Joey R.'s Reviews > Chasing the Boogeyman

4.5 stars— If you are looking for a different type of book experience than a typical thriller novel, then “Chasing the Boogeyman” is for you. My five minutes of research after finishing this book tells me this type of writing style is called metafiction which interweaves in this case true experiences of the author with fictional events. It is not until the author’s notes at the end when you find out exactly what is real, what is inspired by real events and what is completely fictional. “Boogeyman” is structured as a true crime book written in 1st person perspective of the author, Richard Chizmar. The author tells the story of a serial killer that ravages the town of Edgewood, Maryland in 1988. Chizmar was living there at the time and had spent his whole life as a resident of the city, giving him a unique perspective of the people and locations affected by the murders. As the reader experiences each death form the author’s personal perspective as it happens, it seems to make the book more personal and tragic than a normal thriller. The author includes photos of the victims and the crime scenes after each chapter and is really detailed in describing the events. The book is so different and well written I had to round up to 5 when giving my rating. The small criticisms I had of the book are that 1) there is no resolution to the issue of what certain evidence left at the crime scene and on memorials mean, and 2) the long windedness of Chizmar on some of his personal reflections (especially at the beginning of the book) that have nothing to do with the main storyline of the book.