The Angel of Darkness by Caleb Carr

Like most second books in a series, this novel was not quite as good as the first. (Just last month I finished Jeffrey Deaver’s The Coffin Dancer, which I felt was not nearly as good as The Bone Collector -- see review here.) But The Angel of Darkness came close.

I, unlike some reviewers, liked the way Mr. Carr gave this book another “voice”, namely young Stevie. I enjoyed his unsophisticated point-of-view, which I found refreshing after John Moore’s high-strung narration in The Alienist. Stevie was one of my favorite characters in the first book, so I may be biased.
If and when Mr. Carr ever writes the next story in this series, I hope he continues to let another player narrate, especially if it’s Sara Howard. I’d love to read a good thriller led by her!

I didn’t think that this plot was as strong as the first book. We found out who the suspect was very early in the story, then the rest was just building a case against her. I’m not a big fan of courtroom dramas, so this part did not really appeal to me. The Alienist was all about hunting down the killer, which I think is much more exciting.

As a stand-alone novel, The Angel of Darkness was great -- much better than others I have read. If I didn’t have The Alienist to compare it to, I would probably give this one 5 diamonds.

One other complaint -- when is Caleb Carr going to write number three?! :)

4 Diamonds