Review: Fear the Dark by Kay Hooper

November 11, 2015 Review 48 ★★★★

Review: Fear the Dark by Kay HooperFear the Dark by Kay Hooper
Series: Bishop/Special Crimes Unit #16
Published by Berkley on October 20th 2015
Genres: Mystery Thriller
Pages: 288
Format: Hardcover
Source: Own Copy
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads
Rating: 4 Stars
Heat Rating:one-flame

In New York Times bestselling author Kay Hooper’s new novel, an SCU team investigates a troubling string of disappearances. But how do you find someone who has vanished without a trace?
Something strange is happening in the small mountain town of Serenity, Tennessee. People going on routine errands never reach their destination. It’s as if they simply disappear. Over the past few weeks, it’s happened to five men and women—and now a child.
The local police chief calls the FBI, and a team from the Special Crimes Unit is immediately sent in. Agents Lucas and Samantha Jordan, partners in work and in life, have very different abilities. Samantha is clairvoyant and Lucas possesses a unique ability to find the lost or abducted. With them are new partners Dante Swann, a medium, and Robbie Hodge, a telepath.
The town is already on the edge of panic, but the mysterious events take a sinister turn when a body unrelated to the missing persons case surfaces and one of the SCU agents vanishes. Now, the team’s hunt for the lost has turned into something very personal…and very dangerous. 

mystery PAGETURNER paranormal refreshing TBRPile thriller

Fear the Dark was my first novel by Kay Hooper and therefor an introduction to the authors writing style.

At first glance, Fear the Dark looks like a thrilling mystery with a suspenseful storyline and captivating characters, and it was exactly everything I hoped for.

I picked this one up thanks to a wonderful review by Sophia @ Delighted Reader and boy was I glad I did that. I stepped into a world of atmospheric and spooky mystery with a criminal that had a thirst for revenge.

When people of Serenity, Tennessee start to disappear one by one into thin air, Jonah the local chief of police comes to a conclusion that he is way over his head and calls in Bishop SCU. Arrive at the scene two couple sent over by their boss to investigate the strange disappearances that seem to pulse with sinister energy. Lucas, Samantha, Dante, and Robbie are the four couples that must work together and use their hidden and special abilities in hopes of bringing the man behind these disappearances to justice.

The author does an excellent job setting up the small town and everything that was creepy behind this entire mystery. It literally left goosebumps on my arms anytime we got experience the tragic evil that drove the criminal to do what he had done. The story ended up being gripping and sad, and I couldn’t help but feel for Jonah and how he was connected to the entire thing.

Though there were couples in this book, I didn’t really get any sense of romance and I was okay with that. I liked seeing how each couple cared for their partner and the length they went to protect them. Lucas and Samantha are together and the care and connection between them is genuine and apparent. Robbie and Dante are a couple that started working together and Bishops main goal is for the couples to come to trust and rely on each other.

I love learning about their special abilities as mediums and how they used to uncover the culprit behind the disappearances. Each couple was different with their own special skills that aren’t perfectly refined but that is what makes the characters appear human, flawed and interesting.

The ending threw me. I was not expecting what had happened. Thought the conclusion felt a bit distressing, I too was a little surprised how quickly everything escalated and then ended so suddenly - I think an agreement Sophia and I shared on this.

Thought despite the sudden ending and what happens, I don’t believe this is the last book in the series.

This can be read as a stand-alone, I had no problems jumping in.

48 Responses to “Review: Fear the Dark by Kay Hooper”

  2. Braine

    I’m from Tennessee and I have to admit, when I first moved here I had visions of creepy scenarious. The landscape isn’t anything like California. I remember telling my sister that if I get abducted and my carcass is left on the side of the interstate, nobody would find me right away because the highways aren’t lit and the commuters don’t really care. LOL TN is a fitting setting for this crime mystery for sure
    Braine recently posted…Loved It: The Geomancer by Clay and Susan Griffith + Series GossipMy Profile

    Reply

    • Lily B

      oh wow ha thanks for sharing that Braine XD thats kinda… creepily awesome? does make it a great setting for mysteries then

      Reply

  3. Charlene @ Bookish Whimsy

    Oh wow, I love creepy, atmospheric suspense! I’m afraid this might be too ‘gritty’ or dark for me - would you think this story light in any way (maybe with humor?) This seems like an excellent read though, I’m glad it lived up to that for you!

    Also, do you have a new blog design? I hope it’s not super old, or I’m mistaken… anyways - your design looks fabulous!
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    • Lily B

      Hi Charlene, humm good question. There isnt any humor in this, none that I remember, a lot of focus is on the abilities and finding the killer, i think there is a few unsettling scenes, but i think the creepy factor varies from person to person, there seem to be a sense of foreboding in the book. But it is a bit dark, so might not be for everyone, and thats okay!

      Reply

    • Lily B

      You might feel a more connection to the characters, but from what I understand this is like a branch of from Bishops series, now him and his wife own an SCU, and its like book 4? and the only couple that has consistently appeared was Sam and Lucas, while Robbie and Dante were both new.

      Reply

  8. Jenny @ Supernatural Snark

    I love the sound of everything about this one except the ending Lily! It’s always frustrating when things come to a head and then are suddenly resolved or just left hanging. Definitely looking forward to your thoughts on the next book though! I’m thinking I might need to give this author a try:)

    Reply

    • Lily B

      despite the ending the book was quick and easy to enjoy, i felt so involved that I didn’t realize how quickly i got through it!

      Reply

  16. Lola

    This sounds like a creepy book with a good mystery. It can be hard and sad to see the results of what the criminal does. I think that’s why I avoid thrillers usually as I don’t enjoy reading about how bad people can be and the things they can do. It can be nice to have a couple work together without anything romanticly happen, although I probably would expect/ hope it would turn into a romance. I like the sound of how well developed and realistic the characters are. That’s a shame the ending ended so abrubtly though. Great review!
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    • Lily B

      I can understand that Lola, it’s part of my love/hate relationship with Thrillers I think. I like the mystery but the outcome can be so distressing.

      Reply

  17. Kathryn

    You’ve given this a fab review, I love it when you pick up a book because another blogger loved it and you find the same when you read it. While I am not big into thrillers, this one sounds while somewhat spine chilling a very good read.
    Kathryn recently posted…Incapable. Ainslie PatonMy Profile

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  19. Lexxie @ (un)Conventional Bookviews

    Oh wow, book 16? And you jumped right in and loved it? Today is a very bad day for my TBR shelf, it seems, because I keep adding books to it today… good thing it’s a virtual shelf, or it would be taller than Himalaya, and more skewed than the tower in Pisa 😉
    Great review, Lily!

    Reply

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