MURDER IN THE BASEMENT

“He’s going to die. Obviously. No one knows where he is, and right now, he doesn’t know if they’ve stopped searching. In the long run, it won’t matter. He knows nothing except that he will soon become the third body on the cold concrete, next to the woman and her daughter. This will be the end, his fate. This dark basement will be the last world he knows. He’s ready. Or rather, he’s looking forward to it.”

“Murder in the Basement”

Through many books, Matthew Farrel has proven himself to be a promising writer. Murder in the Basement is a book. But it’s not just a book, it’s a good book. It's not just a good book, it's a very good book.

Farrel's books are like a dark tunnel. A very deep and dark tunnel, and you – the explorers – are venturing deep into it without knowing what lies ahead. The dark shadow of that tunnel won't give you any very useful clues. But there's a tarp covering the tunnel. Just lift it and you'll see the light, but the real excitement of Farrel's stories lies in the surprises that lie ahead. I started reading the first pages of *Murder in the Basement* with the mindset that no matter how much the sky falls or the rain pours, I would absolutely not read to the end. But with just the first few lines…

“…This will be the end of his fate. The dark basement will be the last world he knows.

…

The heavy chain binding him to the wall is pressing down on his wrists and weighing heavily on his right shoulder.

… The sound of a gun being cocked.

The sound of footsteps stopping.

Silence.”

Just with those first few lines, I felt like I had missed an entire story and was reading the ending – reading in confusion and bewilderment. And then I had to continue delving deeper to uncover the hidden secrets.

DEFINITION OF THE WORD ‘PERFECT’

Randal Brock – a PhD at a psychiatric hospital. He married Amanda, the only daughter of a billionaire. Her father was a prominent Wall Street investor in the 80s and 90s, and as a result, she now lives a life of luxury but has a heart for the poor and runs a charity. They married purely out of love. One is cold and serious, the other cheerful and amiable. They perfectly complement each other's shortcomings and have a very happy marriage in Amanda's mansion near the capital. They have a house. They have a car. They have love.

Susan Adler – a reputable and respected investigator at the New York City Police Department. She had been separated from the man she still considered her more perfect half for two years, leading to a divorce last year because her husband had an affair. She is currently a single mother raising twins, a boy and a girl, with the help of her mother. She struggles almost to balance work—a case at a time—and not miss any important events in her twins' lives. She once dreamed of a warm home with four family members gathered together after a tiring day, but now all she has is the joyful laughter of her two children.

Tommy Corolla—a 'newcomer' to the New York Police Department. A young man with a handsome appearance and tall stature. Friendly with children and very competent. He has a retired New York police officer father and comes from a cultured and respectable family.

If you hear that, who is the most 'perfect' of them?

A suspect and two investigators are both caught up in an unbelievable case. One of them is still getting back to a stable life, while the other two were enjoying peaceful and happy days. Or at least that's how it seemed on the surface. But then. A horrific murder occurred, forcing everyone to get used to a 'new normal'.

Susan looked at Amanda's body lying face down on the table and wondered what could have driven someone to kill her like that. Murdered, then disposed of by driving a car off a cliff from over sixty meters away...

This woman didn't deserve this.

A gentleman's revenge is never too late, even after 10 years.

He was alone for one... two... three...

From a withdrawn man who had lost his family, Amanda had become his family, his only relative.

"Life will change in one... two... three..."

His wife's car, his wife's house, a beautiful love. Shattered. Everything changed overnight. His perfect life had vanished into thin air.

"Everything will change in one... two... three...

...

That's the sound of his heart breaking.

Amanda." But for what Randal imagined, his life after his wife's death… was a hundred thousand times worse. A mysterious figure named Sam – someone he first met the night Amanda was suspected of murder – appeared.

“Sam is one with you. You are one with Sam.”

This mysterious figure, S, understood Randal inside and out. His deepest secrets were no longer secrets to S. S's information was even faster and more accurate than the police's. It was as if he had been there. When he mentioned it, it was there. Then, when the evidence Sam presented pointed to ‘guilty,’ Randal was inadvertently there, holding the evidence for the absurd reason ‘Sam provided it.’ His life slowly… slowly disintegrated in the depths of his being because of a death. But…

“There are no such things as coincidences.”

WHEN ALL THE MASKS ARE TAKEN OFF, WHEN TRUTH REPLACES TRUTH

Secrets. Another forte of Matthew Farrel. Simply put, things not seen on the surface are what allow us to speculate, and then when they surface, we take a 360-degree twist. Within the secrets lies the truth, and amidst the lies, there are those who always live righteously. Who?

“We all wear masks.”

The accident seemed like an unexpected event. But it wasn't a variable in a perfect sequence. It was an unknown, always there, waiting for the right moment to reveal itself.

“Some people are more secretive than others, but everyone wears the same mask. Life is just full of schemes. You never truly understand anyone. You don’t truly understand Amanda, and she doesn’t truly understand you. But I can help you see what you need to see.”

This isn’t a case solved based on given clues. It’s a quest for secrets. Because the truth will one day, sooner or later, be revealed, and it will be the light at the end of the tunnel. What’s truly fascinating is that these secrets aren’t easy to guess. Once you enter a story, you’re bound to have feelings for this person or that person. And countless times, the so-called ‘first impression’ of a character has taken a 180-degree turn, then a 270-degree turn. Nearly halfway through the book, secrets piled upon secrets, everything became darker than ever, and I couldn’t resist peeking through the curtain for 2 seconds. Exactly 2 seconds, and after looking around, what? I found it even more confusing than before. 🙂 The outcome of the case is probably a symphony of secrets. So if one of those instruments is missing, it might sound very jarring.

EVIL BECOMES A PLEASURE

“Are you eliminating their murderous tendencies?”

- Yes

- Like you’re removing a cancerous tumor?

- That’s a great comparison, Peter laughed.

Right from the beginning, I was immediately overwhelmed by the scene of Jerry Osbourne’s brutal murder. It could be considered a prelude, as it was essentially a retelling of something from Jerry’s imagination during a therapy session with Dr. Peter. Then there’s Stephen Sullivan, then Jason Harris. All of them—they could make us jump and throw the book down…

“What did you do to her?” Peter asked.

Jerry shrugged, “…I didn’t kill her or do anything. Just finished quickly.”

…

"No, I have to do it. I have to. She has to pay with her own life. That's how it has to be. Anyway, I'm not the one who made that rule."

The explanation we get from Matthew for this preemptive strike is a study of criminal psychology. But of course, with more than a chapter spanning the stories of these patients, it means more than that. As for the question of the connection between these stories? It has to be stuck in our minds almost until the end of the book. But to encounter the horrific brutality again, like when Jerry loves the way the victim struggles in the sea of fire, it doesn't take too long because Sam has appeared on page 88. Again, the mysterious S. What makes Sam mysterious and eerie is his black hooded cloak that hides his face and his devilish words and actions. Not only Randal, but the investigators are also targets of Sam. Sam doesn't kill, but his words and appearance can send shivers down your spine just imagining them. Sam is the slightly creepy element of the story. His elusive nature and know-it-all nature are what make him the unseen force behind everything. "I know everything"—perhaps the title of this English version was meant for him by Matthew.

THE DRAMA ENDS, THE CURTAIN FALLS

The Murder in the Basement is not a predictable book. And it's equally captivating. Perhaps, this is one of the first times, except for Conan where the police are always ready to help solve cases and are considered useful, that I've seen an investigator so useful =)). And that investigator is a woman. 😌. A strong woman who excels at both her professional and domestic life. Matthew's ability to switch between the professional and personal lives of both the victim and the main investigator makes the story both realistic and rather bizarre. And as usual, human psychology remains a key element in Matthew Farrel's detective stories with a touch of horror. I devoured the last 200+ pages of the book in half a day and even now, the questions of "why" are still lingering. Who is wrong, who is right, who is to blame, and who started it? Throughout the book, we search for the answer to a case, and when we finally find it, we ask ourselves: ‘Was it worth it?’

“This non-stop thriller will keep you guessing until the very last twist.” - Jennifer Hillier