An Evil Mind by Chris Carter

Val Penny ♦ October 11, 2017 ♦ Leave a comment

My local library was selling some discontinued books in aid of Macmillan Cancer Nurses and the novels by author Chris Carter had been recommended to me. So, when I noticed that one of the books for sale was An Evil Mind by Chris Carter, I decided to buy it to take on holiday. Carter is a criminal psychologist and this novel was based on subjects he encountered in his professional capacity. It is a chilling thought and makes for a disconcerting read.

The main protagonist, Robert Hunter, is a detective with LAPD who becomes enlisted to work with the FBI when his friend, Lucien Folter, from his days at Stanford, attracts the attention of law enforcement after a random traffic accident finds two severed heads in the trunk of his hired car. From the very start, the reader is absolutely shaken and stirred by the events that follow. For my money, Carter has written one of the finest opening chapters that I have read in terms of shock value. The transition from languid breakfast time in an all American diner to the impact (literally) of a freak occurrence that heralds a shocking opening to the book, is beautifully played out.

Lucien, says that he will only speak with his former friend and detective, Robert Hunter, and so the game is afoot. What follows is a titanic mental battle between the evil, clever and highly manipulative Folter, and Hunter, a man incredibly pre-disposed to navigate and decipher the actions and motivations of some of the most disturbed individuals with his innate intuition in relation to the darkest human psyches. As quickly as Hunter appears to break down the twisted actions of Folter, in a series of claustrophobic encounters with fascinating and entertaining verbal sparring, Folter begins to resemble an evil onion, with layers of perversity and wickedness that are revealed piece by piece. Folter has prepared a whole series of unique and nasty surprises for both Hunter and the FBI team, that Carter unleashes with a superb sense of pace and timing, so much so that as each chapter ends only the strongest reader will resist the temptation to stay firmly rooted to the spot to continue reading.

As the book rattles towards an incredibly tense, violent and exciting ending, the torment that Folter projects on Hunter and the team is nerve shredding and simply brilliant. I liked this book very much, providing as it does, not only a tense and disturbing thriller, but in its perfect placing of brutal shocks reveals itself as a violent flight of fancy, that entertains throughout. I highly recommend An Evil Mind and, although this was the first novel by Chris Carter that I have read, but it certainly will not be my last.

The author was born in Brasilia, Brazil where he spent my childhood and teenage years. After graduating from high school, he moved to the USA and studied psychology with specialization in criminal behaviour. He worked as a criminal psychologist for several years before moving to Los Angeles, where he swapped the suits and briefcases for ripped jeans, bandanas and an electric guitar. After a spell playing for several well known glam rock bands, he decided to try my luck in London, where he played for a number of famous artists. He then toured the world several times as a professional musician but a few years ago he gave it all up to become a full time writer. I, for one, am glad he did.

Val Penny