Jo Nesbo has made a career of writing dark mysteries and psychological thrillers, but when I came across a horror novel he’d written, I just had to take a look to.

It’s an interesting tale, if a little uneven, there are some nice twists and reveals and for the most part, it works well, but it’s not as solid a story as it could be. There are obvious influences by Stephen King, and there’s a real creep factor to it.

The supernatural events just happen, you either buy into it right away, or you’re not going to enjoy it.

The tale is told through the eyes of fourteen year-old, Richard, who is a little troubled, and is at the center of a couple of disappearances of his fellow classmates. One involved a prank phone call to a strange phone number, which ends, Richard claims with the phone receiver eating his classmate.

There are strange moments, unnerving phone calls, and not everything works, though it’s an interesting exercise. Layers of a psychological mystery, couched in horrific images are slowly peeled away to a truth.

It’s a fast, quick read, and I have to be honest, I loved the orange and black cover. It looks like a throwback to the covers of the late 70s and 80s. And that is what sold me on the book first.

It’s an interesting and fun story, broken into three parts, each on unveiling another layer to the mystery and the truth at is heart. It’s about perspective, and how we deal with our issues.

Nesbo keeps the story rolling along at a breakneck pace, almost as if it doesn’t want you to be able to think, just holding on for the ride. Recurring settings and phrases allow the reader to begin to figure out what is going on, but before they can, Nesbo throws another horrific moment at you.

It all builds to a final revelation.

Nesbo doesn’t quite have the knack for supernatural tales, though there are interesting moments throughout. I liked a lot of it, and as mentioned it goes by fast, but as I read it, I realized so much of it could have been expanded, and really make this a huge engrossing horror novel, which may have set up the final twists and reveals to pay off more strongly.

Reading it, I could see places to expand it, really dig into the creepiness and horror aspect that Nesbo seemed to be chasing. In the end, it feels like Nesbo is just dipping his toe in to see what’s possible.

I like what he’s done with it, but it needed more. So Nesbo, stop the toe-dip and come on in, the water’s fine.