I don't know how to review The Echo Man. On one hand it clearly contains a vast amount of deep research into true crime stories of the past. That diligence is reflected in this fast-paced horror show on wheels containing quite a lot of graphic violence of every sort imaginable. On the other hand the story played out in a relatively predictable manner. I've said in many previous reviews that the books I like best are those where I cannot figure out who the killer is. Here I nailed it pretty early on and could even suss the twist. Not to say it wasn't shocking and, well, graphic. It was but the 'ah ha!' moment fell a bit short for me.

Regardless, the story gripped me and even the heavy-handed distribution of gore, violence, abuse all described very graphically didn't put me off. That's saying something. A good story, with characters a reader can get behind is king.

A dark and intriguing plot about a serial killer who copies other notorious serial killers' methods, while Jessica teams up with a suspended police officer to try and solve the murder of her husband. This is a very gory and graphic novel which was sometimes a little too much for me but overall the story was intense and made me want to keep on reading. I liked both Jessica and Griffin's characters who have had troubling pasts and their connection grows as the murders become more gruesome. It becomes a race against time to catch the killer making for a fast paced novel with a twist at the end for an impressive debut.

I found this book just too dark, disturbing and graphic for me, so didn't finish it. However, if you like brutal serial killers, this is definitely the book for you!

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance copy for an honest (and rather wimpy) review!

I can sincerely say that this is one of the best books I have read in a very long time and you have to read it!

What a debut novel for Sam Holland. Dark, twisted, fast paced, a true roller coaster of a ride, keeping your heart rate up, and breathing fast.

Brilliant storyline, brilliant characters, loved Cara and her brother Griffin. Couldn´t put this down, didn´t want it to end.

Quite simply, a masterpiece!

My thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for giving me the opportunity to read an advanced copy in return for an honest review.

My thanks to HarperCollins U.K. for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘The Echo Man’ by Sam Holland in exchange for an honest review.

This extremely dark crime thriller is Sam Holland’s debut. I usually feel that content warnings are not necessary when it comes to crime fiction, as by its nature the genre is dealing with violence and disturbing topics. However, ‘The Echo Man’ is extremely graphic in terms of descriptions.

It is told from various perspectives and opens with the murderer giving an chilling account of his latest grisly murders. Then we are introduced to
Jessica (Jess) Ambrose, who announces herself as bored. Well not for long as soon after her home is set ablaze in the night and while she manages to escape with her young daughter, her husband dies in the fire. Despite this narrow escape, Jess appears to be the police’s main suspect!

So Jess runs and finds refuge with suspended police detective Nate Griffin, who is convinced that Jess is innocent as he suspects that the arson links to his wife’s unsolved murder.

DCI Cara Elliott, Nate’s sister, is working on the murders that opened the novel. It’s not long before Cara and her partner, DS Noah Deakin, have another murder scene that echoes an infamous 1969 case.

Jess and Nate in their own investigation come up with the theory that a single perpetrator is responsible for a string of murders across England copying the world’s most notorious serial killers. Nate passes this information to Cara, who takes him seriously. Before long the unsub is dubbed by the Press as The Echo Man…..

I have to admit that as the novel progressed the body count became rather bonkers. Also, such a high profile case would undoubtedly not remain with the local police. A touch of debut novel over enthusiasm?

In terms of its characters I quickly took to both Cara and Nate. At first Jessica was more problematic though she certainly demonstrated that her time watching True Crime documentaries was well spent.

The author cites their love of the macabre and enthusiasm for authors whose work that I also enjoy. I felt that ‘The Echo Man’ straddled the line between crime and horror.

‘The Echo Man’ was undoubtedly a gripping twisty police procedural that kept me guessing from start to finish. I definitely will be on the look out for Sam Holland’s future projects.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

After the death of a man in an arson fire , Detective Cara Elliot and her partner Noah Deakin suspect his wife (Jess) of the murder . She is in hospital along with their young daughter Alice and awaiting interview. Cara's brother Nate (who is also a detective but has been suspended from work , after an incident) does not believe she did this as he has his suspicions that started after his wife Mia had been murdered and he had been seriously hurt after an attack at his house . He is now living in a scruffy basement flat and treating his aches with prescription drugs and alcohol . Jess flees the hospital and Nate hides her and tells Cara of his suspicions about somebody recreating famous murder scenes, she does not believe him but starts to look into the theory , which becomes confirmed after a number of heads are found in the fridge at a flat they raid.
The race is on to find the killer before other lives are lost , sadly this is not the case but a message tracked to inside the police station points to somebody on the inside being responsible .
A deeply graphic novel and well written with an unexpected ending .

First thing to point out his book is not for the fainthearted! It is dark and pretty gruesome in places, but if you like that kind of stuff, you will really enjoy this!

Jess Ambrose is having a tough time all round, but when she is the victim of an arson attack that she escapes from, yet her husband doesn't, she finds herself as the prime suspect. The only person who does not think she is guilty is suspended detective Nate Griffin, so when she gets a chance, she escapes from the hospital and goes to find him in the hope that he can help her clear her name.
DCI Cara Elliott and her partner DS Noah Deakin are dealing with a spate of brutal murders by a killer who seems to be ramping up, but has no definite signature that they can see.
When the two cases collide, a link between the murders is found that they did not expect and that is going to make finding the killer even harder.

This was a brilliant debut read with elements of police procedural and psycholigical thriller weaved really well. It has many a twist and turn and just when I thought I knew the culprit, I was proved wrong, mire than once! With some excellently drawn characters, I definitely recommend it if dark and grisly is your bag!

The Echo Man by Sam Holland is an outstanding scary, violent psychological debut thriller book by the author. The Echo Man is a serial killer of the police’s worst nightmares. He is copying all of the work of the most infamous killers and is not leaving any clues. DCI Cara Elliott and her brother, Nate Griffin are both trying to track down the killer before he kills again but he is getting closer again and murdering people they both know now again!
Highly recommended.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ loved it!

Just my sort of book - twists and turns, shirt, snappy chapters, crime, drama…what else do you need?!

Recommended.

Wow! I don't really know what to say. This was one of the best books I've read in a long time. It was gripping, kept me guessing, it was interesting, had great characters. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who likes gory crime thrillers. Can't wait for another by this author

A serial killer is copying famous serial killers and DCI Cara Elliott and DS Noah Deakin are racing against time to find him before he causes even more bodies.
If you like horror and police procedurals then this is up your street. I found the details of how the victims were tortured bit too graphic for my taste. The other problem was how many serial killers were copied by the killer. I feel that it would have been better to have less and get into the killer's psyche more. Loved the story of Cara's brother, Griffin, who lost his wife to the killer.
For a first book, Sam Holland has written a great book. Well done.

This is Sam Holland’s debut novel and what a novel it is! For the first time in a long time, I genuinely couldn’t put this book down.

DCI Cara Elliott is the SIO in an arson attack on a family home where the Jess, the wife & mother of a little girl escapes but her husband is killed. When Jess realises the police think she did it because of her past, she runs from her hospital bed to the only person she knows believes her - suspended detective Nate Griffin, the brother of DCI Cara Elliott. Very quickly there are more murders and the police realise they have a serial killer, and a clever, devious sick one at that, on their hands.

This book starts powerfully and just never really lets up! It’s dark, very dark, chilling and gruesome but you’re hooked right from the start and the tension just keeps on building as the killer’s pace picks up.

It kept me up till the wee small hours and I picked it up at every opportunity. I thought I knew who the killer was at a couple of points in the book, then changed my mind, then changed it back!!

Brilliant debut, cannot wait for more of this author!!

My thanks go to Sam Holland, the publishers and NetGalley for an advance e.reader copy of this book. This review is, however, entirely voluntary and my honest opinion.

Holland focuses more on horror via the medium of human darkness in this debut. It’s gory and gripping, and I mostly enjoyed it. Wasn’t really affected by the blood and guts – often those scenes don’t read realistically to me – and I would have liked more psychological horror, but that’s just personal preference. An entertaining debut thriller.

A dark and twisted crime thriller about a copy.cat killer. Although fast paced and original, the story was not too my taste but other readers will enjoy it.

What a fantastic read I couldn't put it down. I really hope there is a follow up to this book so you can see what happens . Absolutely loved this book .

I absolutely loved the book! A serial killer echoes others from the past! Can ge be caught? A brilliant storyline. I literally could not put it down.

Well this was certainly a fairly graphic and gory debut novel. Lots of killings and the pace is absolutely relentless which made me reluctant to put the book down. Very enjoyable indeed (if like me you don't mind death and lots of it) no major signposting of who the culprit is to spoil the ending before you get there and I'm keen to see what the author does for their next outing.
Thanks to Netgalley, author and publisher for the advance copy for review purposes.

Jess is a bored housewife prone to casual sexual encounters but one night fuel is poured through her letter box, the house set on fire and her husband killed. The police think she did it so she discharges herself from hospital and goes on the run. Soon she meets up with Griffin, a suspended policeman, off work since he was attacked and his wife murdered. More murders are happening - Griffin's sister Cara is the DI in charge but she is making no progress. You won't spot who the killer is as the story wends its way to a bloody climax. Serial killer thriller to end them all!

Well I suppose this is a marmite sort of book and just not for me. The writing style is very good with timing but it was too full on for me. I do however know quite a few readers who will love it so I’m still happy to recommend it.

The Echo Man was a really decent read for me and can’t believe it’s Sam Holland’s debut as it felt like someone had wrote this with loads of books behind them.
This book is a crime thriller but has lots of gore and worse, from the moment I picked this up it kept me engrossed and I found myself making time to pick it up until I had finished it. You are definitely best off coming in blind to this one as I think it could be easily spoilt but believe me it’s a great read.
The characters are well developed and I felt like I got to know the main ones really well and that helped a lot. The plot line was decent and didn’t really change pace all the way through, keeping you interested by another murder happening or the main characters taking a twist.
I would recommend this and can’t wait for the next one as I feel this could link into a series?
I would like to thank Netgalley and HarperCollins UK HarperFiction for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.