Her Darkest Nightmare, first in an electrifying new series from New York Times bestselling author Brenda Novak THE HUNT FOR A SERIAL KILLER Evelyn Talbot knows that a psychopath can look perfectly normal. She was only sixteen when her own boyfriend Jasper imprisoned and tortured her and left her for dead. Now an eminent psychiatrist who specializes in the criminal mind, Evelyn is the force behind … in the criminal mind, Evelyn is the force behind Hanover House, a maximum-security facility located in a small Alaskan town. Her job puts her at odds with Sergeant Amarok, who is convinced that Hanover is a threat to his community even as his attraction to beautiful Evelyn threatens to tear his world apart.
BEGINS WITH AN ESCAPE FROM HER PAST
Then, just as the bitter Alaskan winter cuts both town and prison off from the outside world, the mutilated body of a local woman turns up. For Amarok, this is the final proof he needs: Hanover has to go. Evelyn, though, has reason to fear that the crime is a personal message to her the first sign that the killer who haunts her dreams has found her again. . .and that the life she has so carefully rebuilt will never be the same
Brenda Novak’s seamless plotting, emotional intensity, and true-to-life characters make her books completely satisfying. New York Times bestselling author Allison Brennan
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This book was so good!
Evelyn Talbot suffered the ultimate betrayal at the hands of her childhood sweetheart and almost paid with her life.
Years later, devoting her career to study dangerous psychopaths, she hopes to learn from the criminals and maybe save victims like herself.
When mutilated bodies begin to show up in the small town of Hilltop, Sergeant Amorak has his hands full amid growing suspicions. His investigation leads him to Hanover House and creates tension between him and the woman he’s come to care about- the force behind Hanover House- Evelyn.
The suspense is so thick you could cut it with a knife (Don’t give these criminals ideas!) and the who-done-it aspect kept me guessing for most of the book. Each chapter begins with a creepy quote from a real serial killer and was arguably the best part of the story for me; it totally added to the thrill factor!
If I had a complaint, it would be the climax. I felt let down by the abruptness of the ending after such a big build-up. That said, this is a really good read.
I give Her Darkest Nightmare 4 lovely kisses
I could not wait for this book because I really liked Evelyn Talbot in Hanover House (Evelyn Talbot .5). She has lived thru a brutal attack and the death of her friends as a teen and is determined to put that experience behind her and she now studies the minds of the most depraved psychopaths. Hanover House is located in a very small Alaskan town where she has opened a maximum-security facility and she studies these men in the hope of helping others to understand what drives these criminals. A winter storms brings everything to a standstill and that is when the dismembered head turns up at the local bar and then an arm in Dr Talbot’s bed. Is this a message directed at her. Sgt Amarok is against all that she has tried to accomplish at Hanover House because he feels it should not be in his community. He tries to close himself off from Evelyn but he finds he cannot stop his growing attraction to her and even though she has tried to keep her distance she is not sure if she can overcome her past. Will they be able to discover who is behind these crimes or will Evelyn once again come face to face with her past. Great read cannot wait for the next book. I would like to thank the Publisher and Net Galley for the chance to read this ARC.
Her Darkest Nightmare is filled with suspense. The romance between Evelyn and Amarok is believable and unique. Although I had my suspicions as to the villain’s identity, Brenda Novak kept me guessing until the end. Fast-paced, enjoyable read!
Her Darkest Nightmare (The Evelyn Talbot Chronicles, #1) was a great read by Brenda Novak. Evelyn knows better than anyone else that a psychopath can look perfectly normal. She believed that her high school boyfriend, Jasper, was normal. He wound up imprisoning and torturing her. Evelyn is the force behind Hanover House, a maximum security prison located in Alaska. Where the doctors and specialists learn everything they can from the scariest prisoners from around the country. She is at odds with Sergeant Amarok, because he doesn’t want Hanover House in his small town. Evelyn’s past and present come together and try to ruin everything that she has built. I loved reading this book and can’t wait to read the rest of this series.
Wow! Just wow! I enjoy psychological thrillers but this one was beyond anything I’ve read before. The Evelyn Talbot series promises to be one of my favorites.
This book kept me on the edge of my seat. I couldn’t wait to find out what would happen next yet dreading it at the same time. I love the evolution of the relationship between Evelyn and Amarok. They are well suited and well matched.
I enjoy reading Brenda Novak and this book is just one more reason why she has such a following!Brenda Novak
I read Her Darkest Nightmare after reading the prequel Hanover House. I find the look into the mind of psychopaths very interesting. There was an overabundance of corrupt people in the book. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the Evelyn Talbot series, Hello Again.
Her Darkest Nightmare took me on wild ride of murder, mystery and complete mayhem. I think this might have been my first Brenda book, but it will not be my last. I’ve already got my next one lined up!
Dr. Talbot is a wonderful woman the is driven to see Hanover House be a success. Unfortunately, there have been a few bumps in her way. The facility has only been open for two months, and the town has two dead women. Talbot and Amorak push to find the answers to who killed these women. They both fear someone at Hanover House might be involved in the crimes. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series.
Who to trust? Very good read.
Kept my interest from the beginning to the last page!
Love this series!
This book will definitely keep you reading. The psychopaths are running amok in HH, and not all are behind bars. This is book 2 in the Evelyn Talbot series. I enjoyed reading and could not put it down. I look forward to the next book Hello Again.
Let me just say that when I started this book I honestly wasn’t very excited. It took so long (a year) for this book to come since I read the last book Hanover House, that I lost interest. I hate when books take forever to come out. I read 100s of books and I tend to forget something I read a year and 200 books in the past. The good news is that Brenda Novak did a great job of grabbing my attention immediately and had me hooked on the story from page 1. I really enjoyed this book almost as much as the Hanover House (the first book). It was an excitingly suspenseful thriller that kept be guessing til the end. The only thing I didn’t really like was how much Evelyn was trippin’ over herself dating a younger man. Amarok was 7 years younger then her and the way she went on you would have thought she was 60 and he was 18. She used it to push him away and it got on my nerves. I can understand that a older woman might feel a little insecure, but He was 29 and she was 36 that isn’t a huge deal and she made herself out to be a cradle robbing cougar.
The age difference was just a little bit too much. Evelyn and Amarok already had a ton to overcome with her horribly traumatizing past and the age thing just felt like overkill drama. Other than that I really loved this book. I was absolutely over the moon for Amarok. He was so sexy, understanding, charming, and just an all around good guy that he really made the book for me. Evelyn was also very endearing. She had lived through something that would have broke many but she has been fighting back and empowering herself since she was a teen. I loved her drive and understood her pain and fear of a relationship. I was glad that she was brave. I love strong, smart, take charge heroines! I also felt that Evelyn and Amarok’s relationship was realistic and very sweet. It wasn’t rushed which is good because after everything Evelyn suffered I wouldn’t believed their feelings if she just jumped into a relationship without problems and fear. Amarok was so support. God I loved him!
The action and suspense in this book was great. The whole in the psychopath minds thing was very interesting. The quotes at the start of each chapter from real life serial killers really upped the creepy, thrill factor for me. This book kept me guessing. Just when I thought I knew who the bad guy was something else would happen then I was guessing again. It kept the book’s pace flowing and I never got bored. The ending OMG the ending was so subtlety creepy that it gave me chills. It also gave a glimpse of things to come. I can’t wait to get my hands on the next book. I just hope I don’t have to wait a year for it. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves romantic suspense and criminal mind thrillers.
Great thriller!!! First in a series of three. The second book, Hello Again, was equally as great! Again, expect the unexpected!! I can’t wait until the third book in this series is available in August!
“I want you badly. I’ve wanted you since the first moment I laid eyes on you.”
I was hooked after I read Hanover House, prequel to this book. I LOVE thrillers, especially ones focusing on serial killers. I have a healthy obsession with serial killers. I want to know what makes them tick. Why they do the things they do, what goes on in their criminal minds. And that is exactly what Evelyn Talbot is trying to find out. She opened up Hanover House, a maximum-security facility, in Hilltop Alaska. They only house the most dangerous serial killers. Many of these killers were super creepy and gave me goosebumps.
Evelyn is a very strong character who has been through so much in the past. Instead of being afraid of the world she wants to figure out how to stop these killers. Then we have her love interest Sergeant Amarok, I love him so much! He is very patient, strong, protective and loyal. I just loved reading about them. But what I loved most was the mystery and suspense in this book. I had a couple of theories and the author did a great job by confusing me. I loved the plot twists and all the secondary characters. The author even made me feel sad about one deranged serial killer, but that can also be because I have a thing for the dark villains. This book is a great start. I can’t wait for the next book and what the author has in store for Evelyn and Amarok!
I have mixed feelings about this book, hence, the 2star rating. After reading the prequel, I was intrigued with the plotline of the series: Dr Talbot establishing a high security mental facility/prison in which to study psycopaths so that she can understand and hopefully overcome the attack she survived from her psycopathic high school boyfriend 20yrs ago.
This book did not add much to that storyline and the last few chapters were a mess. It wasn’t until the epilogue that the book got back on track with the initial plotline. I’m debating whether or not I want to continue with the series.
Her Darkest Nightmare is book 1 in the Evelyn Talbot Chronicles. The events recorded in this novel picks up six months after the prequel, Hanover House.
The summer romance between Evelyn and Amorak has hit a snag. Evelyn is still struggling with issues of intimacy, which ended in her pushing Amorak away. Then one snowy night things between them changed, and I had the privilege to witness Evelyn be able to trust a man to love and appreciate her. Meanwhile, a killer is on the loose. Did a resident from Hanover House escape or is it a blast from Evelyn’s past? One thing for sure whomever it is, the person is smart and meticulous
There were parts of the story that moved slowly for my tastes. This was due in part to time spent explaining psychopathic behavior.
Figuring out the killer’s identity proved to be a challenge. There were several possible suspects, which made it difficult to pick the right one.
Not all the psychopaths in the story were incarcerated, as Evelyn would discover. The story showed that crazies often live and work among us.
Amarok had his work cut out for him as the only law enforcement officer in the town who had no experience with homicides. The town had not experienced a murder in ten years. Then to make matters worse the FBI did not believe the murders warranted their input and there was no help from law enforcement in Anchorage. I found this strange and unrealistic.
Evelyn had her share of challenges. Besides the killer taunting her, someone is determined to discredit her. I admired her tenacity, but her hang-ups regarding Amarok’s age became tiresome. A seven-year age difference is no big deal, but Evelyn did not see it that way.
Narration
This is my second time experiencing Therese Plummer’s narration. I enjoyed her depiction of the characters’ voices. The excitement, fear and suspense came through with clarity.
Conclusion/Recommendation
An intense read featuring likeable characters, a sweet romance and a complex mystery. Fans of romantic suspense will enjoy this installment. I am looking to start the next book, as I am eager to discover what is in store for Evelyn and Amorak.
I have never read a book like this. It was dark it was mysterious, and it kept me on the edge. I didn’t want to put it down.
I really liked this book. This is the second book (the first a short novella), but definitely a stand-a-lone book. Sixteen year old Evelyn Talbot was kidnapped by her boyfriend of six months, Jasper Moore, and held captive for three days. In those three days, he tortured and killed her best friends, Marissa, Jessie and Agatha, and brutally attacked and raped Evelyn. Jasper started the shack on fire, but for some reason after Jasper left, the fire went out before it did too much damage. With a broken leg and one eye swollen shut and pain in every part of her body, Evelyn managed to get to the road where a passing motorist found her. Jasper got away.
20 years later, Evelyn is now a psychiatrist, devoting her life to unraveling the minds of the remorseless killer. Hanover House was opened in a small, remote town close to Anchorage, Alaska, housing 250 of the most dangerous felons in America, included 37 of the worst serial killers.
Benjamin Murphy, aka Amarok, an Alaska State Trooper, is interested in Evelyn but is not happy Hanover House was put in his town. It was obvious to Amarok, that Evelyn’s past was coming between them. After two brutal murders, Amarok and Evelyn work together to find the murder and uncover some unpleasant goings on in Hilltop. Alaska! Just when you think you have figured out who the killer is, the story takes another twist. Definitely worth reading!
I highly recommend reading Hanover House before starting this book. The prequel will give you a better idea of Evelyn Talbot’s traumatizing history, and it will also explain why she is in the middle of Alaska studying psychopaths.
This thriller has everything! Mystery. Suspense. Romance. My mind was always spinning.
I can’t wait to read the next book!