The Girls He Adored

A Novel

By: Jonathan Nasaw

Narrated by: Lee Sellars

In this electrifying and “superior thriller” (The Washington Post), a female psychiatrist is pitted against a brilliant serial killer with multiple personalities in an explosive and deadly battle of wills.

For ten years, FBI Special Agent E.L. Pender has been investigating the apparently random disappearances of a dozen women across the country. The only detail the cases have in common is the strawberry blond color of the victims’ hair, and the presence of a mystery man with whom they were last seen.

Then, in Monterey, California, a routine traffic stop erupts into a scene of horrific violence. The local police are stunned by a disemboweled strawberry blond victim and an ingenious killer with multiple alternating personalities. Pender is convinced he has found his man, but before he can prove it, the suspect stages a cunning jailbreak and abducts his court-appointed psychiatrist Irene Cogan.

In a house on a secluded ridge in Oregon, Irene must navigate through the minefield of her captor’s various egos—male and female, brilliant and naive, murderous and passive—all of whom are dominated by Max, a seductive killer who views her as both his prisoner and his salvation. Irene knows that to survive she must play along with Max’s game of sexual perversion. Only then will she be able to strip back the layers to discover a chilling story of a shattered young boy and all the girls he adored.

Very enjoyable!

It is on rare occassion that I find a book that can captivate my full attention. This one has done it. I love suspense thrillers. "The Girls He Adored" was very well written. The Author was very descriptive in details, but careful not to go overboard.
The Narrator: Lee Sellars was fantastic. You could actually feel and hear the change as he shifted from one character to another. He put a lot emphasis on his voices which made it a delight to listen to. Sometimes a bit comical which took the edge off. A chilling story that leaves you a little haunted by the ending. Overall it was very well written and the narrator was great.

Disturbingly chilling

Yes, this is a novel about a serial killer. There a couple of scenes that became quite graphic in their descriptions, which I found triggering for me. Fortunately, they are few, and do not drive them into your subconscious with needless repetition.
Overall, the story is engaging, and while the ending may be predictable to those familiar with the specific sub genre, there was enough suspense to keep you wondering. Worth the effort.

Creepy thriller

Where does The Girls He Adored rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

middle of the road

What did you like best about this story?

The killer is so creepy with all of his "personalities"

What about Lee Sellars’s performance did you like?

He changes his voice for all the different characters.

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

The ending

Favorite book so far

for so long this is been considered my favorite book of all time. This is my second time reading it and I still love it. I hope to find something better than this so I can blow my mind.

Gripping

A book you can't put down. Once you start you can't wait to find out what happens. Looking forward to more by this author.