Rating: 
Summary: Horrible! Horrible!
Review: This was the WORST audiobook I have ever listened to. The reader has no intonation, no life, no character. He simply drones on and on in a most boring fashion. He sounds as though he is going to sleep. His characters have no life, and no interest to the listener! I would urge any audiophile to pass this one up. As you note, I have not mentioned any of the characters in this book, that's because one doesn't remember when one is in a trance. This reader and book have no redeeming qualities!!!
Rating:
Summary: Aging writer has power fantasy!
Review: I really don't understand the rave reviews. If I want accurate reviews in the future I will come to amazon.com. How old and tired it is that women are always the victim. The women are all so stupid and brainless they have no clue they are being watched? No red flags go up when they are alone? They never carry a weapon, have no escape plan, no cell phone, no family or friends? Who was McKay's medical advisor? Geesh! Whenever a patient is totally comatose they need airway protection because they are unable to protect their own airway. You intubate them and place them on a ventilator. Strike one! The stereotyped classist relationship between a Dr. and nurse is too typical. A "new nurse" looks up to a female Dr. who displays compassion and caring, not a stuck up, rude female Dr. who is full of herself. Strike two! Choppy, predictable, boring. Strike three!There's more but I'm not going to waste my time.
Rating: 
Summary: Appreciate the style, but not the substance
Review: While others have criticized McKay's style, I found that the most intriguing element of the book. Short, spare, oddly-placed images and rhythmic pacing almost merit the word poetry. I loved his very dark, staccato interpretation of Los Angeles, fame, the media, models, escorts, actors and every other physically-obsessive cliche of that "place." Of course he is satirizing everything about southern California, including the young starlet wannabe from somewhere else. I also liked his divisions of "The Beginning," "The Middle" and "The End," since we know all playwright classes preach the mantra that you must have a . . . The "shell" of the book was outstanding, but the content poured into it just didn't work. Peter was mesmerizing, charismatic, obsessed and physically gorgeous -- I've met people like that -- but never one who was able to perform intricate brain surgery via observation. And, Maude, what in the world happened to you in the last 100 pages? You would never have slept with a young jerk who talked his way into your house and humiliated you. And you certainly wouldn't give in to mind-vibes from a cat. Sara Smith is unlikeable and -- another cliche -- sleeps with her editor. McKay is playing his own mind-game with us, showing us how shallow all our stereotypes are. However . . . the book is haunting and original. Read it for the language and the erotic/sexually-smitten view of Los Angeles. Casting ideas: Rene Russo for Maude, Peter Gallagher for Toyer, Bridgit Fonda for Sara and Renee Zellwegger for Telen. Of course, you can fill the rest with vacuous beautiful people and models. I think that's Gardner's point.
Rating: 
Summary: A Distinct Line
Review: While engaging in Toyer's whimsical and enchanting details, I took special note of the tendency of the author to go off on long descriptions in italics. Beautiful writing skills and clever word choice, no doubt, but after a while he crosses that line between What is a Book, and What is a Reprint of a Screenplay. The opening is gorgeous with lyrical composition, and the first victim's scene is quite intriguing. Yet, it dies out shortly after that when finding out that this style of writing simply does not work when depicting such a griddy, physical novel. The mental perspectives are shallow and the characters are stereotyped (as they were meant to be I figure). Toyer "toys" with women. While some rape, beat, or murder females, Toyer prefers a more lasting, undeniably terrible method. The only problem is that this method "sounds" a lot better than it seems to "read".
Rating: 
Summary: More than a thriller
Review: An extraordinary story, seductive, frightening, strange, unlike any other serial madman tale. Every decent thriller is called a "page turner" but how many are so powerfully written that you have to stop, collect yourself before reading on.
Rating:
Summary: Stupid, pretentious and a little sexist
Review: Gardner McKay clearly wishes he was Thomas Harris or James Ellroy; he's ripped off both of them here pretty liberally. But since he writes like a 15-year-old and doesn't bother to do any sort of research (watching cheesy TV movies doesn't count), he won't ever come close. The plotting is thin, the characters thinner, and the dialogue is from Cliche-ville, USA. Writing a bad novel is one thing, writing one that is so blatantly mysoginistic is another. His main characters are females, and at first seem strong. But by the time that all of them have slept with a father figure and either gotten raped or very close to it, it's clear that his main joy is having his villain hurt women.
Rating:
Summary: Read Thomas Harris' "Red Dragon" instead!
Review: What a piece of trash this book was! If you're looking for a serial-killer story with a completely unbelieveable storyline, the world's most inept detectives, and a "killer" who (with no medical background) is able to perform complex medical proceedures, then "Toyer" is for you. By the end of the book I didn't care if Toyer was caught or not. This book is so jam-packed with unpleasant characters (all of whom sleep with each other at some point) that I was hoping they would all get bumped off by the end. Thank God I only bought it in paperback. This book was so unrealistic that it was laughable, and certainly not frightening. Read Red Dragon instead, which has similar themes and was ten times the book.
Rating:
Summary: Disturbing and Frightening
Review: While this novel at times loses its focus it succeeds in painting a horrific tableau. I am not sure why some readers did not enjoy this book. The novel is psychically disturbing and makes the reader think about the thin boundary between sanity and insanity. A satisfying ending though a tad bit overdone. Not your typical serial killer book but a refreshing change of pace. Well worth the read.
Rating:
Summary: This book is awful! YUCK!
Review: Gardner McKay might be a celebrated playwrite but boy can he NOT write a novel. The book begins on a very creepy and promising note, and then quickly degenerates into disjointed vignettes that have no flow whatsoever. The characters are one dimensional and moronic. Have you ever heard of caller id, stakeouts and FBI profiling Mr. McKay? Even the victims were unlikeable. When I was done I felt like I needed a very very long bath in some sort of disinfectant. I still feel kind of dirty and sick for even finishing it. Am I easily offended? Not at all --this was just a repulsive and disgusting book.
Rating:
Summary: Putting me to sleep
Review: I bought this book (paperback) thinking that it would keep me up all night with suspense. Instead, I find that the characters are 2 dimensional. There is no real depth to the characters and I don't find Toyer mysterious or interesting at all. The chapter headings get on my nerves because it introduces them by using a person's name, no numbers. If I drop my book, I'll never figure out where I left off. The author introduces characters that I don't get a chance to know or care about and then, boom! they get killed. I say, less victims more decription, flavor, feeling and most of all story. This book goes on and on with victims and drags the book down. While reading this book, I get the feel of being in a small room because there are so many scenes where the author seems have characters housebound. This author needs to realize that we cannot visualize what they want us to see usless they use that imagination of theirs and put it onto paper. This book needed a better editor most of all. I have a suggestion for the author on the next book, open up and describe things so we can see, smell and taste the world that your characters live in. Just because it's a thriller doesn't mean the entire book should be dark and stormy. I'm struggling to finish and waiting for the surprise ending, if I can stay awake.
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