The Nothing Man by Catherine Ryan Howard: Book Review

We’re slowly heading towards Halloween and Thriller season! If you’re looking for an engaging book, full of criminal analysis and creepy behaviour, The Nothing Man is for you.

The Nothing Man refers to the name of a book written by Eve, an author whose entire family was murdered by a serial killer in Cork, Ireland two decades ago. The killer is called The Nothing Man because he has not left any clues or evidence, and twenty years later the case is considered to be cold. The recently published book has been discovered by security guard Jim, who has a keen interest in the case. He is riveted not only from the author’s words, but because he himself is The Nothing Man.

Told from the point of views from both Eve and Jim and in several points in time, the crimes and circumstances are revealed with just enough detail for this reader. The information about the series of murders is well-presented and not sensationalized. I appreciated the information I learned about serial killers in general, especially when Eve attends a lecture by an authority on the subject. The concept of The Nothing Man written by Catherine Ryan Howard telling the story of Eve’s book of the same name is fascinating – indeed Eve even thanks Catherine Ryan Howard in her book.

I was engaged throughout the book and the book flowed well. The characters are so well developed – we learn a tremendous amount amount Jim in particular. I admire Eve for her ability to not only carry on with her life after such loss, but to educate herself, to proceed with this book and to have the courage to see it to the end. I was satisfied with the ending. This book felt real to me, with an understanding that these events could very well have occurred. To me, this is the sign of a great thriller.

I listened to the audiobook version of this book which was narrated by Alana Kerr-Collins and John Keating. I appreciated the narrators having an Irish accent and voices representing the characters. I really felt the creep factor coming from John Keating – both as Jim and as The Nothing Man. I’d recommend the audiobook to those that appreciate this format.

Thanks to Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for the ARC of this book in exchange for the honest review provided here.

My rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️/5.