone was playing with him, or if something supernatural was going on.

Not for the faint of heart that’s for sure! This a very graphic book and could cause people who have been abused to be triggered when reading. It’s hard to read because of the pure horror that’s being described, but I couldn’t stop reading just the same. Amazingly written, will for sure look up more books from this Author.

I was excited to read this from the description alone, as there are too few non-romance LGBTQ books and I love a good thriller. However, it took a lot to finish this book as I found I wasn't really interested in how the story plays out. This is more of a horror book than a mystery and I hate crime thrillers where you know who the murderer is right away. It's just not suspenseful to me, and the villain just kind of loiters around the plot being evil until it is time for the protagonist to meet him.
The relationships between the main character Ed and other men feel authentic, and not sappy or idealized like some novels try for. Ed feels like a guy I could see at the grocery store and I enjoyed him for the most part. The plot is too much like a cliche horror movie to really recommended this though. What you think will happen definitely happens, and there were so many moments I found myself thinking about how a movie version of this story would be torn apart by an audience as it plays out. For example, Ed calls his boyfriend only to tell him not to go to a graveyard to meet him because the killer will be there, which of course the boyfriend does, and you can probably finish the plot from there. Also, the killer's past feels like a soap opera of twins, and unregistered births, and sexual trauma which is just so tired and unneeded. I also don't understand why Ed is fired from his police job if he is going to spend the whole book investigating a series of murders. As a civilian he has no real capacity to solve a series of murders on his own, and is obstructing justice in a way that a former cop should know will probably not end well for him. Why would he keep investigating this, and expecting people to keep helping him if he is basically a vigilante?
The tone is creepy and the characters aside from the actual murderer feel somewhat grounded, but the actual plot really disappoints.

IM
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am thrilled to have discovered this writer.
It’s by no means suitable for the faint hearted, (the scenes of violence are devilishly good) nor the narrow minded, (if descriptions of gay hook ups and abuse are not your thing, you might want to pass), but the writing, characterisation and plot are all so well done, you’d be missing out if you did.
The story centres around cop Ed Comparetto’s determined drive to catch a serial killer before they strike again. The killer however, is always one step ahead of Ed which means that every casual encounter, could mean a possible date with death.
Slick, tense and well paced I highly recommend this as an exciting and original read.

An intense novel that doesn't let you put it down until yo reach the end. I actually blinked several times when I realized I just turned the last page! although this is not romance, there was enough to make it a balanced reading, filled with horror, gore and blood. Creepy and charming at the same time.

A very interesting tightly written gay thriller . Told from multiple perspectives. A good read. Great for bedtime, if you like nightmares.

IM was not what I expected and also not what I’m used to seeing from this author. Don’t get me wrong, this was very well thought out and written. The characters were strong and able to carry the story well. I’m used to Rick’s books evoking strong emotions from me and that’s what this lacked for me. This book isn’t for the faint heart since it’s pretty graphic, Over all I do like this book and will recommend but I don’t see myself actually reading.

Ed is a detective investigating the deaths of gay men who meet up via a dating site, where the murderer is someone who was murdered a couple of years before.

This took a lot longer for me to read than it should have because it really is not for me. Pretty much all the way through, the reader knows who the murderer is and it's just about watching Ed figure it all out. I prefer a book like this to have surprises and twists in the story and this was sadly lacking.

Positives for the author
- It was well written with an intelligent use of language. I just didn't buy into the story.
- There are no typos and the format is good and makes it easy to read.
- The chapters are a sensible length.
-The characters are all well developed.

Thank you to #NetGalley for providing me with a free, pre-release copy of #IM in exchange for an honest review.

I would rate this 3.25 stars.

The title of the book IM (Instant Message) refers to how the killer meets his victims online. There is plenty to terrify anyone who thinks meeting up with a stranger to get off is a good idea. The men do it for a variety of relatable reasons: to alleviate loneliness; maybe they aren't out and want the anonymity; or they like the thrill of it--the surprise of who will come to the door. I didn't see a date (except for flashbacks), but I think this takes place during the late 90's in Chicago. The whole book is told as a series of little vignettes, slices of life, with each chapter from the different points of view of the people affected. Many of them are told from the men right before they are murdered with sick and gruesome details emerging later as a detective from the Chicago PD, investigates. Ed loses his job, likely due to homophobia in the department, but he can't let this case go and continues on his own, trying to find the killer who has taken to toying with him.

The author builds the tension slowly with creepy noises, creaky floorboards, whistling and howling winds, and the thoughts of paranoia the characters experience. The writing style is piecemeal as the reader struggles to figure out what happened to the killer to "make him this way," but really it's probably a little bit of nature and a little bit of nurture. Be aware there are necrophilia elements, murder, rape, child abuse, drugs, AIDS, and dismemberment. I'm glad that the point of views are short so as not to become too attached to the people who die, and the style which is also removed, like an outside observer allows a distance. That is also a criticism because nothing feels too immediate and I think the book suffers for it with a lack of emotional investment on my part. The writing style also makes the book drag on so it feels much longer than a regular narrative.

Ed repeatedly puts himself in danger, (unarmed!), due to his curiosity. Even his boyfriend Peter is at his wit's end with it and I am on his side. The book references all the famous serial killers with a nod to how they ultimately got caught, but they all went out with a whimper, not a bang. It was pretty anticlimactic. Here, the final confrontation and wrapping up of loose ends is strange and OTT (over the top). Then there is the fact that the story relies on a small, slight man described as elfin without much strength who outsmarts and physically outmaneuvers an ex-policeman that is in good shape and has 50+ pounds on him. This didn't work as a romance (Ed and Peter), but was slightly more successful as a suspense/thriller.

Rick R. Reed is a successful author with over 35 books (and counting) and his book list is an interesting mix of M/M romance ... and horror.  Yup,  horror.  Reed addresses this interesting dichotomy in his blog, noting "I think that sense of emotional vulnerability applies to both romance and horror. Vulnerability is universal and that’s why people enjoy reading about it."

IM gives us that vulnerability in this tale of Chicago men using Men4HookUpNow and finding death at their door.&nbsp; We really get a sense of what each man is hoping to find (love, romance, sex, kink) and these richly-detailed vignettes make the horror that comes much more terrifying and poignant (although I found the deaths <i>very</i> disturbing).

However, I didn't get as clear a sense of the book's main character Ed, gay former Chicago police detective who seemingly meets a dead man at the scene of the crime and is fired for falsifying his police report. The rationale for his firing seems unlikely given that other people at the crime scene also saw the supposed dead man and it's a bit of a reach to use this as a plot device to get fired so he could independently work on the case.. The unfolding of the intricate plot definitely held my interest throughout, and the victims broke my heart, but the POVs from a multitude of characters seemed like overkill (no pun intended). 3.5 stars for IM.

3.5* It's stark, grim, unpalatable and ends in an ending that kind of... isn't?

This book isn't for the squeamish, and it should be noted that this is not a romance. It is a pretty disgusting tale when you consider the content, but it's told well. You should heed the various warnings, as the bad guy in this has no conscience, on top of being messed up.

Parts were predictable and the baddie's identity was a surprise for only a brief moment. I can't quite figure out when the tale is set, but it can't be any more than about 10 years back, so I was puzzled as to why a mistake would result in someone being sacked, rather than someone being hauled up and the matter discussed. But, I suppose that had that person not been sacked, they wouldn't have been free to pursue things as they did.

I'm not sure why I read it. Likely equally because of the 'this is not a romance' warning from the author and publisher, and because of the author's name. I didn't like it and I certainly didn't click with any of the leads or the portrayal of the gay men in this tale, because tbh, it was all overshadowed by the horror of how a person can be so warped. Ugh.

ARC courtesy of NineStar Press and NetGalley, for my reading pleasure.

I was really excited to read this book, I pushed it to the top of my to be read shelf. I really did enjoy most of the book, but that ending though? Very unsatisfying. I am a reader who likes all the loose ends tied up and this book did not deliver that. Other than that I thought the characters were well rounded and the story progressed easily.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read IM bu Rick R. Reed.

I have to start off saying i do not know about this one. This contained way too many triggers for me. I have not been affected by all but I have to say. If they do affect you..do not read this book. For example, rape, pedophilia almost want to say..you name it,.it was there. I have to say..this showed you a side of the world that we do not know and that we have to be a bit more careful about. Ask yourself, who is behind that screen?