Shutter Man, by Richard Montanari, is the 9th book in the Byrne & Balzano series and is unique, gruesome and just excellent!
Detective Kevin Byrne used to be partners with Jessica Balzano solving some very bizarre cases. Now Jessica is with the District Attorney’s office they are reacquainted as they have a case that overlaps involving a member of the criminal Farren clan. But Byrne has a childhood link to the Farren’s that will soon rear its ugly head.
Philadelphia has some dangerous areas, but none other than The Devil’s Pocket, ruled by the feared Farren clan for decades – spanning several generations. The youngest member of the Farren clan is Michael, although he is known as Billy, and he has a rare disorder (Prosopagnosia, Facial Agnosia or commonly known as Face Blindness) that leaves him unable to recognise faces and needs to carry photos of his family (and victims) around to even know who they are!
Billy is on a killing spree and he carries out a brutal and horrific ritual at each crime scene which leaves the police baffled to the motive.
Byrne and Balzano have been tasked with bringing down the Farren’s at any cost. Jessica and Kevin are once again joining forces, from different offices of justice, to find a brutal and dangerous criminal.
Overall, this is yet another excellent and fascinating crime thriller with a unique twist from a master of serial killer thrillers, Richard Montanari. The more I read by this author, the more I want. Shutter Man features a unique twist with a deranged killer that cannot recognise people, even his own family, but no matter how unique the twist Montanari manages to capture it well and make it very believable.
If you want a unique crime thriller with brutal and gruesome murders that is fast-paced, has great characters and plot twists and expertly written then I can highly recommend Shutter Man.
Rating: 5/5
RRP: £19.99 (Hardback) / £7.99 (Paperback) / £3.99 (Kindle)
Available to buy from Amazon here.
For more information about Richard Montanari visit www.richardmontanari.com.
DISCLOSURE: All thoughts and opinions are my own. This review uses an affiliate link which I may receive a small commission from if you purchase through the link.
Click here to read more reviews of books by Richard Montanari
