American Devil - Oliver Stark
Publisher: Headline
April 19, 2010
Ferociously captivating, Oliver Stark’s debut novel, American Devil, should catapult him to the very pinnacle of his genre in an instant.
A book loaded with fabulous characters, a brilliant sense of place, credible plotlines, pace, twists, turns, suspense and heartbreak, this is a crime novel that truly has something for everybody.
Detective Tom Harper, one of the New York Police Department’s star homicide detectives, is on administrative leave for striking a superior officer when the city is left reeling by a series of brutal murders.
Young socialites are being targeted by one of the most gruesome killers New York has ever seen and the top brass know that Harper is the only detective who has a chance of stopping the newly dubbed ‘American Devil’ before he strikes again.
With Harper already living on the edge, they have no choice but to appoint psychiatrist, and new profiler, Denise Levene, to oversee his return but, as the murders escalate in both number and audacity, Harper and Levene find that they must work together if they are to find the killer.
This is a debut that should be read by anybody who wants to write just to see how it should be done. Taking all the elements of the classic crime authors and mixing them into a potion that is so fresh and new is not the work of a storyteller but rather of an Alchemist, as nothing in American Devil is either clichéd or tired, but is instead fresh, witty, poignant and – above all – crammed full to the brim with suspense.
If this is the future of crime, then bring it on.
Chris High
Interview with Oliver Stark - August 2010
"Dear Chris,
Just a quick note to thank you for your fantastic review of 'American Devil'. Can't believe you loved the book so much, but it was brilliant to read your inspiring and very kind comments. I hope it inspires other people to pick up the book. The review created a great deal of excitement for everyone involved in publishing the book and, personally, it is great encouragement to me as a debut author fighting his way through book two. All in all, a big thank you from me!"
Oliver Stark on the feedback section of this site June 12th 2010
break the rules as I see fit.” - Chris High 2003.