Review: You Killed My Brother

You Killed My Brother by Keith Rommel

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Book Info: Genre: Thriller
Reading Level: Adult
Recommended for: People who like very dark stories
Trigger Warnings: murder, suicide

My Thoughts: I read and quite liked this author's earlier book, The Cursed Man (review linked here). As a result, I had fairly high expectations for this book. Unfortunately it was only mediocre.

First of all, the characters were all caricatures. The noble doctor, his perfect wife, the honorable police officer, the scumbag gangsters... There was very little depth to any of the characters, and what depth there was only ended up being exposed right at the very end. The editing also was less than stellar, including such things as “baron” for “barren” and “gruy're” for “gruyere”.

Finally, while I do enjoy dark fiction, and even horror, the existential angst that this book caused me was almost more than I could bear. The overall message is about how negative reactions will simply lead to more negative reactions in a never-ending cycle of death and despair. I'm okay with this sort of storyline in horror or fantasy, but this was realism and highly depressing.

Nonetheless, I think a lot of people will enjoy this book, especially if you like gritty reality in a thriller, and very dark fiction, so if it sounds like the sort of thing you like, go ahead and check it out.

Disclosure: I received an ARC e-book copy from LibraryThing Early Reviewers in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Synopsis: Rainer is a successful doctor and father of two. He’s a celebrated member of the community for his exceptional care and charity work. Brick is a local street thug that can’t keep his nose clean. When fate brings the two together through tragedy, the life of Rainer is changed dramatically. 

Glenn is a seasoned cop and Rainer’s younger brother. Trusting the justice system, he keeps his desire for revenge in check as Brick is brought to trial. But when the jury hands Brick a lean sentence, Glenn sets out to avenge his family’s suffering. But what he forgets in his rage is that for every action, there is a reaction.



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