Nature of Evil

By: Robert W. Stephens

Narrated by: Dick Hill

Rome, 1948. Twenty women are brutally murdered, their throats slit and their faces removed with surgical precision. Then the murders stop as abruptly as they started, and the horrifying crimes and their victims are lost to history. Now over 60 years later, the killings have begun again. This time in America. It's up to homicide detectives Marcus Carter and Angela Darden to stop the murders, but how can they catch a serial killer who leaves no traces of evidence and no apparent motive other than the thirst for murder?

The only cryptic clue they have to go on is the three letters "MAI" the killer carves into the flesh of his victims.

©2012 Robert W Stephens (P)2012 Robert W Stephens

I Fink you Freaky

What did you love best about Nature of Evil?

Nature of Evil takes you on an emmotional rollercoaster... Love... Lust... Murder! The story draws you into the unlucky life of Marcus Carter, a detective with plenty of emmotional baggage. You really start to feel for this guy, and the hardships he is forced to endure. Just when you think things can't possibly get any worse... Boom! Robert W. Stephens hits you with another surprise.

SEX! If you're tired of stories closing the door when the characters go in to the bedroom, then this is the story for you.

Another thing I love is the turmoil going on in these character's lives. A priest believes he is a fraud, because he thinks other priests can hear god. After the death of his wife, a detective fights lonliness with prostituition. A Brother and Sister's relationship is already circling the drain,then get's rocked by shocking murders. Even the victims are conflicted!

If you like testing your logic skills on murder mysteries, see if you can solve this one before the last chapter.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I'm torn between the Demon and David Lombardi. I really enjoyed Lombardi's journal entry's and Dick Hill's performance was the cherry on top. Hill does a great job with Lombardi's accent and emmotions. Plus, every time you're listening to the journal it gets pretty gruesome, gotta love that. The Demon is just what you think, a little devil on your shoulder convincing you to make the wrong choices. It takes someone really twisted to follow the requests that thing makes. It can be good to be bad, but the demon is downright evil!

SGT Ramsey is just a BADASS. I'm suprised the guy didn't kick ass all the way through the story!

Which scene was your favorite?

The sex scenes were great, but I really loved the details in the crime scenes. I felt like I was actually standing amongst the carnage in this story. I cringed everytime they pulled a sheet back, because I knew the type of description coming next. Don't eat dinner and listen to this story at the same time. It's hard to paint a descriptive picture of these horrific crimes without pointing out the essential clues. Stephens does a good job of burying the important clues early in the story. It's always fun to go back and look for those clues, once you know the ending.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The discussion about the power of the mind was very interesting. The mind can do some wild things to cope with reality. This story proves that we all could have Darkness hiding inside, and never know any different.

Any additional comments?

I would definately check out more of this Robert W Stephens work!

Not My Cup of Tea

Would you try another book from Robert W. Stephens and/or Dick Hill?

No.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

I think the end for me was relatively predictable - right from the beginning. This is a "been there - done that" kind of story. I believe that it could even have been classified as a bit confusing at times. I frankly was not overwhelmed by the ending.

Which scene was your favorite?

Although I didn't have a particular favorite, I think the one incident that might have had some emphasis was the conversation regarding the meeting between the father and son which was apparently questionable. This could also be a spoiler and the description is therefore limited.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

No.