Becoming the Boogeyman

Title: Becoming the Boogeyman

Author: Richard Chizmar

Published in: 2023

Date read: 10th April 2024

Score: 5/5

Genre: Thriller, Horror, Detective

Plot: (Warning, may contain spoilers):
"Becoming the Boogeyman" by Richard Chizmar is a meta-fictional horror novel that continues the chilling saga from "Chasing the Boogeyman," blurring the lines between author, reality, and the dark subject matter.

The story picks up years after the original "Boogeyman" serial killer, Joshua Gallagher, terrorized the quiet town of Edgewood, Maryland, in 1988. Richard Chizmar, who wrote the bestselling true-crime book about those events, has now achieved a certain celebrity. He is, remarkably, the only person Gallagher, now incarcerated, will communicate with, on or off the record. Chizmar continues these visits, believing he's providing a public service by potentially coaxing confessions about other victims and offering closure to their families.

However, this dangerous dance with evil takes a terrifying turn when a masked figure, unmistakably mimicking the original Boogeyman's modus operandi, leaves a horrifying calling card at Chizmar's own home. It quickly becomes clear that a new killer is at large, seemingly controlled by or inspired by the imprisoned Gallagher.

As more bodies are discovered, each bearing a disturbing signature, Chizmar finds himself unwillingly thrust back into the investigation, and into the spotlight. The new wave of terror is intensely personal, threatening his family and eroding his sense of security. The media frenzy and online speculation about a possible copycat killer, and Chizmar's unique connection to the original Boogeyman, put immense pressure on him.

Chizmar, in his role as both author and protagonist, must navigate the escalating horror, the public's morbid fascination with true crime, and the very real danger that now stalks his home. He is forced to revisit the dark history of Edgewood and confront the possibility that the evil he chronicled has not only returned but has now become deeply intertwined with his own life. The novel explores themes of obsession, the adulation of evil, the ethics of true crime, and the lasting scars left by unspeakable acts.

Comments:
I read this relatively quickly after the first and would not like to have had to wait for a long time. Despite the obviously great story, the thing that I love most is that I kept forgetting that it was fiction, the way that it is written, makes you believe that you are actually reading a true-crime documentary. I hope that there is more to follow.

Books that we've read by Richard Chizmar (5):
Gwendy's Button Box (The Button Box, #1) (2017), Gwendy's Magic Feather (The Button Box, #2) (2019), Chasing the Boogeyman (2021), Gwendy's Final Task (The Button Box, #3) (2022), Becoming the Boogeyman (2023)