2.5 stars - the beginning and the end didn't make sense, and the writing style was... Foggy. The middle of the book seems clearer.

I enjoyed the dry humour though. ( )

No rating. First time reading a book by this author and it will be the last.

What in the hell did i just read? ( )

This is a suspense thriller told from an unnamed serial killer's point of view. Preying on young women in England, the narrative unfolds when he is surprised by his latest victim's best friend, Erica happening on the scene. Soon, Erica is also missing.... The author is great at writing "psyche-outs"-- leading the reader into jumping to conclusions and ratcheting the tension up high and then, turning the scene in an unexpected direction. The dark humor rests in the release of that tension, even as the story builds up more. Cameron's skill however, fails at the end with, not quite a cliffhanger; but an unsatisfying note...

But then there's Dead Girls, the follow-up novel to Normal, though oddly neither is listed or marketed as having any relation to the other! Told from the investigating officer's point-of view, it has its own surprises though the tension & dark humor doesn't run as high. The novel's chief merit lies in closing the narrative arc of the first book and, the two novels together are stronger than the sum of their parts. Recommended for those who like Dexter (series by Jeff Lindsay), Joe (from You by Caroline Kepnes) and are prepared for some graphic descriptions of violence and bodily harm in the course of things. ( )

I LOVED the first half of this book. "Normal" is narrated from the protagonist's, a serial killer's, point of view; and his irreverent wit and macabre humor instantly grabbed my attention. Too often, when the main character attempts to be clever it comes across as corny or pretentious and it's very off putting and I usually DNF. I didn't find that happening with Normal- and it may have been largely due to Julian Elfer's fantastic audio narration. Each snarky remark was done with precise timing and perfectly deadpan. One would think that it would be difficult to make a serial killer likable and engaging but he certainly pulled it off. BUT - suddenly the story somehow took a detour straight into stupid. I was so disappointed, I kept reading hoping the story would somehow pull itself back together but it never did. The ending made hardly any sense at all but by then, I didn't even care any more and was just frustrated with the whole thing. I hate when that happens - it starts off so promising and then ends up being such a let down. ( )