Amazon.com: Customer reviews: Alex

Top positive review

Touching...disturbing...engrossing

Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2012

It is not often I read a story so well written that it makes me blubber like a damn baby, but this book did it. And that says something, because I tend to be a bit *u-hem* desensitized from all the horror I read and watch, and more often than not characters tend to be written so shallow it can be hard to care about them at all anyways. Luckily that is not the case with this book! "Alex" is a story of a father's love and the depth of his loss when his 5 year old son is abducted (and subsequently murdered) when walking to his first day a kindergarten. The plot was so engrossing I had to finish it as fast as possible, and I dare say, it is probably one of the best books I have read in a LONG time. You become a fly on the wall, privy to watching the tragic downward spiral of guilt and sorrow that occurs when something you love more than life itself is taken from you in the worst way imaginable. When Alex's dad starts seeing/ hearing his son's ghost, you begin to wonder if he is going insane from sorrow (since he is the only one the ghost appears to), or if it really is his son come back to him for some other purpose. The answer to this keeps you guessing until the end of the story, with the conclusion being both surprising and satisfying. I have a feeling I will be thinking of this book for a while, probably partially because I am a mom, but its subject matter really did touch me deeply. After finishing it I had to go give both my kids big hugs and kisses and repeated the "stranger danger" talk. Thank you Adam J. Nicolai for such an amazing well- written story, I look greatly forward to reading more of your work!
"Alex" is a true gem of the indie book market, so if you haven't read it yet, DO IT NOW (but bring a box of tissues, the subject matter is not sugar coated and if you have kids you are for sure going to want to cry a little).

Top critical review

Critical reviews›

SRose

Repetitive In Parts But I Still Liked It

Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2014

I liked this book but I have to agree with some of the people who gave it only 1 or 2 stars - it was repetitive. The author overdid the sleep issues, the work issues and the constant anger of the father. I admit that I skipped pages in the middle.

I also found it disturbing that the mother was so quick to move on after only 3 months after her son's gruesome murder. I don't think that was realistic since I believe that the average mother would not recover for years after such an event. The author should have made a more reasonable time go by for the mother to be ready to move on and demanding that her husband do the same.

That said, the book was still a good read and the story was still worth the read. I am glad I read it and the language didn't bother me as much as it seemed to bother others.

2 people found this helpful

2,429 total ratings, 1,331 with reviews

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From the United States

Outerspace Andrea

Touching...disturbing...engrossing

Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2012

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Rhea @ Rhea's Neon Journal

Highly Recommended

Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2014

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Reading Alex gave me the chills. It is a heartbreaking tale of a thirty four year old man questioning his sanity when he starts to see his dead son.

But it’s so much more.

Losing a child can be the worst experience a parent can go through. Living through the horror and actually seeing your dead child every damn day can drive a man to the brink of insanity.

Ian lost his five-year, Alex, to a kidnapper who tortured, raped and finally killed the boy some time before the book actually begins. Ian’s life becomes hellish when he starts to see Alex around his house. Not helping his miserable existence is the fact that his wife, Alina, has left him and is living separately. His work life is crumbling, his marriage is failing and he is a self-diagnosed schizophrenic for seeing and hearing Alex in his house. But is he?

I can see clearly why this book has a 4.05 star average on Goodreads. There is nothing—and I mean absolutely nothing—that I would change about this book. Ian’s pain, his confusion, his guilt, it’s there.

The writing itself is fast-paced, gripping and it will be heart-wrenching if you’re a parent yourself. That being said, those of us who aren’t are going to be taken aback by pretty hard by the sympathy you’re going to feel for Ian. He’s not only a grieving father. He’s a man that’s lost almost everything he has—all at once. That alone is enough to drive someone crazy but the fact that Ian never once gives up is commendable.

The characters—although some were unnecessary—did a good job supporting the book in the non-suspense scenes. All the while, there are real life situations that you can relate with. The characters in the book were very much like people you would meet—a tiresome, irritating office co-worker, an assholic boss a good friend.

The book ended well. Really well. For someone who was absolutely hopeless throughout the book for Ian’s fate, I was pleasantly surprised by it’s end. It was absolute torture having to read Ian’s state of mind considering how distraught he was throughout the book, but it was well worth it.

If you’re a parent, this book might be difficult for you to read, and might stress you out concerning the safety of your child. Regardless, this is an excellent book well worth the hours you put into it.

8 people found this helpful

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Pooster Rooster

Amazing and emotional ride.

Reviewed in the United States on February 12, 2012

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This is the kind of book that you just can not put down. It's the type of read that when you finally do pry yourself away from the pages you stop for a moment and go "...Woah".

I can't say enough about this writers first entry. The tale is emotional, moving, well written, and paced magnificently. I found this book via "Good Reads" and can't be happier. It's made me want to be a good father, a good husband, and it's made me want to start writing myself.

I can't travel too much into the details of why I though certain parts of the book were good without giving anything away. However, the book is about a father who loses a child and is on the verge of losing more. The book follows how the main character, Ian, confronts his grief and eventually comes to a point where he needs to question what is real and what's in his head. And if it IS just in his head what should he do about it. It's a moving book that makes you think and feel. It makes you question things in yourself and what you'd do if you were confronted with the same. If you're a parent I would advise you to be careful reading as it'll make you hug your child/children like no tomorrow.

Overall I'd recommend this book to anyone and everyone, and have. It is and will be one of my only 5 star reviews and I wish I could find more like it or compel the author to start writing more.

I'm not real great at writing reviews but I wanted to let you know to read it. If you own a kindle... at that price point I's think you're crazy not to.

3 people found this helpful

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Haunted Reader

Stunning, Supernatural, Incredible

Reviewed in the United States on February 1, 2012

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Alex

5 Stars+

What a powerful impact this book possesses! From the first sentence, I found myself wrapped in a smooth prose flow, and before I knew it, I was stunned and captivated. I did not want any distractions while I read! Mr. Nicolai is a very accomplished author, enticing the readers and carrying us along throughout the story. I truly felt an observer, watching over the protagonist's shoulder, a witness, but also a participant, experiencing his grief, his sadness, his delight, his joy, and his terror. That is a rare experience, and requires writing ability that is not all that common. I've determined to reread this novel again, maybe more than once.

Ian and Alina Colmes lived a peaceful and placid life, interspersed with moments of joy, until the disappearance of their five-year-old son, Alex. Apparently abducted while at a day care provider, the worst imaginable occurred and Alex's corpse was later located. But for Ian, Alex has never really gone away. He refuses to seek counseling, his wife has moved out, and his job is endangered because he cannot focus on it. Worse yet, after six months Ian begins to both see and hear Alex, not just echoes of memory, not just corner-of-the-eye glimpses, but incidents that are nearly interactive: Alex acts, speaks, emotes-and it doesn't just occur at home, in Alex's room, either. Something is definitely happening, and the question is whether Ian is suffering a breakdown-or Alex is actually returning-and as Ian is the only one experiencing sightings, he has no one to ask "What's going on here?"

Occasionally I find a book that leaves me speechless, hunting for the right descriptive words, and that makes me wish I could give more than 5 Stars. "Alex" by Adam J. Nicolai is just such a book.

4 people found this helpful

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SRose

Repetitive In Parts But I Still Liked It

Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2014

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2 people found this helpful

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Samuel H

Fantastic

Reviewed in the United States on September 25, 2018

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I picked up this book on a whim, and after just finishing, I have to say that it is one of the best things I've read in the last year. It's fast paced and visceral. You really feel for Ian. And once you get to the ending, all of the hundreds of pages of his suffering really pay off. The horror aspect punches hard in the first half of the book, then tapers off into something more like a thriller. That didn't bother me, but if you're looking for something purely horrific, then you may be disappointed.

I'll definitely pick up his other works. The author uses a very clean, sparse writing style that focuses on character more than imagery. Even the structure of the novel is streamlined, cutting out any extraneous world building or word painting. I've read some other reviews that felt the novel puttered around for a bit in the middle, but I really didn't feel that way. Maybe with a team of traditional publishing editors, some repetition could be trimmed out, but the novel reads at such a fast pace (short "chapters") that it didn't deter me at all. Maybe some of the references to online gaming don't fit for an audience that doesn't understand what raiding or tanking is, but since I do, it didn't bother me.

I rate this 4.5 out of 5 stars. It's a scary story with a character that you want to, need to sympathize with. If a horror author can do that, you know he's worth his stuff.

4 people found this helpful

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M. B.

Unsettling... but definitely worth checking out!

Reviewed in the United States on July 27, 2012

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Alex is a story about a young boy's murder and the consequences this has on his parents - namely the father, Ian. It is a psychological thriller that places the reader in Ian's shoes as visions of his dead son become increasingly frequent, causing him (and the reader) to question: Is he going insane? Or is Alex trying to say/do something?

Nicolai is masterful in his writing. The novel flows smoothly, and he manages to convey Ian's thought process in a way that feels natural and logical. This is definitely not one of those books that require you to re-read certain sections for comprehension, and this goes a long way in terms of immersion.

In a perfect world, no parent should ever have to bury their own child. Unfortunately, we live in a flawed society and these heinous acts of evil do occur. This is the subject matter that Alex tackles, and, frankly, this novel is brutally honest in its portrayal. There ARE difficult sections in this novel; however, Nicolai refrains from being excessively graphic. A mature reader should be able to get through these passages.

Although I am too young to have children of my own, I didn't find it too difficult to empathize with Ian. This is primarily because his reactions were realistic. Ian's decisions, actions, and emotions never felt forced. Despite the fact that I wouldn't have made the same calls as Ian, not once did I ever feel like he was acting in a way that was convenient for the story - which was especially appreciated as a reader who gets extremely frustrated when authors treat us like idiots who can't see what's going on.

I admit that there were more than a few instances when I felt like the novel dragged on, yet I still found myself eager to read more and discover the truth. In the end, Alex is an unsettling page-turner that I recommend for fans of horror and thrillers - although, I can't help but wish that Nicolai had dialed down the amount of ghostly encounters, as the frequency in which they occurred ultimately lowered the creepiness factor.

For there mere $0.99 price tag, this novel is a steal. Self-published book-a-phobes need not be wary, as Alex proves to be a top-notch quality product.

One person found this helpful

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AFG

Insightful exploration of anguish

Reviewed in the United States on April 13, 2013

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I never thought words could express the hollowness and obsession that can overwhelm the bereaved but Adam Nicolai has done just that. The main character, Ian, struggles to cope with daily routines and relationships following the murder of his five year old son. When he sees and hears visions of his son, he wrestles with competing ideas - is he going mad? Or is his son trying to tell him something?
I found myself getting very anxious in the first third of the book. Would Ian keep his job? Will he remember to pay his bills? Will he lose his temper with the annoying work colleagues who think he should be over it? Is he going to end up jobless, alone and homeless? I noticed some reviewers found this part boring. Maybe those reviewers have never seen someone slide into despair. Adam Nicolai captured that slow, sorrowful decline with great skill. I found this part of the book more interesting than the whole "Is he mad or is there a ghost?" part.
In the end, the suspense was killing me - I had to skip to the last few chapters to find out Ian's fate. I then went back and was able to enjoy the story. It was still enthralling, even when I knew what was going to happen. The book made me think about various issues. Is it really better to know if your loved one is dead or is it better to have 'hope'? Is it right that one can take sick leave for stress or depression but only get a few days off for bereavement? (This raises the issue of should grief be 'medicalised' in the DSM-V? I have mixed feelings about that.)
Thank you, Adam Nicolai, for writing this book. It is not my usual genre but I feel richer for having read it.

One person found this helpful

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Really Ghosted

Reviewed in the United States on November 3, 2023

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A very relatable protagonist, idealistic but also weak despite his best intentions. He is also however willing to adjust his sails to the current wind (after a little kicking and screaming) as he struggles on the good side with trusting himself.

The book can at times seem a little frustrating, repetitious and slow but the process is also true to the character. Good ghost story and culmination.

One person found this helpful

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Melinda D. Wiselka

A Ghost Story With Heart!

Reviewed in the United States on June 18, 2016

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It's hard to do a review of this book and not spoil the surprises for other readers, but here goes. First, let me say that this book is expertly edited. While good editing doesn't mean a good book, I wanted to point that out as another example of how hard the author worked to bring this story to life.

Ian Colmes is going through a terrible period of his life--and it's about to get a hell of a lot worse--before it gets better. I guessed the ending a good way before it was revealed, but only because it was the ONLY ending I could think of that would be satisfying. The last hour of this book in reading time is intense. All the credit in the world to Mr. Nicolai for pulling off that intense of an ending. He should put a warning on it--if you have a weak heart, you may want to skip this!

What I loved about this book was the way Ian--a really ordinary guy--screwed up the courage to face Evil Personified out of love for his child. That is my takeaway. I don't know if that's what the author intended, but that's what I felt, when I finished it. There are so many books out there. This is one of the few that truly has a HEART.

Since this book is written in a very close third person POV, I don't really understand complaints about lack of character development. Ian is the main focus here. This is purely HIS quest. That said, I would have liked to see more scenes--maybe a flashback--to explain his estrangement from his wife. She came across as a heartless rhymes-with-witch to me. There is one scene in the book where Ian is less than fair to her. But I don't think it was enough for her to abandon him. I would have liked to see some more interaction between them so that I could judge for myself whether she was justified in leaving him during this difficult time in his life.

While on the subject of flashback, I should point out that Mr. Nicolai's handling of Ian's flashbacks with Alex was perfect. You didn't even notice it, and that's saying something, when the story had to rely heavily on the past to prop it up. The mystery was masterfully handled throughout the story.

And the resolution was quite satisfying. If you're reading this review, trust me--you won't be sorry if you read this book. It's the best one I've read this year so far.

18 people found this helpful

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