Welcome to Hanover House….
Psychiatrist Evelyn Talbot has dedicated her life to solving the mysteries of the psychopathic mind. Why do psychopaths act as they do? How do they come to be? Why don’t they feel any remorse for the suffering they cause? And are there better ways of spotting and stopping them?
After having been kidnapped, tortured and left for dead when she was just a teenager—by her high school boyfriend—she’s determined to understand how someone she trusted so much could turn on her. So she’s established a revolutionary new medical health center in the remote town of Hilltop, Alaska, where she studies the worst of the worst.
But not everyone in Hilltop is excited to have Hanover House and its many serial killers in the area. Alaskan State Trooper, Sergeant Amarok, is one of them. And yet he can’t help feeling bad about what Evelyn has been through. He’s even attracted to her. Which is partly why he worries.
He knows what could happen if only one little thing goes wrong…
I received this novella through NetGalley for an honest review.
Hanover House is a novella thriller by Brenda Novak. It is the prequel to a series that will be starting in September 2016. Which is too long of a wait, but I’ll do it.
The story was easy to get into with characters I was interested in. I like Evelyn’s strength and determination to find answers; even if her life is at stake. In fact, it’s because her life is in danger that she continues her work and her convictions. Not many people can be that way and it’s cool to see a character use her fear as a way to help others.
The novella reminded me a bit of Silence of the Lambs (a favorite movie of mine). It is a strong, intelligent woman, working with serial killers (with meaning studying in this case). The very last bit in the book definitely reminded me of the movie.
The ending didn’t happen the way I expected, which was surprising because the rest of the book did seem a bit easy to figure out (though still exciting at times). There were times that my heart was beating fast and I wanted to see what happened next. Sometimes I did have to put the book down, but it was only for a second because I needed to find out what happened next.
I don’t know if you’ll have to read this novella before embarking in the series, but I feel it couldn’t hurt. You learn and see Evelyn in action when her life is in danger. You see just how determined she is as a character. You learn and see more of her background that is disturbing and heartbreaking. So, I’m happy I read the novella because it makes me want to pursue the series.
Casia's Corner 