In 2016, Eddie is fully grown, and thinks he's put his past behind him. But then he gets a letter in the mail, containing a single chalk stick figure. When it turns out that his friends got the same message, they think it could be a prank . . . until one of them turns up dead.
That's when Eddie realizes that saving himself means finally figuring out what really happened all those years ago.
Expertly alternating between flashbacks and the present day, The Chalk Man is the very best kind of suspense novel, one where every character is wonderfully fleshed out and compelling, where every mystery has a satisfying payoff, and where the twists will shock even the savviest reader. (Pub Date: Jan 9, 2018)
Honest review based on an ARC provided by Netgalley. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.
I only got this one because I kept hearing good things about it. I had found the summary a little confusing, to be honest. I couldn't figure out the exact genre the story wanted to follow. I'm glad my friends were right, this books was really good!
The story follows Ed after he receives a letter with the stick figure of a hangman, much like the chalk men drawn during incidents many years before when he was still a twelve-year-old. When one of his childhood friends disappears, Ed feels anxious the mysterious culprit could come back to get him this time.
This seemed largely inspired by Stephen King—including how Ed is an English teacher. I haven't read enough by him to say whether his fans would enjoy but I'm familiar enough with The Body (a short story about four boys who find a body) to say you won't be guessing much going by it. Like Stranger Things, this felt more like a tribute, with a number of similar elements but a whole different focus.
Ultimately, this is a mystery, and a complex one, with repercussions in the present. We have the five childhood friends of around twelve years old, a suspicious new teacher—an albino known as The Chalk Man—and some strange incidents resulting in three deaths, if I'm counting right. Back in the present, Ed is still visibly traumatized but tries to investigate the disappearance of one of those friends and to do that he needs to talk to the other three.
It's also eerie. The narration happens from Ed's point of view, and we get firsthand the effects those events caused in him—he has very real, stinky and bloody visions of the dead prompting him not to forget him. Is he going crazy? Are those superpowers? And why does he feel so guilty?
The Chalk Man isn't a long book, but the style of writing being prolix at times and even too unstable could scare some readers before they get used. I found it contributed both to the atmosphere and to showing Ed's character, but I do feel the writing is the one thing that could also be a negative to some. On the other hand, I didn't feel bothered and I'm usually sensitive to those things. In fact, I read it rather quickly, since I couldn't end a chapter without checking the next and the following and...
In sum, this was a great thriller; even though 2018 is just beginning, I think it'll be one of my favorite this year. My minus one star was due to not being a super book. It was enjoyable, it was planned, it was rather clever, but it still wasn't all that. I don't give stars to many books, only to my all-times favorite. I could read a hundred books and not find one. Still, I'm sure this could be a five-star to many, and was. A solid four to me; I don't say that of many.
Rating: 4 out of 5.
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