THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL - AUDIENCE/REVIEWS

THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL has an established and significant audience in the crime thriller genre.

Commercial, yet upmarket, the novel has an addictive pace, strong and unique characters, and a foreboding, near-apocalyptic setting in NYC Covid 2020.

And it launches bookclub conversations, tackling head-on the polarizing issues of mental health, homelessness, addiction, religion and family.

THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL is stand alone, but its characters tease toward a series. A second is in development titled: 

"The Wheat Fields of August."

THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL is a winner waiting to happen.

 It is clear that you have built your thriller on a strong idea, researched it well, and then plotted and executed it very well. Your novel just blasts out of the gate, and we can’t help but run along with it, trying to keep up with the breakneck pace. It has the gritty realism of crime drama, the psychological intensity of serial-killer fiction, and the mythic, unsettling tone of religious horror. I think it has a potent commercial blend. The novel genuinely landed for me. It’s ambitious and very atmospheric. It is full of memorable moments that stick long after the last page. I loved Detective Ezra Cahan. You have a winner with him.  If you make a few structural decisions clearer, I think this manuscript will be more than ready for agents, and honestly, readers are going to devour it. Well done! 

Simona M, Beta Reader

The premise is interesting, the characters work well overall. It feels mostly grounded, like what a case like this would be like. I think the pacing was pretty on point, especially in the second and third acts. The action is easy to follow and you do a good job of building and maintaining suspense. Overall it’s quite engaging and there’s certainly a wide audience that will enjoy it. I don’t think that moderate religious people will be turned off by it in how it’s presented. It’s got some balance to it.

Pastor Joshua Powell, Beta Reader

Louisiana

This a very good book. I love that it is so different to most murder mysteries in that the police already know who the killer is, it's just capturing him that is the issue. I really like your two alternate epilogues. I'm not sure which I prefer. Did he deserve to die or spend the rest of his life locked up on meds? I don't know how I would answer that. It's definitely a bookclub talking point.

Trudie Collins, Beta Reader

  You have a nicely polished novel here. It reminds me of Stephen King’s crime novels without the supernatural aspect. I found myself getting wrapped up in the main characters in a good way. I think you should definitely start querying if you haven’t already. This book is that good. Great job. I thoroughly enjoyed this. Hope you keep writing and have more on the docket. Great stuff.

Mark Wolters, Beta Reader

The Book of Ezekiel is an outrightly gritty thriller that uses the Covid-19 pandemic as a backdrop to weave a sense of isolation and a somewhat apocalyptic dread. It pitches a delusional religious serial killer against a cynical, atheist/unbelieving detective. This, it uses to drive the book’s thematic conflict. The book has strong bones. Sunny/Ezekiel, as the villain, is terrifying and the use of biblical text as a big progressor of his psychosis is chilling. This novel will strongly appeal to readers who like dark, literary serial-killer thrillers with theological/ritualistic hooks (it’s reminiscent of Silence of the Lambs meets The Road with a social-media twist). The core strengths of the biblical motif and vivid set pieces are powerful. With a targeted round of structural tightening, clearer character logic for Sunny/Ezekiel, and some continuity fixes, this could be a standout psychological thriller.

Emily B., Beta Writer

"You're an engaging and punchy writer, and the short chapters lend a brisk pace. Already I have some thoughts on sharpening the opening."

Nathan Bransford, "Jacob Wonderbar" series author. Former literary agent. 

“Yeah, maybe I’ll read it someday.” 

Linda, JM's beloved wife.