Senseless by Ronald Malfi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Senseless. I didn’t read the synopsis before starting this book. There’s no need for me to do so. If I see Ronald Malfi’s name on a cover, I am going to be reading it. It really makes no difference to me what it’s actually about.
I was delighted to discover this novel is a captivating blend of Crime Fiction, Horror and Suspense. This is a combination Malfi is so successful with, and brought to mind my favorite previous novel of his, Bone White.
This story is told via three perspectives: Detective Bill Renney, author Maureen Park, and the self-proclaimed human fly, Toby Kampen.
My favorite of these was Detective Renney. He reminded me a lot of another of another one of my fictional favorites, Detective Bill Hodges. Renney is flawed, but also incredibly compelling and endearing.
At the start of this novel, the corpse of a heavily-mutilated woman is found in the desert outside of L.A. Called in on the case, Renney can’t help but see glaring connections to a case he thought had been put to bed a year ago.
Is this some sort of a copy-cat killing? But how could that be? This level of details, as far as the specifics of the woman’s body, was never reported to the public.
Bill is disturbed by this and it ends up reopening some doors from the past he would rather have stayed closed.
Then we get Maureen’s and Toby’s perspectives. Besides living in and around the same area of the crime, how are these people connected? It’s not immediately clear.
You shouldn’t concern yourself too much with all of that though. Just sit back and let the magic happen. Through Malfi’s skill, all will become clear in the end.
Upon first completing Senseless, I was absolutely gobsmacked by how well-crafted it is. It gave me so many different themes to ponder, and reflect upon, both in the story, and just about life and human behavior in general.
It’s such a nuanced story, with many threads interwoven into a perfect blend of Crime Fiction, Thriller and Horror. The examination of grief and guilt is also expertly-explored, which is one of my favorite topics in Horror; just beautiful.
There were so many different threads of story here that had to be woven in and out, and placed at just the right time for the Reader to get maximum impact. I absolutely LOVED how Malfi pulled that off.
Each character brought their own unique circumstances and personalities to the table, as we all do in life, and it was just so fascinating to see it all come together.
There were some deep moments of intensity, particularly for me surrounding Maureen’s perspective, and some scenes in particular that horrified me and definitely got under my skin. I was so on edge for her. It was powerful.
While I don’t think this book will necessarily be for everyone, I think for the Readers who are able to connect with it, as I did, it’s a memorable one indeed.
Thank you to the publisher, Titan Books and Tantor Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. Ronald Malfi is one of my absolute favorite authors, and I always look forward to his new releases.
IMO, he’s one of the most talented voices in Horror Fiction today. There’s such a classic feel to his writing. I find them to have a nostalgic feel, even though they’re brand new.
