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    The Basement
    The Basement
    The Basement
    Audiobook4 hours

    The Basement

    Written by Stephen Leather

    Narrated by Luke Daniels

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    New York is a city full of strangers. For NYPD detectives Turner and Marcinko, none are harder to figure out than the serial killer on the loose torturing and killing young women. In fact, right now, somewhere in the city, a woman is being held captive in a basement and it is up to the detectives to find her and the killer—before it’s too late.

    As pressure mounts on Turner and Marcinko, their prime suspect is screenwriter wannabe Marvin Waller. He is becoming increasingly frustrated by his lack of success and the cops think he might be channeling his anger into murder—but he doesn’t seem to be at all concerned that they are hot on his trail. As Turner and Marcinko close in on Waller they have to wonder: is he the killer? And if he isn’t—who is?

    Fusing shifting viewpoints with a growing sense of dread and almost unbearable suspense, the UK’s thriller master Stephen Leather arrives on the shores of the United States with The Basement, his most terrifying work to date.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    Release dateDec 20, 2011
    ISBN9781455865345
    The Basement
    Author

    Stephen Leather

    Stephen Leather is one of the UK’s most successful thriller writers, an eBook and Sunday Times bestseller and author of the critically acclaimed Dan “Spider’ Shepherd series and the Jack Nightingale supernatural detective novels. Before becoming a novelist he was a journalist for more than ten years on newspapers such as The Times, the Daily Mirror, the Glasgow Herald, the Daily Mail and the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong. He is one of the country’s most successful eBook authors and his eBooks have topped the Amazon Kindle charts in the UK and the US. He has sold more than a million eBooks and was voted by The Bookseller magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the UK publishing world. His bestsellers have been translated into fifteen languages. He has also written for television shows such as London’s Burning, The Knock and the BBC’s Murder in Mind series and two of his books, The Stretch and The Bombmaker, were filmed for TV. You can find out more from his website www.stephenleather.com

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    Reviews for The Basement

    3.5/5

    61 ratings8 reviews

    What did you think?

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      This book has two story lines and it flips back and forth between them until the end. One line is about a quirky man who lives in a tiny apartment and comes up with many different plots for movie scripts that he writes and sends out to various Hollywood types. He even has penchant for "stalking" said Hollywood types. The other story line is about someone locked up in a basement (hence the title!) and how that person is being taught to be subservient to her abductor. Very depraved stuff going on there. For me, I wasn't too excited about either story, but then the end came and it threw me for such a surprise that I was almost audibly shocked! A great twist that I truly did not see coming! You gotta read it, if you want to experience it for yourself!
    • 4/5
      What's not to like about Leather's brisk but sharp story? These are the types of books I love to turn to in between longer reads. The writing is to the point, the characters are clear and plotting keeps you turning the pages. Some readers may be bothered by the Leather's jumping from first-person to second-person but it's central to the story. I wasn't bothered by it.


      This book lead me right to his other story, The Bestseller. It dovetails with The Basement in a fun way. I'd pay another .99 to read more stories like either of these. If the price had been higher, I might not have taken a shot on his book. Smart move to pull someone like me in with that .99 entry point. Keep 'em coming.
    • 4/5
      It's medium paced throughout, a 'take-it-or-leave-it' type thing, since that's the only pace, but the reveal was cool.
    • 5/5
      First Stephen Leather I've read, but I'll be back for more.An nice twisted tale written from the perspective of 2 voices, but which is which?Will you get annoyed with or empathise with Marvin?Well worth a read if you like unusual tales, reminds me a bit of Richard Laymon.
    • 3/5
      Finally, after trying to read the last 2 books I checked out at the library (and gave up on), I found one I can sink my teeth into. Unfortunately, it is only a 120pg book so the fun won't last long. The story of a wannabe screen writer who may also be our killer plays out as 2 detectives close in on him in New York City. The book promises to leave you "battered, bruised, and broken", here's hoping!" 07/07/2012 45.0% "The chapters go back and forth between the screen-writer, Marvin and our killer. Marvin is dealing with a couple of cops who find him suspicious and thinks he may be a serial killer currently active in NYC. The killer is describing what he does to his victims as he does it. A very faced paced, quick read. Unfortunately, as I mentioned before it is a short book and will probably leave me wanting more." Well, I think it would have been a better read if there was more to the book. The book itself was good and I enjoyed the story, but it came to such a short, abrupt end it was kind of disappointing.
    • 4/5
      This was my first Stephen Leather book and I loved it. I do have to admit, I did not fall in love with the main character, Marvin Waller, and that's one of the reasons I liked the book so much. I have a strong respect for authors that are talented enough to make you not like a character so much that you need to keep reading to find out what happened to them. Marvin Waller is a screenplay writer and I am hopeful that the screenplays he discusses in this book will turn into full length novels by Leather in the future.
      I was a bit distracted by the spelling and editing in the book. I'm fine with English spellings but not when the book is set in NYC. Other than that, I thought the writing was great and I will definately be reading more works by Stephen Leather.
    • 4/5
      Book Description: New York is a city full of strangers. For NYPD detectives Turner and Marcinko, none are harder to figure out than the serial killer on the loose torturing and killing young women. In fact, right now, somewhere in the city, a woman is being held captive in a basement and it is up to the detectives to find her and the killer—before it’s too late. As pressure mounts on Turner and Marcinko, their prime suspect is screenwriter wannabe Marvin Waller. He is becoming increasingly frustrated by his lack of success and the cops think he might be channeling his anger into murder—but he doesn’t seem to be at all concerned that they are hot on his trail. As Turner and Marcinko close in on Waller they have to wonder: is he the killer? And if he isn’t—who is? Fusing shifting viewpoints with a growing sense of dread and almost unbearable suspense, the UK’s thriller master Stephen Leather arrives on the shores of the United States with The Basement, his most terrifying work to date. My Thoughts: This is my first time reading a book by Stephen Leather. I have to say that the book was a rather unique rendering of the mind of a serial killer. Marvin Waller is a screenwriter who the police suspect for a series of serial killings in New York City. Waller is a macabre, sarcastic, and narcissistic individual who hates everything and everyone. He is clearly a lunatic and this story chronicles his sociopathy. He hates being ignored and underestimated. Weller continuously taunts Marcinko (cliché good cop) and Turner (cliché bad cop) with his knowledge of the law and his rights. Things I didn’t like:I have to say that I did not like the way “the serial killer” manipulated and raped Sarah Hall (physically and emotionally). He debases her by making her touch herself for his pleasure. He gets her hopes up and convinces her that he will let her go knowing that he will kill her once he has had his fun. *Scary* I did not like the way Weller used the “N” word when referring to Turner to further taunt him after breaking into his house. Weller’s opinion of blacks is so stereotypical that it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I also did not like the way Weller manipulated the Turner situation so that he benefitted socially and financially from it. He had no problem destroying a man's life or that of his family. It was sickening.Things I did like:Justice was truly poetic for good ole Weller in the end!The conclusion of the story was an interesting twist. You never would have guessed who the serial killer was which affirmed my opinion of just how bollixed this story truly was. I have to say that I did not like the subject matter of this story at all. It was such a bleak look at humanity. The Basement provides too much detail on how to commit murder for the average person. This book in the wrong hands could be a Dummies Guide to Serial Killing. I was appalled and disgusted and felt as if I needed a shower after I finished reading it. Despite my opinions on the content, the story was well written which is why it has garnered 3.5 stars. I like suspense but this book just was not my cup of tea at all.
    • 2/5
      The book contains two viewpoints. Marvin Waller is a young writer whose part is written in first person. Much of his narration is spent telling us about his various screenplays. To me, this was like reading a synopsis of other books, many of which were more interesting than the actual events of the character's story. Marvin is a strange guy but we never really get to know him beyond his odd fixation with stalking actors and movie producers. The serial killer's part is written in the rare second person, which I didn't like. I felt like I was being told what to think and feel, rather than experiencing the events and emotions of the character. This part of the story contains graphic sexually-based scenes and might be difficult for some readers to get through.This is a short novel, with only 127 pages. The pace is quick but it's lacking character and plot development.**I read the ARC of the new Amazon Encore release, not the original release.**