TORTURED by Matt Shaw

WARNING: This is an extreme horror novel. Some scenes may offend or cause upset. With that in mind, please be aware this story is intended for a mature audience only.

Synopsis:

When financial problems hit Ryan he is forced to move his family to a smaller, more cost-effective, home on the outskirts of the city. But when his decisions lead him – and his family – directly into the path of a vicious serial killer who enjoys nothing more than to torture his victims, Ryan soon realises things will never be the same for any of them again.

Opinion:

I’ve just read some of the Amazon reviews, and I’m pissed.
I kind of take these bad reviews personally, because I love this book. I respect your right to dislike, but if you’re going to start slinging insults – have the balls to sign your name. Hiding behind the word ANONYMOUS is a dick move.

Fact:

TORTURED is not at all what I expected.
Now, maybe it’s just me – I expected a head-on assault to the senses, buckets of blood & gore galore. That is not what I got. Yes, I admit that I am becoming a bit desensitized to extreme horror – but I don’t think that’s the issue here. There are some pretty squirmy scenes, graphic, disturbing, but necessary to describe the mind set of the killer.
I never discuss these things, but I want to mention that Matt is doing things a little differently lately, and I’m really impressed with the new direction. The storylines are going deeper, and character development is a bit more detailed, (but still not unnecessarily padded – thank you, Matt!). What I love the most is how the stories are beginning to weave together. Different characters cross paths, locations are being revisited, older stories are tonight’s local news broadcast – it’s brilliant.
This book is full of winks & nods, I had to stop reading in the middle to go comment on Matt’s Facebook wall 🙂

A thought…

I have a feeling that we’re going to be seeing a lot more of Detective Andrews.