Behind His Eyes

Casey Faith #1

by Rylie Dark

When victims turn up drowned near the historic lighthouses of a picturesque East Coast town in Summer, all hope lies on local cop Casey Faith to catch the killer. But as Casey follows his dark path, she must wonder: is she falling right into a trap?

BEHIND HIS EYES (A Casey Faith Suspense Thriller—Book 1) is the first book in a highly anticipated new series by #1 bestseller Rylie Dark, whose bestseller SEE HER RUN (a free download) has received over 700 five star ratings and reviews.

The CASEY FAITH mystery series is a riveting thriller saga that takes readers on a heart-racing journey of unexpected twists and intense suspense. At its core is an ingenious female protagonist who captures your affection and ensures you'll be captivated well into the night. Fans of Teresa Driscoll, Kendra Eliot, and Melinda Leigh are sure to fall in love.

Future books in the series will soon be available!

Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Ebooks, Mystery Thriller, Suspense, Fiction, Amazon

152 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 14, 2024

About the author

Rylie Dark is author of the SADIE PRICE FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER series, comprising six books (and counting); of the CARLY SEE FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER series, comprising six books (and counting); of the MIA NORTH FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER series, comprising six books (and counting); of the MORGAN STARK FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER series, comprising five books (and counting); of the HAILEY ROCK FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER series, comprising five books (and counting),of the TARA STRONG MYSTERY series, comprising five books (and counting); and of the ALEX QUINN SUSPENSE THRILLER series, comprising five books (and counting).

Rylie loves to hear from you, so please feel free to visit www.ryliedark.com to receive free ebooks, hear the latest news, and stay in touch.

BOOKS BY RYLIE DARK

ALEX QUINN SUSPENSE THRILLER

FIRST, MURDER (Book #1)

SECOND, DEATH (Book #2)

THIRD, ENVY (Book #3)

FOURTH, LUST (Book #4)

FIFTH, WRATH (Book #5)

HAILEY ROCK FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER

BEHIND YOU (Book #1)

BESIDE YOU (Book #2)

AFTER YOU (Book #3)

WATCHING YOU (Book #4)

JUDGING YOU (Book #5)

TARA STRONG MYSTERY

GIRL WITHOUT A CHANCE (Book #1)

GIRL WITHOUT A HOME (Book #2)

GIRL WITHOUT A TRACE (Book #3)

GIRL WITHOUT A NAME (Book #4)

GIRL WITHOUT A PRAYER (Book #5)

SADIE PRICE FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER

ONLY MURDER (Book #1)

ONLY RAGE (Book #2)

ONLY HIS (Book #3)

ONLY ONCE (Book #4)

ONLY SPITE (Book #5)

ONLY MADNESS (Book #6)

MIA NORTH FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER

SEE HER RUN (Book #1)

SEE HER HIDE (Book #2)

SEE HER SCREAM (Book #3)

SEE HER VANISH (Book #4)

SEE HER GONE (Book #5)

SEE HER DEAD (Book #6)

CARLY SEE FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER

NO WAY OUT (Book #1)

NO WAY BACK (Book #2)

NO WAY HOME (Book #3)

NO WAY LEFT (Book #4)

NO WAY UP (Book #5)

NO WAY TO DIE (Book #6)

MORGAN STARK FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER

TOO LATE (Book #1)

TOO CLOSE (Book #2)

TOO FAR GONE (Book #3)

TOO LOST (Book #4)

TOO BROKEN (Book #5)

Reviews

[Annie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the story and the fledgling partnership. However, Riley needs a decent editor!

1. Late fifties is NOT “elderly”
2. The Pathology Lab is NOT the same as the Morgue.
3. On page 109, she pierced the foil and put her TV dinner in the microwave (dangerous enough) and two pages later, she peeled back the plastic.
4. Page 132: of you are chasing someone, you don’t have a lead!

[Kirsten Izatt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Grumpy elderly woman unimpressed with laziness

I didn't get very far. I think I'm getting a bit grumpy now that I'm almost elderly according to this author (I'm 49. Mid-50s is described as elderly in the book). So that annoyed me. And after that the whole thing just felt pretty lazy and predictable. I'm pedantic. Others are probably not so fussy.

[Barefoot Gypsy Jimerson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad for once

Now this book was engaging and worth the read. The characters are well rounded and work well with the story.

[Hannah · Rating 2 out of 5]

It felt one dimensional to keep it short and sweet.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t usually read police/detective books but really enjoyed this. Will read more of series. Writing is good pace

[Charly Cliver · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too slow at times and redundant

[Peg Lang · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Beginning Of the book Was the most interesting part.

This book was okay. I did keep reading it till the end. The editing left something to be desired. It said he in places where it meant she. And it drove me crazy about the boating always referred to as sailing a motorboat. You don't sail motorboat. This is fiction, but I cannot think of anywhere on the jersey shore that it is steep and rocky as depicted in this story. I don't understand how the title goes with the story.

[Lacy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This murder mystery follows two local detectives as they try to solve two murders, which soon appear to be part of a series of murders, before the FBI is called in.

Hmm. How do I say this? As I started reading, I noticed some apparent editing misses - ok, no biggie. But, the writing mishaps persisted.

I read out a passage to my husband for his thoughts. In addition, I did some googling about this author. There is no Instagram presence, the blurb on the About page of the website is basically the same cut and paste writeup that you can find on the book publication/review websites, and you really just...can't find proof that this is one individual.

We guessed AI? I found some evidence that the narrator used for some of Rylie's books is a generated AI narrator. But, maybe this is like Blake Pierce and there are different writers for the different series, published under one name?

Whatever the case may be, the writing leaves a lot to be desired. Based on the reviews, the story premise seemed to be worth finishing.

It definitely wasn't gripping, so it didn't have me turning page after page. There wasn't foreshadowing or clues or any traditional sleuthiness that would allow us to 'play along'. The detective plot was very clunky.

The content was just - confusing. We didn't get clues about who the killer may be throughout the story, but there would be some extra detail inserted into a sentence that did not further the story or add to the book in any way - or, randomly, a word that came from a thesaurus that was sorely out of place. That's why I'd say maybe look at better editing to remove frivolous wording and give us actionable content that helps us get into the mystery.

About Casey's detective work...I know she's represented as newly a detective, but she was an Army MP before her current job. She keeps no change of clothes at the station and has to use borrowed clothes and shoes? She doesn't split up the list of ideas to research with her partner when they're running down leads with almost no time left? She doesn't follow the law with respect to cause? She just...doesn't come across as having the stated background. So, her character just isn't believable.

Then there's the boating scene. The suspect is on a fishing boat, but she's worried he'll sail out of sight. So she commandeers a fishing boat from a civilian - removes the mooring lines after starting the boat and asks her partner, "You can sail?". Hold up! I thought we were on a fishing boat - because we're not catching this dude in 15 mins with a sailboat. Anyway, Proceed. Alex is retching over the side (although later Casey says he handled the boat like a pro while she also said 'hopefully he'd work out how to accelerate') and, although the suspect's boat had disappeared, we've miraculously found him - and, even though he uses his own boat which he goes out on for hours at a time and uses seemingly often-ish, he caught himself in a wash of waves that were 'turning the boat into the equivalent of an electric mixer' and it's about to capsize.

So, to recap, we have really choppy sea with waves that are about to capsize a boat and we're chasing someone who may or may not be a suspect who we have no warrant for and have randomly pursued and whose vessel we're now attempting to board. Cool. And then Casey proceeds to jump into the water to swim over to the other boat and apprehend the suspect.

Without cause? With the propellers still moving? In waves that are coming over the boats and are threatening to capsize both vessels? This has gone way past unrealistic. Oh, and she arrests him. Really? For what?

Oh, and then she asks Alex if he can 'work out how to sail back?'. Yeah, he's not sailing with that fishing boat.

Oh, I also love how "she ripped off her jacket, with the phone in the pocket" on page 59, and then on page 62 after she does the whole jumping in the sea and boarding the over vessel part, she "took her phone out of her pocket, and called for backup."

I really can't recommend this to anyone. The Rylie Dark books are frequently free on Nook and Kindle, so I'd say - try them out if you want for free before purchasing them.

[Beth Casas · Rating 3 out of 5]

So much to say! I do NOT like to do a review that rakes a book over the coals, but the two books I’ve read from this series are FULL of grammar and punctuation errors! And the lead character is pretty full of herself! The narrative goes on and on about all she’s done that makes her so perfect for the job. Although her partner is a fit, healthy man, Casey always determines that she’s the most suitable to go head to head with any suspect… because of her combat experience and her experience as MP.
Casey Faith has returned to her hometown after 6 years of military service to work on the police force of Greenpoint, a touristy town by the sea, where her sister was mysteriously murdered years ago. The crime was never solved and tore her family apart.She is partnered with Alex somebody, previously an IT guy with another police dept. Honestly, there are details I should remember, but this book just made me so sleepy while reading. Anyway, the body of a hometown legend washes up on shore one morning, the obvious victim of some sort of attack. While the attack was made to look like a shark attack, certain details don’t add up. Before long a second body washes up on a different beach with the same questionable fatal wounds. It’s up to Casey and Alex to do ALL of the footwork to find the killer, with Casey being designated as the pursuer of all the running people of interest, which is all of them. Lol! After a third attempted attack, time is of the essence to prevent another attack. Casey has to make some tough decisions if they are going to catch the killer before he strikes again.

I apologize if this review seems harsh, but it was a pretty hard read with so many shortcomings. I gave it a 3 star review because it was a great story idea, but it wasn’t well executed.

[Lorrie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Poorly written. At one point in the story, the MC tells a murder suspect that he’s a murder suspect. What’s wrong with that? Well, he didn’t know that he was a suspect; he was already being difficult about answering questions and asking ‘why should I tell you that?’ From my extensive knowledge of police interrogation practices (from watching hour upon hour of CSI, Law & Order, Criminal Minds, and other similar shows), police will, at that point, just tell the suspect ‘oh, well, you were in the area ~and may have seen something important.~’ This makes the suspect feel needed, feel like the good-guy, the helpful guy who solved a murder. Police do NOT tell the suspect, ‘we think you did it, prove us wrong.’ But the MC here goes the direct route.

Also, modifiers. (Constant question: do editors exist?) Modifiers should be next to the word they are modifying. Example from the book: MC had seen a part of a scar on Other Guy’s arm. Sentence in the book: ‘She had partially noticed the scar before.’ The modifier ‘partially’ is next to the verb ‘noticed’. She partially noticed…NOPE. You either see something or you don’t. You absolutely can not partially see something. You ~can~ see something partially.
You can see something in the distance.
You can see something indistinctly, a fuzzy blur on the horizon.
You can see 1/2 of something, eg: you can see half of a car as it emerges from the garage. But you can’t 1/2 see a car.
You can see part of a scar on someone’s arm. You can see a partial scar. But you can’t partially see a scar.

So, overall, bad writing, unrealistic tactics… just not a good book. But a quick read.

[Rebecca Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Behind His Eyes" by Rylie Dark is one of those psychological thrillers that grabs you and doesn’t let go. The story follows a detective who gets pulled into a creepy murder case, and things get more twisted the deeper she digs.
What I Liked-
The Characters- The main character is super relatable, with a backstory that makes you feel for her. Rylie Dark does a great job of making the characters feel real, with all their flaws and hidden secrets.
The Suspense- The pacing is spot on. Just when you think you’ve figured something out, there’s another twist that throws you off. It’s one of those books that’s hard to put down because you’re always wondering what’s going to happen next.
The Vibe- The atmosphere is dark and tense setting the mood for a thriller. You can almost feel the unease in the air as the story unfolds.
What Could Be Better-
A Bit Predictable- If you’ve read a lot of thrillers, you might see some of the twists coming. It’s still a good ride, but it doesn’t break a lot of new ground in the genre.
The Side Characters- Some of the secondary characters could have been more developed. They’re interesting, but at times they feel more like they’re there to move the plot along rather than being fleshed-out people.
Overall- If you’re into psychological thrillers, Behind His Eyes is worth a read. It’s got all the suspense, mystery, and emotional depth you’d want, even if some parts are a bit predictable. It’s the kind of book that’ll keep you turning pages late into the night, trying to figure out just how dark things are going to get.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rylie Dark's Behind His Eyes (A Casey Faith Suspense Thriller Book 1, first in her new series, is an excellently written book. Her characters are mostly well fleshed out, only the murderer isn't very fleshed out.

Two women on GreenPoint (a small tourist town) have turned up dead, from drowning. One was drowned in freshwater, one in seawater. Casey Field and her new partner Alex Mercer are tasked with finding the murder. Casey feels she's superior to Alex as she had worked as an investigator in the Army, while Alex did IT for a police department. Of course, Casey takes the lead, while belittling Alex's job history, so they clash while they try to figure the case out.

I always enjoy Rylie Dark's Thrillers. Behind His Eyes is no exception. I found it engrossing, an imaginative story, and a police chief who actually supported his two detectives.

Of course, Ms. Dark included the "sister mysteriously killed when younger" trope which has been seriously overused, and not just in Ms. Dark's books.

I only was cognizant of 4 errors in this book. But three of the errors were "gender" errors. I.e., when Casey was trying to tackle the murderer, she was aiming for HIS knee, but the sentence said HER knees. The fourth error is concerning the cover on a tv dinner Ms. Casey had fixed, foil or plastic. These errors were irritating.

Overall, Rylie Dark is a great writer. I've now read 6 or 7 of her books and still look forward to reading more of her books.

[Cidney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Casey Faith is an ex military police officer who's come back home to Maine and the coastal resort where she grew up. She's joined the local police force and is paired with a partner who was an ex computer nerd with the police who's now an officer. They aren't getting along too well as Casey being an ex redcap is the one leading everything and he feels under appreciated because he's seen as the computer nerd.

Their coastal town has 28 lighthouses, how long is this town? And now for 2 nights running a body is found on the beach either being drown in the sea or fresh water. Both young women. The police chief thinks these are the beginnings of a serial killer as the details of the deaths are the same. Casey and Alex Mercer her partner are tasked with finding out the killer of the two girls but the local bigwig wants the FBI brought in, however Casey disagrees as she feels they should handle it as it's their patch and they know the area well. This book was very fast paced and I like both the central characters and that of the police chief Warren, forgot his last name now, and enjoyed the bit of a bumpy ride at times where Casey and Alex were able to figure out the actual motive for the crimes and with Alex's computer background they were able to work out who the killer was

Really enjoyed this and read it through the night.

[William Stern · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not the worst thing I’ve read but do we need the reminder every chapter that Faith was previously in the Army and her sister was murdered?

More research needed to be done by the author prior to writing this book.

- Very little knowledge of police procedures or general military police structure.
- Stated Detroit is not near any large lakes, it’s actually near two.
- Repeatedly used words and phrases that are not common to that area of the U.S.
- Inconsistent writing. At one point Faith took her jacket off before a pursuit, leaving it along with her phone behind, only later to pull said phone from her pocket.

All minor things I guess but I found them all very distracting and was just ready to finish the book by the time I was halfway through.

[Patricia Tally · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting first in series

Nice mix of characters, setting and mystery. Nothing to offend and good descriptive prose. Sometimes new authors over focus on mannerisms, long descriptions of environment, or too much gory detail. This author has avoided all that. The writing is lean, characters can be further developed in coming series.
There were some errors that could have been fixed by proofreading. And there seemed to be quite a lack of knowledge of police procedures. Partners researching on their own, no communicating with dispatch or boss, things like that but if you just focus on the story's pace and the mystery, you can just relax and enjoy the read.

[Frank T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let me start by saying it was your typical murder mystery, and it was well written and keeps the reader engaged. The characters were both well rounded and engaging and you care about what they are doing. It was a typical step by step mystery as the evidence was gathered the main characters pieced it all together, using good old fashioned police work and gut instinct born of experience to track down the villain. The final few chapters were engrossing and I had to read in one sitting because the finale was so exciting. I will be getting the next book in the series because I want to find out what happened in a previous crime and who was responsible.

[Bridgewes · Rating 2 out of 5]

Behind His Eyes is a story of two newly joined beach cops put in the middle of a serial killer. They are not only new to the job and to each other, but are in a department that is under staffed. The storyline is solid, but there are too many mistakes. For example while chasing a man on a boat she takes off her phone and jacket. But after subduing the man she then uses her phone to call for help. The ending is a little too drawn out and could have been more effective. In short, a good beach read, but comes up short.

[Claudete Takahashi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Behind His Eyes is a quick and easy read with lots of action and mystery. After serving in the military Casey is back in her hometown as a Police Officer. The idyllic beach town has now become a hot tourist spot and they are concerned with the killing spree of women who are being drowned near lighthouses and she has to solve the case before the FBI steps in. She's also trying to get a better relationship with her partner but will it work? An entertaining story.
I thank Ms. Dark for this ARC.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this edge of your seat, high suspense story about Casey and Alex who are partners on a small police force in Maine. They are the newbies but with Casey's previous experience as a MP in the Army and Alex's computer technology skills on another police force, they work like pros to catch a serial killer in their small town. I highly recommend this book for those who love a great murder mystery that isn't solved until the end of the book. This is my voluntary and honest review.

[Shelda Sparks · Rating 5 out of 5]

VERY GOOD STORY

I’ve really enjoyed this story. It was a quick read with lots of excitement and thrills very good character descriptions and I thoroughly enjoyed the bantering between the two detectives.. it was such a good story. You didn’t know who the bad guy was, but it was fun finding out, and they did it without a lot of blood and guts and murdering and foul language. It was a very good exciting story. I can’t wait to read more.

[michelle o'flynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

The storyline is pretty good, but the writing is a little clumsy. The writer dwells too much in repetitious rumination about inconsequential minutia yet stalls on the significant. It seems a red herring or an unintended error when the perpetrator thinks of a ‘meeting’ that never actually took place.
However, while the villain is not transparent, it’s because he’s not part of the main plot.
Anyhoo… it was still a good bedtime read.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Behind His Eyes
Rylie Dark

What a read!

Rylie Dark has done it again! She brilliantly put together a suspense thriller to keep you flipping pages well into the night.

[Keith Withers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Outsnding drama

A truly intriguing murder/mystery. When Casey Faith returns to her old home town, this time as a police detective, she begins on an extraordinary case, involving the deaths of a number of women, by drowning. Can Casey and her partner find to deranged killer and prevent mode murders.

[Sophie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not good. We met the suspects during the chase and we hadn't met the culprit at all by the end. We were very much told, not shown, the major plot points. The whole reason I wanted to read the book in the first place was because I was curious how her sisters death would tie into it, turns out that it doesn't. Overall, a dissapointing read.

[Liza · Rating 4 out of 5]

The cops are very quick to arrest and release sequential suspects. I don't really accept that they could solve the murders that quickly. Because the murders are consecutive days, the FBI BAU hasn't been called in yet.

Still enjoyable.

[Rita Gonzalez · Rating 3 out of 5]

pretty good

It had a good story but too predictable. I did enjoy the characters but honestly it was a book I kept putting down a lot and then picking up later to read until I finished.

[Alan Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

An awesome thriller

Casey Faith is an immediately likeable and captivating character. She brings a complex background to her police work.
The story is gripping and intense to the very end.

[Suzanne Melisi · Rating 4 out of 5]

choppy

Cute book. Found some typos which didn’t affect the reading. I’m thinking the author will get better in spinning the story.

[Josephine Pizzimenti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable

I liked the idea of two different types of police working together and finding out each others strengths. Good storyline and the imagery of the setting was lovely.

[Prags · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a very short book easy read. Just too much boring parts. Hopefully the next one will be a bit interesting