The Devil Aspect

A Novel

De: Craig Russell

Narrado por: Julian Rhind-Tutt

A USA Today Best Mystery of All Time • Steeped in the folklore of Eastern Europe, and set in the shadow of Nazi darkness erupting just beyond the Czech border, this bone-chilling, richly imagined novel is propulsively entertaining, and impossible to put down.

"A wildly entertaining story...Russell has created a truly frightening story." —The New York Times Book Review

Czechoslovakia, 1935: Viktor Kosárek, a newly trained psychiatrist who studied under Carl Jung, arrives at the infamous Hrad Orlu Asylum for the Criminally Insane. The facility is located in a medieval mountaintop castle surrounded by forests, on a site that is well known for concealing dark secrets going back many centuries. The asylum houses six inmates--the country's most treacherous killers--known to the terrified public as the Devil's Six. Viktor intends to use a new medical technique to prove that these patients share a common archetype of evil, a phenomenon he calls The Devil Aspect. Yet as he begins to learn the stunning secrets of these patients, he must face the unnerving possibility that these six may share a darker truth.

Meanwhile, in Prague, fear grips the city as a phantom serial killer emerges in the dark alleys. Police investigator Lukas Smolak, desperate to locate the culprit (a copycat of Jack the Ripper), turns to Viktor and the doctors at Hrad Orlu for their expertise with the psychotic criminal mind. And Viktor finds himself wrapped up in a case more terrifying than he could have ever imagined.

That ending! Didn't see it coming at all!

You know a book is good when you can't stop thinking about it hours after you finished. This was a great historical fiction/thriller that started off a little slow but really picked up. I was totally shocked at the ending. I did not see it coming at all! I was also happy to see the book take place in Prague instead of the boring old England.Julian Rhind-Tutt did a great job with the names and keeping the voices just a little different from each other. Also big time kudos for not using a high pitched voice for the women characters.

Stunning and mind boggling! I couldn't put is down

I loved this story! I was obsessed with it and couldn't get enough! Hold on for a twisted ride down a dark path!

Almost five stars

The first four-fifths of this book--six stars. Once I unraveled the mystery, though, the story line kind of fell off a cliff. The denouement almost edged it back up to a five. Almost. Despite this reservation I'd still recommend The Devil Aspect--most of it is that good. Julian Rhind-Tutt's narration was pitch-perfect for the mood. I'm going now to look for more books by Craig Russell, and more narrations by Rhind-Tutt.

Obvious

I saw the ending coming a mile away. It was too apparent but I finished it anyway.

Surprisingly Amazing

The concept of the book sounded interesting to me, so I thought I would give it a go. I am glad I did! it is obviously fictional but makes an interesting connection to all the true crime murderers that talk about a darkness that took over when they committed the murders. It's worth a read!