Those Who Wish Me Dead

This book is the kind of fresh, new writing that I'm looking for when I'm shopping for books. I'm a mystery/thriller buff but when I start looking for books in this genre, generally I find a vast array of the same old, tired themes that don't jump out and grab me. "Lorna Doone (yes that's her real name because her father was a crazy bastard who just loved those cookies and slapped her with the silly handle at birth) is a recovering alcoholic private investigator who needs a bump in her career after she made a serious mistake and lives were lost in Philly, her home town. She moves to Podunk, Utah where, to her surprise, there's a string of cruel murders she must solve, only to find they're being perpetrated by the most badass serial killer to ever walk the planet. Johnny, the erstwhile deputy sheriff who has never seen such action winds up helping her in unusual (and romance-building) ways." You get my drift. Yuck: why must we be subjected to the same old rehash of this theme?This book is COMPLETELY different: fresh, new, exciting, exhilarating. The setting is raw and unusual. I immediately care a lot about the characters and especially the tertiary premise (troubled teens go to a last-chance rescue camp taught by an expert survivalist). The antagonists are super-creepy and Koryta has introduced some new ways of thinking about creepiness that I have not seen used before. Love, love, love the firefighting angle. Koryta gets into the action right away and stays there. There are unexpected tangential aspects you had not considered.What's clear with this book is that Koryta took his time to hone the thing down to the crispest, meatiest possible reading. For example, even if you don't care about topo maps (or don't know what thy are), Koryta makes you care. The fire description scenes are horrifying. I actually Googled the firefighter boots to see if they exist (they do and he's right, they're dreadfully expensive). My idea of camping is going to a Motel 8, showering and snuggling up in a warm bed with a good Kindle book. But now I want to go backpacking in the Montana wilderness. That's the power of this writer's expertise. You're drawn in: you're right there backpacking with these kids.When the book's description says that there's some underlying horror elements, it's not talking about paranormal stuff: it's talking about people who've gone so far off the reservation that you wonder how they got where they are today. You find yourself wanting more backstory on these creepy dudes. Their mom and dad had to have been prize-winning parents.And Koryta has the cojones to actually say that all super-elitist survivalist training, regardless of whether they're Army Rangers, Navy SEALS, whatever - come from the Air Force! Wow, I like that take-off because the Air Force never gets any strokes. Not sure I believe it just because he says it, but the premise works in the book. You have no doubt this protagonist can pull it off. Or not. You are actually taught survivalist techniques and you're like "Cool! Good to know!"Truly you will find yourself mad that you dropped $13 for a book you'll knock out in 1.5 hours. It's that good. I will DEFINITELY buy more Koryta books. Michael: Don't sell yourself out to the big house publishers. Keep cranking out fine material like this. We need you!THE best mystery/thriller book I've read since Koontz's "Intensity."

An exciting story causing me to have great respect for fire. I learned quite a lot about survival in the wilderness. Great character development for the protagonists and the very interesting bad guys. I’m looking forward to watching the movie based on this novel. Sadly, I don’t expect the movie will stand up to the book.

I'm so very glad I read this. I didn't know the movie was based on a book.(I saw the movie first and it was enjoyable, but....wow! The BOOK!)I'll never understand why Hollywood won't just make a movie about a far, far better story,( which this book was, in spades!) Ok...enough of that!Excellently written. Great characters. Great ending twist!If you like some back country adventure, murder, psychosis and excellent plot,read THIS!

This book will capture you. The two Blackwell brothers kill a man in a quarry. In the waters below, there is a witness. The witness has to be killed to prevent the Blackwells' conviction of the crime. This thriller is different. The wanted man is not a man but a boy, and the boy knows they want to kill him. He seeks protection. As the story unfolds it appears that there is no protection for this clever boy who is forced to taken matters into his own hands in trying to escape the two killing Blackwell brothers.. Even with a witness protection program, a change of name, a relocation to a summer camp it does not seem to work. This thriller is about fear.. how to deal with it and how to overcome it. The fear gets to you because this is not some prefabricated, cardboard, high octane, drama. As you turn the pages you will soon find yourself squirming like a bug on a board scared to death for this boy. The circumstances are too real to ignore.The two Blackwell brothers are a different lot. They are emotionless killers of a different kind. They are well trained in combat and they work well together. They don't make mistakes; they make others make mistakes. They speak with an unusual objective tone . They seem emotionally removed from the world. When they arrive to kill a victim the two of them speak to victim with a carefree , soft tone like a postman delivering the mail.. Even in the heat of thing going very wrong for them they do not ever lose this objective dialogue. The two Blackwell brothers are very well developed by Koryta. You have to be different to be a murder and these two Blackwell brothers appear very real and very different. What they do and how they speak will scare any reader. You keep reading to find an escape from this fear.This is a novel where you learn of lot of interesting facts like what to do if you get lost in the woods, how forest fires work, what escapes routes to take when up near the top of the mountain, how to build a fire, how to tack a trail of a hiker etc. There is nothing predictable about this novel and there is nothing contrived about the plot.

Una historia que prometía más. Los personajes son inverosímiles y sin desarrollo ni crecimiento. Es ágil la lectura. Como para unas vacaciones o pasar el rato.

Great page turner. I also enjoyed learning a few things along the way - like how to find true north with a stick, 2 stones and the sun. Fun beach read.

The pace was sustained with imminent unstoppable threat constant in this story. A good read set realistically in the mountains.

This was a good easy read.

yes absolute Michael Koryta love his work .