I was so excited to see this new review come in. The review, written by Kajori Sheryl Paul at the Chrysalis Brew Project, it really captures the essence of the book. She writes, “The Toy Maker by Melanie Flynn is a spine-chilling novel that takes you on a merry chase hunting a prolific serial killer haunting New York.” — Kajori Sheryl Paul at The Chrysalis BREW Project (4.8 out of 5 stars). With such high praise, it pushes me to finish the sequel, The Lost Lamb, that is currently in the late stages of drafting.
What especially excited me about this review was how it highlights the killer’s psychology. This is something I haven’t seen mentioned in other reviews so it made it special to me. She notes that the antagonist is multi-layered, intriguing and complex. This is something that has not been mentioned in reviews to date, but resonates with the essence of the killer. Building interesting characters is something that is basically my “bread and butter” when writing. I become very attached to them, so to see someone pick up on the nuances of the killer’s mind and comment on that in their review is really satisfying. The Toy Maker killer’s psychology is something I’m especially proud of.
Also, to see her describe my characterizations as “masterful” and my writing style to be vivid gives me an ego boost for sure. To be complimented not just on my story but the way I write is especially satisfying. If you want to check out the full review you can do so here on The Chrysalis Brew Project’s website.