Library book: The Man Made of Smoke Alex North



Publisher: Celadon Books
Published: 5/13/2025
Pages: 307
Genre: Thriller/Horror
Review: Library book



Dan Garvie’s life has been haunted by the crime he witnessed as a child—narrowly escaping an encounter with a notorious serial killer. He has dedicated his life since to becoming a criminal profiler, eager to seek justice for innocent victims. So when his father passes away under suspicious circumstances, Dan revisits his small island community, determined to uncover the truth about his death. Is it possible that the monster he remembers from his childhood nightmares has returned after all these years?

With his signature shock and suspense, Alex North brings us The Man Made of Smoke. In turn emotional, introspective, and utterly terrifying, this is a story of fathers and sons, shadows and secrets, and the fight we all face to escape the trauma of the past.
I was a bit confused about this book when I started it. I wasn't sure who the Pied Piper was. Was it someone real or someone fake? Dan was a kid when he first saw the person who was dubbed the man made of smoke. He couldn't help the child who needed help, as Dan was a kid himself at that time and didn't know how. Years later, he is now someone who has become a criminal psychologist. He still thinks about that kid he never helped. When his father goes missing, Dan comes back to get answers and finds out his father was investigating murders. What his father was uncovering is now what Dan will be uncovering, and he will finally get the answers he has been looking for. We do go back and forth between different POV's, but it was not confusing. 
I wouldn't say this would be considered a horror, more of a mystery book with a bit of paranormal feeling. 




Alex North was born in Leeds, England, where he now lives with his wife and son. 
The Whisper Man was inspired by North's own little boy, who mentioned one day that he was playing with "the boy in the floor." Alex North is a British crime writer who has previously published under another name.

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