Rating: 
Summary: perverse, gripping tale
Review: Debut or not, the book is a perverse gripping tale of horror....though the central characters are stereotypical of any of the genre, the conversations are well depicted. Not a single chapter in the book is devoid of torture or gruesome details of some murder....it is definetly not a book for light reading. Though the plot reeks of perverse and sadistic-masochistic themes, it is well-written and fast-paced.
Rating: 
Summary: Snuff movie on paper.
Review: I enjoy a good serial killer story as much as the next guy, but I have to tell you, this book is so unremittingly violent, it descends to the level of pornography.
I'm sure it'll be a big hit.
Rating:
Summary: Like a very bad movie
Review: I hate to give bad reviews to books, but this one just drove me insane. My advanced apologies to the author, since no work deserves terrible criticism... but this was just awful... I almost believe that all of the good reviews for this book on Amazon are from his friends. I mean the plot that could be described in three sentenses could be that of a typical crime novel, but the writing is so poorely executed! So many holes in the plot! The author whips things out for his advantage at any moment like a bad dream! The characters are so empty - and I still have no idea what happened at the end! Maybe if I haven't read other good novels, this could be a rating of three stars. I barely finished this book.
Rating: 
Summary: simple plot, interesting take from a new author
Review: I have never reviewed a novel in Amazon, but since I was already shopping, I figured I'd give my take on Desert Places. Desert Places is not the type of novel I would read, normally, but for anyone into thrillers I would suggest giving this book a try. Mr. Blake has a fertile imagination and it will be nice to see how he develops in future writings. I read through the other reviews and I have to agree that the middle drags a little, and the ending wasn't the best, but I also thought his friend died rather conveniently-but hey life has its conveniences, so why not? Overall, Desert Places is a quick and easy read, and good for a change of pace.
Rating: 
Summary: Guaranteed to unnerve
Review: I've never been into the slasher/thriller genre, but when I read the synopsis of this debut novel by Blake Crouch, I had to try it...and I'm glad I did!Andrew Thomas is a successful writer of, what else, thrillers who has just completed his latest novel and is living his dream life. All that changes when he receives an anonymous note that directs him to the body of a missing teacher - who is buried on his property and covered in his blood. What follows is a descent into desperation and murder that will surely chill you. There is also an interesting subtext about the difference between the desire to kill that is in people's hearts and the people who actually commit the murder that's in their hearts. While there were some horrifying scenes of carnage in the story, it is the randomness of the victims and emotions of the captors that will make you want to make sure you're locks are bolted. The only complaint I have is that the ending was a little too pat...while reading the conclusion, I could definitely envision the story as a typical Hollywood slasher movie. Other than that, if you are looking for a book to raise your hackles, then look no further. The scariest part is that this is a book of potential reality - and the fact that there really are sick people capable of committing these crimes out in the world is what chilled me the most.
Rating: 
Summary: Gruesome and fast-paced fun
Review: If you like your thrillers crammed full of constant tension, wicked violence, and hair-pin twists and turns, pick up a copy of DESERT PLACES.
Crouch doesn't wade into the serial killer genre; he jumps in with both feet. The antagonist of this novel, the brilliant but psychotic Orson, is one of the creepiest maniacs in recent memory.
Fans of early John Sandford and James Patterson will find a lot to like here, as will afficionados of Koontz and Richard Laymon. There have been some great serial killer novels this year, like Jack Kerley's The Hundredth Man and Jeff Lindsay's Darkly Dreaming Dexter. I'd put this in the same league.
My only complaint is it went by too fast. I eagerly await the follow-up.
Rating:
Summary: What A Great Start
Review: In his debut novel, Blake Crouch has produced one of the most compelling opening chapters that I've read for a long time with the tension level turned all the way up virtually from page one. From a calm, almost idyllic setting in North Carolina, bestselling author Andrew Thomas' world is thrown into utter chaos when he receives what he first believes is a hoax fan letter. The letter explains that the body of a missing woman has been buried on his property along with enough evidence to implicate him as the murderer. He has no choice but to obey the ensuing instructions given to him for fear that the police would be tipped off. At breakneck speed, Thomas is sent west out into the desert to a fate unknown but powerless to disobey the orders given to him. What he finds when he arrives at his destination is a horror beyond his imagination and evil beyond his understanding. A warning to the easily disgusted, the scenes from this point on in the book may be a little too graphic for some. The set up is top notch, but from the point where Thomas meets his tormentor, the story tends to run out of steam a little. As I said earlier, the scenes in the desert are graphic and particularly gruesome, but after awhile I started to feel a little bit numb to it, which was a bit of a worry. Nevertheless, I still couldn't turn the pages fast enough in getting to the big showdown of an ending and will be looking forward to Crouch's next thriller.
Rating:
Summary: Thrills? Maybe. Story? No.
Review: It's a sad day when an author like Blake Crouch has a quote on his book jacket comparing him to Stephen King. King is nothing if not a master storyteller. Crouch, on the other hand, has come up with a lame story and a plot full of holes and illogical actions. This reeks of an author who thinks he has a cool idea and forces every element in the story to yield to that idea, whereas great authors realize as they write that the idea will have to change to make the story work. As for the thrills, they rely on over-the-top sadistic acts to work. Crouch should read King's "The Ledge" to see that suspense is not necessarily violent.
There are a couple of things Crouch does well. One is create suspense, finding constant ways to keep the action high. The problem is the suspense is almost laughable because of the convenient ways it plays out. And the constant action sometimes works against him--he needs to study the masters of suspense to see how a little inaction can be more suspenseful, and more realistic, than a constant drone of improbable thrills. The other thing I will grant Crouch is that he can write, which isn't as pervasive a skill in the mystery/suspense/thriller market as one might hope.
I'm sorry Crouch is working on a sequel. It tells me he is deluded enough to believe it worthy of one.
Rating:
Summary: Intense
Review: Robert Frost's poem provides a title and an epigram to this engrossing first novel, the pulse pounding tale of an outwardly civilized man forced into acting in an uncivilized (to say the least) manner. That man is Andrew Thomas, best selling author of suspense novels with titles like Blue Murder and The Scorcher. Thomas lives the good life until the day he receives a letter in the mail, telling him that a woman's body has been buried on his property, a body soaked in the author';s blood. Confirming this sad fact, Thomas is forced to play his tormentor's twisted game, one which requires him to make a journey to Wyoming, where he ultimately must confront his own mortality, and question his morality and sanity. Thomas confronts a question most never have to face: just how far is he willing to go to survive? The answer is as disturbing to him as it will be to readers.
Desert Places is one of those books that you don't discuss in detail with those you recommend it to for fear of diminishing the impact the book will have on them. It's also the kind of book which induces those who have already read it to stand over the shoulder of current readers, asking, ""Did you get to the part where...?" Because of that, it is almost criminal to reveal further plot points. Suffice it to say that Crouch successfully manipulates plot elements previously explored in such classic thrillers as James Dickey's Deliverance and David Morrell's Long Lost, producing a novel whose intensity is sometimes almost too hard to take. Fast paced, surprising, at turns tragic and graphic, Desert Places will take readers to places that, given a choice, they'd probably avoid. Finding themselves in those places via Crouch's surprisingly accomplished prose, however, they can't help but linger a bit, looking over the grim landscape in morbid fascination.
Rating:
Summary: Fair
Review: This is a fair debut thriller.
I like the premise of one twin tormenting and basically manipulating his brother via horrific murders. I also enjoy the main character who is written with intelligence.
However, this thriller is EXTREMELY descriptive when it comes to the violence and kind of turned me off a little bit. I am not sure there was such a need for detail after detail about the actual murders.
Still, not a bad read for a first time author.
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