Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, #1)

Jan 20, 2011 Once Upon rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The book took off from the very beginning. Every chapter was filled with suspense and drama and honestly, I couldn't put the book down. I especially loved how Tami Hoag described the characters and their surroundings with such detail. I actually felt like I was living in Oak Knoll! The book had me guessing who the serial killer was the whole time and just when I thought it was this person, new things happen and made me change my mind completely. She really did a phenomenal job!

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Jan 24, 2011 Keri rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: reviewed, 2011-read, suspense, tami-hoag, mystery, may-december-romance

The year was 1985. Duran, Duran was on the radio, Queen's Radio GaGa was on video and dead bodies are half buried in the park. At least that is what four 5th graders discovered as they were racing through the park. To bad young sensitive Danny is the one that fell right on top of the victim. As Anne Navarre, their teacher, tries to help her students cope with the horror that they have uncovered. Law enforcement have to cope with the fact that this is not their first victim, this is their third....more The year was 1985. Duran, Duran was on the radio, Queen's Radio GaGa was on video and dead bodies are half buried in the park. At least that is what four 5th graders discovered as they were racing through the park. To bad young sensitive Danny is the one that fell right on top of the victim. As Anne Navarre, their teacher, tries to help her students cope with the horror that they have uncovered. Law enforcement have to cope with the fact that this is not their first victim, this is their third.

As the town starts to grapple with whom is their midst is a killer, the killer carries on his secret life, for his next victim is already in his hands. He could be anybody, the lawyer who helped fill out your will, the dentist that fixed your cavity or even the guy who bags your groceries. Sheriff Dixon knows he is in over his head, as the decides to call in the FBI. Enter Vince Leone, a tall good looking dark Italian with a wise cracking mouth and a Tom Selleck mustache. All the better to keep you from staring at the scar that leads to the bullet still lodged in his brain.

Profiling is in its infancy, AFIS is not online yet and the only DNA crime database is still buried deep in some nerd's head waiting to be born. So Vince uses his knowledge of talking to many serial killer's over the years and getting in their heads. He is a man who never quits until he gets his man.

Meanwhile the kid's horror continues as the ripples of what they uncovered start to affect not only them but everybody around them as well. Anne does the best she can to protect her kids. Even if she has to stand up to Vince herself. Only once Vince gets sight of Anne he wants to do more than interrogate her. (Thank you Ms. Hoag for paying homage to your writing past as you include a bit of serious romance for those that miss your work so very much in that genre.)

As Vince and the rest of Oak Knoll's Law Enforcement struggle to find another missing young woman, the little Peyton Place of lies starts to unravel and perfect families facades start to crumble. Who will be left in the rubble? Broken homes, broken dreams and of course broken children. Oak Knoll, CA Pop. Small Town; Serial Killers Pop 1...for now.

If you have never read Tami Hoag I urge you to give this book a try. Vince is her new character and a serious contender for my heart. I can't wait to read the next one in the series, Secrets from the Grave. (Warning: There is graphic descriptions of the bodies in question and deeds of past serial killers.) Amazing good read!(less)

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Feb 08, 2010 Missy Ann rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, library-borrowed, mystery

I pushed myself through the first 50 pages (I try to give every book I pick up a fair chance). I then gave it even more time and it did move ok for a bit.

But it's asking too much of me. I just can not suspend disbelief enough to finish this.

1. A gay male kindergarten teacher. What more can I say? It's about as believable as a unicorn. He lives alone with his two dogs and he's the heroine's BFF. He literally referred to himself as her "sidekick". Argh! He comes across to me as the stereotypical...more

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Feb 06, 2011 Min added it · review of another edition

This book is set in the year 1985, and it's about four grade five children who discover a dead woman in the woods just outside of their school. It ends up being the work of a serial killer and after a few chapters of discussion, the local Oak Knoll, CA, sheriff's department calls in an FBI profiler. Of course, this being 1985, profilers were a new animal in behavioural science.

The profiler called to work this case is technically on leave, but he happens to be in the office when this case gets ca...more

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Feb 21, 2013 Liz rated it 3 of 5 stars

It’s odd to think of a contemporarily written novel set in 1985 as historical fiction, but that’s what Tami Hoag has done with Deeper than the Dead. At the time of this review, it is 2013, making 1985 almost 3 decades ago.

A forward reminds us of how much has changed in those 3 decades. It would be another 2 years before someone was convicted of a crime based on DNA. Standard office equipment was a typewriter. Cell phones were enormous & only something the rich could afford; to give one to a...more It’s odd to think of a contemporarily written novel set in 1985 as historical fiction, but that’s what Tami Hoag has done with Deeper than the Dead. At the time of this review, it is 2013, making 1985 almost 3 decades ago.

A forward reminds us of how much has changed in those 3 decades. It would be another 2 years before someone was convicted of a crime based on DNA. Standard office equipment was a typewriter. Cell phones were enormous & only something the rich could afford; to give one to a child would be considered ludicrous.

With this in mind, the story opens with Tommy & Wendy fleeing school bully Dennis & his toady Cody across the local park. In the trees, Tommy trips and lands on a woman’s partially buried body. She’s been systematically tortured and her eyes & mouth have been glued shut.

Vince Leone, an member of the FBI’s new BSU section (think Criminal Minds pioneers) is on medical leave and comes at the request of Tony Mendez who took a class about criminal profiling and notices that this is the third woman who has shown up dead with her eyes & mouth glued shut.

Because of the children, their teacher Anne Navarre, who studied children’s behavior in college, is brought in to help with the investigation.

Tami Hoag has the irritating habit that many authors do, which is that all the unlikable characters are conservative bigots with dirty secrets while her heroine is completely open-minded & sympathetic. She even has an openly gay best friend! My-oh-my! This irked me because in small towns, even in California, an openly gay man in a small town would have been regarded with suspicion. This is a common problem with historical fiction in the past decade or so – people with anything other than a basic, heterosexual, vanilla sex life were treated badly and weren’t readily accepted into society. Even open-minded people who were fine with it had to keep their opinions on the down-low.

The author was also overly self-conscious of setting her story in 1985. It was an interesting idea, but I think it would have been beneficial to quit having her characters speculate on what the future would bring in regards to technology & crime fighting. Just tell the story for cryin’ out loud!

That said, I do think it was an exciting, if implausible mystery. However, there were too many red herrings to demonstrate what wasn’t common knowledge at the time regarding sexual predators.

Bottom-line: I thought it was an interesting story, enough that I read the second novel within a couple days, but I can’t think of anyone I’d recommend it to beyond people who like reading serial killer mysteries.
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Feb 12, 2013 Jane Stewart rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-suspense

Absorbing mystery. Scary suspense. But unfinished ending.

Well done story telling. Good character development. I liked interactions and conversations. The last hour was edge of your seat. There is an enjoyable romance, but it’s a minor part of the story. Anne’s friend Franny was very entertaining.

CAUTION FOR SENSITIVE READERS:
Violence and torture. The serial killer glues the eyes and mouth shut, destroys the ear drums, and tortures with a knife. There was not a lot of detail, but those ideas stay...more Absorbing mystery. Scary suspense. But unfinished ending.

Well done story telling. Good character development. I liked interactions and conversations. The last hour was edge of your seat. There is an enjoyable romance, but it’s a minor part of the story. Anne’s friend Franny was very entertaining.

CAUTION FOR SENSITIVE READERS:
Violence and torture. The serial killer glues the eyes and mouth shut, destroys the ear drums, and tortures with a knife. There was not a lot of detail, but those ideas stayed with me more than I wanted. One expert said “The strength of your villain is the strength of your story.” Well this villain was very bad. It’s good to have bad villains. I don’t want to fault the author over this, but this one depressed me more than others.

Several children suffered, but I hurt the most for two of them - permanent damage by their parents. A significant part of the story was showing troubled marriages with different problems. One was a physically abusive father. Another was a narcissistic mother. I shudder at things done by both of them.

PROBLEMS:
I was happy toward the end with what happened to the killer. But I was angry with the author in the last few pages. She introduced a second bad person holding evidence from the victims and did not explain it. I had no idea how this person was connected to the crimes. It was an open ending. The book was not finished. I don’t know why authors do this. It makes me frustrated and angry. According to other reviewers these questions were not answered in the sequel.

A couple things were missing that I wanted to know. How did the killer get glue in the eyes without the victim seeing him before he did it? Where did he keep the victims?

THE NARRATOR:
The narrator was good except for her voice for Vince who was a former Chicago cop. The narrator used an east coast accent for him, part Boston, part Brooklyn. It was nothing like Chicago. One example of a Chicago accent is Dennis Farina, a Chicago cop turned actor.

DATA:
Narrative mode: 3rd person. Unabridged audiobook length: 13 hrs and 43 mins. Swearing language: strong including religious swear words, but not often used. Sexual language: none. One brief sex scene. Setting: 1985 California. Book copyright: 2010. Genre: mystery suspense.(less)

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Jan 24, 2013 Laurel rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery, thriller

This is the first Tami Hoag book I've read, on loan from a friend. I thoroughly enjoyed "Deeper than the Dead", and stayed up late to finish the last few chapters. I wished that I had the next installment in the Oak Hill trilogy "Secrets to the Grave", to begin right away. I found the female lead character, Anne Navarre, very appealing. She is a fifth grade teacher and caring for an elderly, cantankerous father. Four of her students stumble across a dead woman's corpse in woods near their school...more

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Jan 15, 2013 Nicole rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed

I have read most of Tami Hoag's novels and I'm not sure why I waited so long to start reading her Deeper than the Dead/Oak Knoll series. All three books are now out in paperback.

I do love a good thriller, especially with a sliver of romance. Tami Hoag, in my opinion, surpassed all her previous efforts with Deeper than the Dead. What makes DTTD so chilling and unique are the POVs from the four children who came across the dead body in the park. There are a great cast of characters, which include...more

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Sep 30, 2012 Nicole rated it 2 of 5 stars

I feel like I used to really like Tami Hoag - it's hard to tell now though because it's been so long since she had something new come out. Regardless of whether I used to like her or not, I THINK I did so therefore I was really excited to see Deeper Than The Dead come out recently. I blindly put it on hold from the library, not even bothering to read the cover blurb, and was pleasantly surprised when it came in relatively quick. I eagerly dove in before I realized this was not the deep, cool wat...more I feel like I used to really like Tami Hoag - it's hard to tell now though because it's been so long since she had something new come out. Regardless of whether I used to like her or not, I THINK I did so therefore I was really excited to see Deeper Than The Dead come out recently. I blindly put it on hold from the library, not even bothering to read the cover blurb, and was pleasantly surprised when it came in relatively quick. I eagerly dove in before I realized this was not the deep, cool waters I was expecting but more like a shallow kiddie pool - I keep swimming cause I like the water but I am immediately disappointed.

Deeper tells the story of four fifth-graders who stumble upon a body in the woods behind their school. The woman was buried with only her head showing and she has been mutilated to be blind, deaf, and mute. Anne Navarro, the students teacher, immediately goes to the rescue of the children by supporting them and standing up for them if need be. When the local sheriff's office realizes they may have a serial killer on their hands, Vance Leon, an profiler from the FBI, travels to California to help find the killer before he strikes again.

First of all, this story took place in 1985. Don't get me wrong, I loved 1985! I was only three but I distinctly remember neon socks, side ponytails, and listening to Madonna in the car with my father (who LOVES Madonna). However, reading a story about police procedural work that took place prior to cell phones, internet, and DNA fingerprinting was not really entertaining. Blame it on CSI, NCIS, Bones, etc. but going back to the police work of the technological stone age was akin to watching paint dry.

Secondly, fifth graders were the primary characters in much of the story. I don't mind reading from the point of view of kids but I prefer it in a kids book not an adult book about a serial killer into mutilation. The characters who weren't children were okay but not overly believable. I totally thought that Detective Mendez was going to be a key person but he ended up blending into the background, which was a disappointment. There was a bit of a romance story but it was between two people I felt were incompatible, was rushed, and felt weird. My favorite character by far was Franny! He added comic relief when things got too serious.

Finally, the story was well written. Hoag did a great job of implicating several people as the killer and then writing their stories in a way that left any of them open to be the culprit depending on who's side you were on. I descriptions of the women being left without three of their five senses sent a chill through my body and is not my literal nightmare. Unfortunately, even with all of that, I didn't think the who-dun-it was too hard to figure out and I did so well ahead of the rushed revelation.

Overall, I stuck with it because I like Hoag's writing and there were a couple characters that I wanted more of. Unless you're a die-hard Hoag fan (which I may or may not be! lol) then this book can easily be passed over for what is next on your shelf.(less)

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Aug 17, 2012 Heather Bokon rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012

This was fun. Well, not fun, women are being kidnapped and tortured, but it was fun for me to read about the police force in a small town in the mid 80s. Recently enough that I remember the time well, but far enough back in time that a lot of what they had to do seems positively archaic.

Oak Knoll is a small California town. (I constantly had it in my head that it was in Illinois, I have no idea why, but it's in CA). It appears to be a typical small town until the body of a woman is discovered in...more This was fun. Well, not fun, women are being kidnapped and tortured, but it was fun for me to read about the police force in a small town in the mid 80s. Recently enough that I remember the time well, but far enough back in time that a lot of what they had to do seems positively archaic.

Oak Knoll is a small California town. (I constantly had it in my head that it was in Illinois, I have no idea why, but it's in CA). It appears to be a typical small town until the body of a woman is discovered in the woods by some kids on their way home from school. Vince Leone is an FBI profiler who takes the case on his own time because a cop he considers a protege has asked him to take a look at it. Anne Navarre is the childrens' teacher, and is the first one to arrive when the kids start screaming.

Anne seemed to be overly involved in the lives of her students, that's probably the biggest problem I had with her. I understand that they had just gone through a traumitizing experience (one of them literally fell onto the body), but I thought she and those around her depended a little too much on the 1 or 2 child psychology classes she took before dropping out of college to take care of a father who apparently can't stand her. I can understand her doing her best to make sure the kids are ok, but showing up at their homes on a regular basis and going out to dinner with a student and his father seemed to be taking it too far.

Vince was a pretty typical literary FBI agent. He's been on medical leave for a while, and this is his first case back. The relationship between him and Anne seemed a little forced, but it was still nice to see.

The mystery itself was decent. There were enough characters that would have been obvious choices for the killer to make it fun to read. I didn't feel like it was too obvious or obscure. The ending was a little open. I know there are more books coming in the Oak Knoll series, so maybe we'll get more closure there.

I don't know exactly how accurate the portrayal of small town CA police force in the mid-80s was; I was only 10 at the time and I don't live in CA, but it rang true enough for me. The FBI was just starting to use profiling as a genuine crime-fighting tool, there was no DNA, there was no way to see blood that had been cleaned up, there were no cell phones, no internet, the tools we see all the time in books and crime shows - VICAP, The Center for Missing and Exploited Children, fingerprint databases - didn't exist. Fingerprints had to be found and examined by hand, a lot of police forces didn't even have fax machines yet. Even if her descriptions and timing were a little off (I'm not saying they were, just that I suppose it's possible), it was fun to read about. I'm putting the next one in the series on hold at the library now and I'll read it as soon as it comes in.(less)

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Jun 18, 2012 L. Chambers-Wright rated it 2 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I give the novel two stars because I haven't found a typo. Unfortunately, that is the best trait of the work.

I have read several of Ms. Hoag's novels, as I'm an avid reader, and I try to give authors a few tries, especially if they have a sizable following. Sadly, all of her books seem to share some similar traits that just annoy me right out of the story. I try to be constructive with reviewing, so I'll explain my rating.

This novel is set in 1985. That's fine, but there are repeated references...more I give the novel two stars because I haven't found a typo. Unfortunately, that is the best trait of the work.

I have read several of Ms. Hoag's novels, as I'm an avid reader, and I try to give authors a few tries, especially if they have a sizable following. Sadly, all of her books seem to share some similar traits that just annoy me right out of the story. I try to be constructive with reviewing, so I'll explain my rating.

This novel is set in 1985. That's fine, but there are repeated references to the point where you just want to say, "I get it, it's 1985." The repeated head jumping has forced me to stop several times, just to make sure I know which character the author is speaking or thinking from. There are numerous instances of problems with showing vs. telling. We aren't given examples of how characters do what they do, we're simply told they are this way, because the author says so. The author also makes repeated allusions of approaching technology or procedure from the future, but the story is supposed to be in 1985.

There is also a good deal of parenthetical material, in the first chapters, which do not belong in parenthesis. They should've been given their own sentences.

The characters tend to come across as stereotypical portrayals, sometimes to the point of caricatures. This is something that has occurred in the other novels by the author. Likewise, characters are oddly moody or emotional towards one another. The dialogue is often clunky and clichéd. This book features the schoolmarm, the flamboyant stereotype of a gay man, the wife-beater, the redneck, and several others. Her best friend is flamboyantly gay so he makes a scene wherever he goes.

The main character in this novel, Anne, is the conventional old schoolmarm who never married. She's moody and often hateful, but she still isn't explained well enough to grant her real depth. The perspective of the kids is fairly well done, but you still get a sense that an adult is trying to depict what a kid is thinking.

The main character describes herself as "conservative as they come," yet this schoolmarm abandons her inhibitions to have sex with a man she's known a day and a half. As if that wasn't unbelievable enough for the character, they're outside on the back porch, with her father at home. She lives with her father. They're out in the open while there's enough light to discern what color the wine is. Any neighbor or passer-by can stop to watch, and several do.

The book has numerous instances of child abuse that no one cares about, even the teachers. We are given a child bully, and an adult bully, but no reason is ever given as to why they bully. One of the children in the novel is caught trying to force another child to eat a dead human finger, while a serial killer is on the loose, but the authorities don't really seem to care. It is implied the child is a deranged psychopath, but we aren't told why or how he became that way.

There's a pedophile mentioned in the book, one of the suspects, and he is the epitome of the stereotypical hillbilly. Human remains are found in the "hogpen," but oddly enough, any information on that wasn't important enough to include elsewhere.

An autopsy is performed, but it is described as if the corner is wearing a spacesuit.

These discrepancies in detail leave much to be desired from the readers' perspective. The most interesting characters are the ones least discussed. I am a fan of horror and supernatural novels, so long as the gruesome scenes justify the story. There are just too many loose ends, too much chaos, and too many questions left unanswered.
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Dec 17, 2011 June Ahern rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really must stop with these gruesome books with too vivid descriptions of how the victims die. Remember in the older mysteries, we just knew that a knife wound brought blood, not shredded the heart, opened the valves, with gallons of blood soaking - etc etc - but, I did read Ms. Tami Hoag's mystery thriller - no, not read, listened to the CDs and found the plot good, the characters believable and interesting and the dialogue real. The gory, ugh. Women (always the chicks) going a missing and th...more

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Dec 08, 2011 Auriette rated it 5 of 5 stars

I don’t read many mysteries, and I’d never read anything by Tami Hoag until I picked up “Deeper Than the Dead” a couple of weeks ago. I should explain that more clearly. A few months ago, I won copies of two books by Ms. Hoag, and I gave them to my mom, and she read them and gave them back, and then I started reading the paperback a couple of weeks ago.

“Deeper Than the Dead” is set in the dark ages of 1985, when I was in college. The author explains in her forward that this is before the interne...more I don’t read many mysteries, and I’d never read anything by Tami Hoag until I picked up “Deeper Than the Dead” a couple of weeks ago. I should explain that more clearly. A few months ago, I won copies of two books by Ms. Hoag, and I gave them to my mom, and she read them and gave them back, and then I started reading the paperback a couple of weeks ago.

“Deeper Than the Dead” is set in the dark ages of 1985, when I was in college. The author explains in her forward that this is before the internet, when computers were still uncommon in law enforcement offices, DNA evidence was so new it had never been used to get a conviction, and criminal profiling was in its infancy. Pop culture references and descriptions of ’80s fashion and hairstyles served as regular reminders that the story was taking place 26 years ago. Only once did I forget and wonder for a moment why the detectives didn’t look something up online.

The story takes place in the small California community of Oak Knoll. Three children literally stumble across a woman’s mutilated body, partially buried in the woods near their shortcut home. Her eyes and mouth are glued shut, her eardrums punctured. The search begins for the “See No Evil Killer.”

Hoag weaves a finely-tuned tale of dark secrets in the tight-knit community. The children who find the body are tied to the most likely suspects. The sheriff is close friends with the head of a women-empowerment program linked to all the victims. The owner of the junk yard where the victims’ cars turn up is not the most likely suspect in their murders, but a grisly discovery opens a new case.

Just went I thought I knew for sure who the killer was, some new twist or something one of the other suspects said, would make me change my mind. As I read the final chapters yesterday, my husband was sitting nearby, grinning at the faces I was making at each new reveal, and he laughed out loud at one audible, “Eeeew.”

As I said, I don’t read a lot of mysteries, but “Deeper Than the Dead” is definitely one of the best, and it puts Tami Hoag on my list of recommended authors.(less)

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Sep 25, 2011 Shazza Maddog rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I grabbed this book out of the library because the jacket blurb reminded me of Bella in the Wych Elm - some kids finding a murdered woman, buried in a forest.

Let's just say the story goes far beyond that.

It's 1985 and Tommy Crane, his best friend, Wendy Morgan and their nemesis, Dennis Farman and his toady, Cody Roache, not only stumble across a woman half buried in the woods, while Dennis is chasing Tommy and Wendy, they all land on top of the body. The body is only partially buried, with her e...more I grabbed this book out of the library because the jacket blurb reminded me of Bella in the Wych Elm - some kids finding a murdered woman, buried in a forest.

Let's just say the story goes far beyond that.

It's 1985 and Tommy Crane, his best friend, Wendy Morgan and their nemesis, Dennis Farman and his toady, Cody Roache, not only stumble across a woman half buried in the woods, while Dennis is chasing Tommy and Wendy, they all land on top of the body. The body is only partially buried, with her eyes and her mouth sealed shut by superglue. Dennis's dad, Frank Farman, is part of the team of deputies who come in to investigate. In the meantime, the kids' teacher, Anne Navarre, has followed them into the woods and is trying to run some sort of damage control for the kids, at least.

Detective Tony Mendez, the new kid and only Hispanic on the force, realizes there is a good possibility this is a serial murder. There have been two bodies found in a similar way prior to this, just not both in their jurisdiction. While Farman ridicules him, Dixon, the chief of police, okays Mendez to get in touch with the FBI and their forensic profiler team, which brings us to Vince Leone.

Vince is actually supposed to be on medical leave but he's met Tony before and thinks Tony might be right in his assumptions. He agrees to come out to California to help work the case, much to Farman's disgust at the 'newfangled' procedures. Vince has his own problems, though - he was shot a year ago and still carries a 22 slug around in his brain. Divorced, father of two girls he doesn't see any more Vince has the FBI as his life and family but realizes he wants something different.

The story revolves around the Crane, Morgan and Farman families, each one dysfunctional in its own way. Tommy's mother, Janet, is a shrew and his father, Peter, the town dentist, hides out from her. Wendy's parents, Steve and Sara, are on the verge of a separation. Frank is physically and emotionally abusive to his family, beating his wife, Sharon, and Dennis as well. Their interactions with Vince and Anne, who also become involved with each other, twist and tangle the storyline until it is a Gordian knot of possibilities. The problem is - the killer already has his next victim in hand, a woman named Karly, who was supposed to start work at Steve's law firm and was last seen at Dr. Crane's office.

This was a page-turner. The characters all seem to be very well thought out and, even though none of them seem particularly happy with their lives, some of them are very engaging. Anne, particularly, strikes a few chords, as does her best friend, Franny, the gay kindergarten teacher.

Very engaging and a gripping story, I'd be happy to recommend it to anyone who likes a creepy mystery.(less)

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Sep 16, 2011 Kelly rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: listened-to

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jul 02, 2011 Jessica Schira rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: adult-mystery-series

If you are looking for a romance novel with hot guys Deeper Than the Dead is not the book for you. However, if you want a novel that is going to keep you up late and worry about what your neighbors are up to, you are going to love this novel. Deeper Than the Dead has all the ingredients a good thriller needs including crooked cops, creepy kids, grisly murders, and bizarre burials.

One of Hoag’s trademarks is her writing voice; it is consistent and smooth. That alone would be enough to have her st...more

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Feb 09, 2011 Jaime rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, romantic_suspense

Tami Hoag and I go way back. In the early/mid-90s, she was one of the first authors I poached from my parents’ bookshelf. She introduced me to romantic suspense long before I even knew what romantic suspense was. And then I read Kill the Messenger, which didn’t connect with me at all, and she fell further down my list of go-to authors. Thankfully, with Deeper Than The Dead, she is back.

First of all, I think the title and the meaning behind it is genius. It refers to the location of the FBI’s Beh...more Tami Hoag and I go way back. In the early/mid-90s, she was one of the first authors I poached from my parents’ bookshelf. She introduced me to romantic suspense long before I even knew what romantic suspense was. And then I read Kill the Messenger, which didn’t connect with me at all, and she fell further down my list of go-to authors. Thankfully, with Deeper Than The Dead, she is back.

First of all, I think the title and the meaning behind it is genius. It refers to the location of the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit in its early days; the office is in the bowels of the building, and therefore its inhabitants are deeper than the dead. But really, the book has very little to do with the BSU as a unit. The focus is Vince Leone, a profiler who takes it upon himself to go help a promising young detective who thinks he’s found a serial killer.

Also involved in the case is 5th grade teacher Anne Navarre, who is sucked in when her students find the latest body. One of the things I think worked really well in this book was the way Hoag used the children to show us some of what was happening behind the scenes. I think she captured each one of them perfectly, especially the troubled bully, Dennis. It helps us remember that even the most disturbed child was probably a victim.

Vince and Anne make an unexpected and unusual team, but I liked them together. I actually wild-guessed who the bad guy was quite early in the story, but I think it comes from the sheer amount of these sorts of books I read — you eventually learn how things work. Hoag does a good job of making me doubt my guess on more than one occasion.

Beneath all this effusive praise, I do have a few nits to pick. 1) I didn’t see the point of Anne’s despicable father, except to serve as yet another example of bad parenting in a story in which crappy parents abound. 2) Anne’s best friend Franny was a little too flaming, especially for a kindergarten teacher in 1985. And 3) Hoag uses the term "person of interest" on several occasions, and this was a term that wasn’t widely used, even amongst law enforcement, until at least the mid-90s. But none of this was enough to pull me away from the story, and I look forward to not only reading the sequel, but to bumping Tami Hoag back up a few spots on my "must-read" list.(less)

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Jul 27, 2010 Kathy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Tami Hoag has written a real pager turner here (no spoilers). Some of her recent efforts (The Alibi Man Prior Bad Acts), in my opinion were not up to her earlier work but Deeper Than The Dead is good. The story is set in suburban California in 1985. Four elementary school children find a body on their way home from school. Their teacher, Ann Navarone, arrives on the scene to help the children with this horrific event. The murder is soon seen as the work of a serial killer. FBI profiler Vince Leo...more

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Jun 21, 2010 Denise rated it 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars for this uneven thriller..., June 21, 2010
By Denise "DC"

This review is from: Deeper Than the Dead (Hardcover)
I don't expect to read about 1980s police procedures when buying a new book so the fact that Deeper Than the Dead was set in this time frame was a bit disconcerting. In the end, however, the time setting didn't make that much difference in my overall impression of the book.

The story moves at a fairly fast pace and the red herrings thrown out to make the reader think that first...more 3.5 stars for this uneven thriller..., June 21, 2010
By Denise "DC"

This review is from: Deeper Than the Dead (Hardcover)
I don't expect to read about 1980s police procedures when buying a new book so the fact that Deeper Than the Dead was set in this time frame was a bit disconcerting. In the end, however, the time setting didn't make that much difference in my overall impression of the book.

The story moves at a fairly fast pace and the red herrings thrown out to make the reader think that first one, and then another man is the murderer are planted fairly well and kept me wondering throughout the novel. The story involves 3 major families (one reviewer says 4 but the Cody Roache family isn't really a contender)whose patriarch might possibly be the heinous killer. In addition, the narrative introduces us to an embattled FBI agent working off the clock, Vince Leone, who was shot in the head with a 22-caliber pistol and survived as the male romantic interest, and the teacher of the fifth grade students who are at the center of the drama, Anne Navarre. I found this 28-year-old teacher to be somewhat annoying and a little too perfect and interfering in the investigation. The romance that evolves is entirely predictable and again, irritating but I understand that the author is writing romantic suspense so had to deal with this aspect to please fans of that genre.

Things that annoyed me: many loose ends in the story. There are several pieces that aren't explained and are just dangling. We don't find out the outcome or identify of one major dead person and I don't like it when authors don't provide details for certain threads. We have no idea of why the killer became the way he did or why he selected the victims he chose. I like a lot more psychological probing than Tami Hoag did with this novel. I have read all her other books, some are better than others, but this one was a bit on the lite side in terms of delving into the mind of a serial killer. If the main character was supposed to be an FBI profiler, I expected more detail about background and motive.

Things I liked: fast, interesting and definitely a new twist with part of the focus being on how bad parents affect children! They are definitely able to see and hear what goes on in their homes and often are much wiser about the way things stand than parents ever suspect.

Recommend if you're looking for a quick read and don't expect too much science or pathology-psychology! (less)

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Apr 11, 2010 Kesha rated it 2 of 5 stars

I preface this review by saying that I have read another Tami Hoag book and liked it, so this is not a general reflection on the author, if you like her style of writing. That said, I found this book laughably bad. I have given it 2 stars because I reserve 1 star ratings for books I can't finish after a year or more. I managed to finish this one, but was sorry I did.

The author challenged herself by setting the story in the 80s, before most of the forensic devices used in most modern mysteries we...more

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Mar 04, 2010 Lisa Harwell rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was my third audiobook choice selection and I couldn't have been more pleased.

As a new voiceover artist, part of my research is to review other works and gain insight into how the artist portrays the work written by the writer and what the writer is looking for in that voiceover artist. It's that connection in being able to draw the reader into the story, to make the experience initimate, first hand.

I've read many Tami Hoag novels, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one. Each chapter continued t...more

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Feb 23, 2010 Nancy marked it as to-read

Shelves: crime-drama

California, 1984. Four children, running in the woods behind their school, stumble upon a partially buried female body, eyes and mouth glued shut. Close behind the children is their teacher, Anne Navarre, shocked by this discovery and heartbroken as she witnesses the end of their innocence. What she doesn’t yet realize is that this will mark the end of innocence for an entire community, as the ties that bind families and friends are tested by secrets uncovered in the wake of a serial killer’s es...more

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Feb 12, 2010 Suspense Magazine rated it 5 of 5 stars

In a stunning return to writing, Tami Hoag changes the game by returning her readers to forensics of the past in “Deeper than the Dead”. As fans, we find books cluttering the store shelves where protagonists need only turn on their blackberry to solve the most heinous crimes. It often seems to be a competition—similar to that of our favorite television shows—to offer us storylines that are more and more implausible yet easily solved using state-of-the-art technology.

“Deeper than the Dead” retur...more

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Feb 02, 2010 Mary rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: just-finished

One a day in 1985 in Oak Knoll, Calif., 10 yr old Tommy Crane and his friend, 10 yr old Wendy Morgan, are running from the class bully, 11 yr old Dennis Farman, through a local park when Tommy falls near the head of a dead woman buried up to her neck. Oak Knoll is a quiet community where crime is not a problem, but a serial killer is on the loose who's already murdered and tortured several women. Fifth-grade teacher Anne Navarre, who tries to comfort Tommy and Wendy, is soon at the center of the...more

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Jan 18, 2010 Robyn rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. A compelling new novel from Tami Hoag. The story is interesting b/c it is set in 1985, before DNA testing and computers aided in police investigations. This was also the advent of criminal profiling, which helps create a backdrop to the story. That said, profiling does not play as significant a role in the story as the reader might original think. The only thing the idea of profiling adds is a male protagonist from the FBI. I think the story could have worked without this character, however, tho...more

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Dec 26, 2009 Amy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own

In Deeper Than Dead, a serial killer is at work in a small town in the 1980s. Teacher Anne Navarre and FBI profiler Vince Leone must work together to find the killer. The 1980s setting makes the chase extra-interesting since forensic science and profiling were in their infancy at the time. In today's society, we are all accustomed to "the CSI effect", and it's easy to take such scientific advances for granted. Hoag does an excellent job with red herrings when it comes to the identity of the kill...more

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Feb 05, 2011 Alisha rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-thriller, e-books-i-ve-read

When it comes to mysteries, I like the ones I read to fall heavily on the psychologically disturbing spectrum. Unless, of course, they're cozy mysteries because those are supposed to be light and airy. Deeper Than Dead wasn't a cozy mystery and it wasn't all light and airy. However, it wasn't as dark as I usually like my mysteries and it wasn't much when it came to probing the mind of the cruel serial killer. This was surprising considering that Hoag makes this huge deal about Vince, this awesom...more When it comes to mysteries, I like the ones I read to fall heavily on the psychologically disturbing spectrum. Unless, of course, they're cozy mysteries because those are supposed to be light and airy. Deeper Than Dead wasn't a cozy mystery and it wasn't all light and airy. However, it wasn't as dark as I usually like my mysteries and it wasn't much when it came to probing the mind of the cruel serial killer. This was surprising considering that Hoag makes this huge deal about Vince, this awesome, kick-ass profiler who is a living legend in the BSU (us Criminal Minds fans know it as the BAU), yet doesn't have him doing much of anything except the job of the regular-run-of-the-mill detective. And we had tons of those, so what was the point besides playing up the romance with the teacher?

God, the romance! It was your typical eye-rolling cheesefest of a romance that doesn't really belong in a hardcore mystery book, but as I've mentioned, Deeper Than Dead isn't really a hard core mystery. Honestly, I skimmed most of the romance scenes because I couldn't care less about Anne and Vince. That part was meh to me. You know what else was meh for me...any chapter than Vince narrated. He's just not the most interesting of characters. I found myself going "Oh not again!" when a chapter he was narrating popped up. He was definitely the most boring character. Oh, and by the way, NO ONE falls in love in three days! Do you hear me? NO ONE! So that part was nauseating with the whole "I've only known her for 48 hours but I LURVE her!" Dude, that wasn't you thinking with your heart or your actual head...

Anyway, one thing I did like about Deeper Than Dead were the chapters alternated by the children. Reading what was happening through their eyes was infinitely more interesting than what was happening through the eyes of Vincent. I also liked the chapters narrated by the suspects. In fact, the only chapters I didn't like were the ones narrated by, you guessed it, Vince.

Deeper Than Dead was an okay mystery. It was a page-turner in the beginning and again in the end. It did drag a lot in the middle though. I think this book would've been a tad bit more interesting if it had delved into the mind of the serial killer and why he was the way he was. Otherwise, why would you waste time including a character from the BSU when his part could've been given to the average Dick or Tom? Still, I'll probably check out the next one only because it's already on my Kindle.(less)

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Jul 17, 2012 Elizabeth rated it 4 of 5 stars

Let me start this review by saying that I have been on an 80's kick for the last month or so, and that may have influenced my decision to read Deeper Than the Dead right now. I also want to say that in 1985, my parents had only been married for two years and that I wasn't even born yet (1986, baby!).

Deeper Than the Dead is very different from most books that I read in that it takes place in a time that isn't "historical" (i.e. before the invention of most modern conveniences) it also isn't conte...more Let me start this review by saying that I have been on an 80's kick for the last month or so, and that may have influenced my decision to read Deeper Than the Dead right now. I also want to say that in 1985, my parents had only been married for two years and that I wasn't even born yet (1986, baby!).

Deeper Than the Dead is very different from most books that I read in that it takes place in a time that isn't "historical" (i.e. before the invention of most modern conveniences) it also isn't contemporary (i.e. anything since the invention of the Ipod). It is also different because I know more about what is going to happen to the world at large over the next 27 years than the characters in the book. (While I sometimes read historical romance novels, my knowledge of the years surrounding the novels' action is slim. I might know that a book that takes place in France in 1814 will probably have characters affected by Wellington's defeat of Napoleon a year later, but I won't know much more than that.) With this book and the 80s television shows/movies that I have been watching lately, I know that the character whose blood mixed with someone else's or who constantly engages in sex could end up getting HIV/AIDS. I don't know if other people have that issue, but I do. Sometimes that distracts me from the storytelling (for instance, last week I was watching an episode of Scarecrow and Mrs. King (don't judge me) and I realized that Lee should have had some type of STD from all the women he was supposedly sleeping with. It was a weird thought and it totally took me out of the action.) Thankfully, with Deeper Than the Dead, there weren't many moments like that--however, when Vince described a cell phone as having to be carried in a suitcase I couldn't stop the laughter despite seeing an 80's era cell phone on an old episode of Doctor Who (the one where Rose gets the Doctor to take her to 1987 to see her father).

Now, if anyone is still with me (hey, it is 2:30 in the morning, I have the right to ramble a little bit), I'll actually review the book.

Welcome to Oak Knoll--a small town with BIG secrets. In October of 1985, Oak Knoll played host to a serial killer dubbed See No Evil because he liked to blind, deafen, and mute his victims. (Each victim had her eardrums destroyed and her mouth and eyes glued shut.) Fairly quickly, readers are supplied with a handful of suspects and very little evidence (probably because DNA analysis wasn't available and the only real forensic measure they had was blood typing). After realizing that there is a serial killer at work, Detective Tony Mendez gets his boss to agree to bring in FBI profiler Vince Leone (did anyone else combine their names and start humming Billy Joel's Movin' Out? No? just me then.) Also involved in the investigation is fifth grade teacher Anne Navarre because 4 of her students literally fell on the dead woman's body.

What I really liked about this book (other than the sporadic mentions of John Douglas and Robert Ressler--the dude who coined the term 'serial killer' in 1977!!!) was that Ms. Hoag kept me guess right to the end--I had my suspicions, but each time I thought I figured it out another red herring would be thrown at me. It wasn't until I was about 100 pages from the end that I mostly figured out who the killer was, and even then I wasn't completely sure (the only thing I was sure of was that the killer wasn't the obvious choice).

I also liked the pop culture references, even though I possess only a vague impression of shows like Dallas (Who Shot J.R.), Macguyver (dude can get out of anything with a paper clip and a stick of gum), and Dynasty.

The one thing that bugged me about the book was that there were way too many narrators. At my last count there were at least 8 narrators. While this helped at times, it did sometimes bog down the narrative in details that weren't really relevant.

Overall, I would rate this at 4 stars/A-. (Tomorrow morning--I need sleep, people!--I will start Secrets to the Grave, sequel to Deeper Than the Dead.)(less)

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Feb 13, 2012 Cheryle rated it 4 of 5 stars

Nice twisted little story, but a little extreme for me. It went from being a sleepy town to a town with a multitude of murders some by different killers. I understand that changes in a persons life can cause things to happen that will push them over the edge, but to have so many in one little area seemed to be pushing the limits a bit.

I did enjoy the fact that the story was in the past just as profiling was coming into its infancy. Also loved the fact that we were still in the infancy of the ele...more

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Oct 01, 2011 Book Him Danno rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Wow that was a suspense filled book that kept me on the edge of my seat...who is the killer and will he or she kill again? Wow that was a good book I really need to give it 4 1/2 stars. If you enjoy murder mysteries with a bit of romance you would enjoy this book. Wow it was scary I was shaking at the end with wonder if the murder would be caught. Read this book. Wow

A murder mystery that I didn’t want to put down. Tami wove a story that kept you turning the page wanting answers to the questions...more

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Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll #1)

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