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In Chasing the Boogeyman, author Richard Chizmar crafted a haunting tale of a serial killer’s reign of terror in a small Maryland town in the 1980s—and a young writer’s investigation into the murders. In the sequel, Becoming the Boogeyman, a copycat killer begins stalking the town more than 30 years later.
The story catches up with the author’s fictionalized story just a few years after the killer has been captured and put behind bars. The arrest brought Rich and his 30-year-old book (which has since been adapted into a big-budget movie) into the spotlight. True crime fans have been eagerly awaiting the follow-up, while other enthusiasts have been stalking his house and playing pranks on his family. But the pranks give way to something much more sinister when the body of the one woman who escaped the Boogeyman the first time around is delivered to Rich’s yard.
As the first victim leads to more, Rich works with the local police to try to track this copycat killer, who seems to be placing the author and his family at the center of this new killing spree. With the press camped out in front of his home and a killer taunting him, Rich begins to feel like another victim in this terrifying tale of murder and revenge—one that’s somehow made him richer and more famous than he ever dreamed. But it also makes everyone from detectives to online trolls start to question his involvement in the case.
The novel’s true-crime tone means that it uses things like transcripts of interviews and portions of articles and reports to help tell the story. This time around, though, it also includes the author’s stories about his own past—both excerpts from his new book about growing up in his small town and revelations of past experiences that he’s kept secret for decades. Though these asides aren’t without a point—and everything connects to the story in the end—they can feel more like a distraction. And while this new mystery is certainly unsettling—building up to a chilling conclusion—this sequel tends to feel more scattered and haphazard than the original.
While Becoming the Boogeyman doesn’t feel as dark and horrifying—nor as gripping—as its predecessor, fans of Chasing the Boogeyman will enjoy the continuing story of this author who’s tangled up in a tale of small-town terror. And when it comes to an end, they’ll be eager to pick up the next installment in this fictionalized true crime adventure.
Listen to the review on Shelf Discovery:
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