So, I’ve decided to try out a little something different this time to add even more layers to what this blog is and could be, and that’s to do a book review! I did one of these in the past for me and my buddies’ podcast where I discussed ‘Less Than Zero’ by Bret Easton Ellis over a 20ish minute recorded session (shameless little plug there) but have yet to incorporate books or book reviews into the blog. I felt like maybe I was already doing too much on this page with covering horror films, pro wrestling events, and newly released movies, but then I thought this is my personal page to discuss and rant on my interests anyways so why not give it a shot, right? So, this time we will be reviewing ‘The Butcher and the Wren’ published by Zando projects and written by Alaina Urquhart! This book became pretty popular upon its release and if you listen to the ‘Morbid’ podcast ever then you’ve probably heard of it before because Alaina (the author) co-hosts that show alongside her similar aged niece, Ash, and they’ve become pretty popular in the true crime podcast game. This book though is a work of fiction, a mystery thriller that follows a medical examiner trying to find clues on the bodies left in her office and a serial killer who’s leaving those bodies behind for her and may have a more sinister plan in mind before this is all said and done. Their cat and mouse like game throughout the book is well told and really keeps you drawn in chapter to chapter as a little more information is peeled back every chapter and the plot begins to thicken more and more.
Alaina is a detail-oriented kind of writer and I really appreciated that as I made my way through the book. She really described the setting that someone was standing in, or the feeling of an item in someone’s hand, and little things like that throughout the story very well, and it helped create the sights, sounds, and feels, inside your mind and allow you to really see what was going on for yourself. This was a POV-switching sort of story, so you switched the point of view of your main character every chapter, where one chapter we’d be with medical examiner Wren Muller and experience her interactions with Detective Leroux and Will as they try to piece together the clues of these crimes and track down their killer before he takes another life. Then the next chapter, we’d be with our killer Jeremy and that allowed us a lot more time to see into his twisted psyche and understand more of what he is thinking and plotting. I will say though this book does have some gruesome parts and moments and in true Alaina fashion throughout this entire story, she doesn’t really hold back on you and describes every harsh and nasty detail to the very best of her ability. I thought that was great, it really gave you that added level of horror and mania to Jeremy and you truly felt bad for these fictional characters that happened to cross this crazed man’s path, but for some people that aren’t used to reading stories like this it could be a bit…um, shocking. The author has a background as an autopsy tech as well and that really helped her with the character of Wren, the little minor details with the bodies that Wren pointed out throughout the story were intriguing and, in a way, educational for the reader and that was thanks to Alaina’s actual knowledge and background in the field, so that also really helped add that extra layer of realism to the story as well.
There really isn’t much I can say I disliked or have bad to say about this one though. If you’re not into more forensic based mystery thrillers then this may not be your bag, but if that’s something that interests you this would be right up your alley and it’s a real page turner. The only other thing I’d think would be a problem is some of the grislier moments and details that we get played out long form for us at a few points throughout the story may be a bit much for the weaker stomached reader, but I think it’s mainly mild enough that most people would be able to handle it. The scenes were more gut punching and sad to me than they were gruesome, but I may just be numb from the amount of horror movies and true crime podcasts I consume as well. I’d suggest people to give this one a read though if you get the chance, or a listen if you’re an audiobook person. It’s enticing all the way through and there is a sequel coming out later this year called ‘The Butcher Game’ that’s sure to be a great follow up, so you still have time to catch up!
