To save your child you must open… The Box by Dan Malakin #bookreview #TheBox #NetGalley

Ed Truman’s family is falling apart. His daughter Ally is being targeted by an alt-right incel organisation, Men Together. His house is being picketed, former clients are accusing him of sexual assault, his son won’t speak to him. And then Ally disappears.
Frantic, Ed suspects that Men Together have abducted her. But before he can go to the police, his DNA is found on the body of a young woman. Suddenly he’s the subject of a nationwide manhunt, led by the tenacious DCI Jackie Rose. Ed finds himself on the run with Ally’s friend, Phoenix, who claims to know where Ally is. But what is the truth? Is Ed a violent sexual predator? Or is he the victim of a ruthless conspiracy? The answers are in The Box. But not everyone who goes in, comes out alive.

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Hi and welcome to my review of The Box!

Wow, just wow! 

…. 

Can I get away with leaving it at that? No? Tough crowd.

Okay, let’s start with the prologue, makes sense, I’m sure you’ll agree. The prologue is absolutely EVIL! Obviously, I like my crime thrillers on the evil side, so I have to admit those pages had me wiggling my fingers in a very Mr Burns manner.

As I read on, I kinda lost that initial sense of excitement. There was no doubt in my mind that The Box was a solid crime thriller / police procedural and I was very much invested in the story and the characters, yet based on that prologue, I expected something to distinguish it from all other thrillers I’ve read, something to make it stand out big time, and I wasn’t getting it…

UNTIL! Literally everything is kicked up a notch or twenty and The Box was going full throttle! I was glued to my e-reader, GLUED I tell you! There it was, the bit that lifted up the great crime thriller and made it brilliant.

I’m not going to say anything about the plot. The blurb raises questions and I’m not answering them for you. I will just say I loved some of the characters and loathed others. It’s been a while since I wanted a character to die this badly! I had a sneaking suspicion about a supporting character, which turned out to be right, always fun, but others managed to pull the wool over my eyes completely. Some of them have a huge character arc, which I really appreciated, especially considering the believable manner in which their journey is portrayed. 

Ending with the epilogue, I can only say I’m a massive fan of these final scenes.

I had a fantastic time with this cleverly plotted crime thriller, this is definitely an author whose past and future work I will need to explore. Recommended!

The Box is out tomorrow 16 June in digital formats, audio and hardcover.

Massive thanks to Viper Books and NetGalley for the eARC. All opinions are my own.