The Only Child by Andrew Pyper: A Review

Lily is a forensic psychiatrist that has seen trauma of her own.  When a man without a name is admitted to the facility she works out after ripping a man's ear off, he tells Lily his name is Michael and that he was the inspiration of Dracula, Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde, and Frankenstein's monster.  He also tells her that he is over 200 years old and her father.  He offers to tell her how her mother was killed when she was a child.  Lily finds herself questioning her scientific beliefs when she follows the man to Europe.

This book was scary in a supernatural kind of way.  It had my heart beating as I feared for Lily and was mesmerized by Michael.  Michael was a very interesting character.  I wish that more of the book centered around his origin story but he is a very scary character.  Lily was a bit of an unknown.  I wondered throughout the book if she was also insane as she often seemed to experience hallucinations.  The writing was very well done.  It was a bit slow for me at some parts but those slow parts helped to build suspense.  I enjoyed the comparisons to Dracula, Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde and the monster of Frankenstein.  The monster in The Only Child was very much like these characters but also more modernized.  It added a sense of old world horror to the story when Pyper brought the old classics into the story while allowing Michael to remain interesting and contemporary.  This book was a little bit scary but it wasn't as scary as some other horror that I have read and I would say that this book is part horror and part mystery.  Will's character and the chase around the world reminded me of a murder mystery or a crime drama.  Overall, I really enjoyed this book.  It would be a great book for those that enjoy supernatural horror, especially vampire novels, or mystery novels that are a bit more scary than average.

My rating:
★★★★☆

Watch an interview with Andrew Pyper here:

Reviews of books like this one:
Distress Signals by Catherine Ryan Howard
Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough
The River At Night by Erica Ferencik

This book is currently available and can be purchased from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.  Read more reviews on this book on Goodreads.

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher in order to review it but that did not have an effect on my review of the book.  This is my honest opinion of this book.  I am a participant in the Amazon Affiliates program.  By clicking on the Amazon link and purchasing this product, I receive a small fee.  I am not associated with Goodreads or Barnes and Noble in any way and the links provided are available strictly for your convenience and not to imply a relationship of any kind.