A Good Man, Ani Katz
A Good Man, Ani Katz
List: $17.50 | Sale: $12.25
Club: $8.75

A Good Man

Author: Ani Katz

Narrator: Mark Deakins

Unabridged: 7 hr 26 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Published: 01/14/2020


Synopsis

"I sat down to read A Good Man and didn't move until I'd finished...I loved this book." —Caroline Kepnes, author of You

A dark and gripping novel of psychological suspense about a family man driven to unspeakable acts, in the vein of The Perfect Nanny and We Need to Talk About Kevin.

Thomas Martin was a devoted family man who had all the trappings of an enviable life: a beautiful wife and daughter, a well-appointed home on Long Island's north shore, a job at a prestigious Manhattan advertising firm. He was also a devoted son and brother, shielding the women in his orbit from the everyday brutalities of the world.
     But what happens when Thomas’s fragile ego is rocked? After committing a horrific deed — that he can never undo — Thomas grapples with his sense of self. Sometimes he casts himself as a victim and, at other times, a monster. All he ever did was try to be a good man, but maybe if he tells his version of the story, he might uncover how and why things unraveled so horribly.

About The Author

Ani Katz is a writer, photographer, and teacher. She was born and raised on the South Shore of Long Island, New York, and holds an MFA in photography from Columbia College Chicago and a BA from Yale. She lives in Brooklyn.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Katie on January 10, 2020

3.5 stars This one belongs in the "Different, but I kinda liked it" category. It's one of the few books I would say might be even better if I read it for a second time. Most likely there is stuff there I didn't pick up on the first time. But with so many books on my to be read list will I ever get ar......more

Goodreads review by Liz on October 05, 2019

I started “A Good Man” thinking I’ll read a couple of chapters, get a feel for the story, then suddenly, almost without blinking it seemed, I finished it. I fell into Thomas Martin’s story and followed it with an ever growing sense of unease, that off kilter sense that tells you it’s going to hurt.......more

Goodreads review by Erin on February 19, 2020

There are certain books that when it comes time to rate them, I get a little confused about my own criteria! This was a very well written character study- not necessarily a “thriller,” maybe more of a drama. But did it give me the creeps? Was there an underlying darkness echoing throughout? Absolute......more

Goodreads review by Emily on October 10, 2019

Thank you to netgalley, the author and the publishers for an advanced copy of this book. I read this in about two sittings which shows I found it pretty fluid and easy to read. It was an interesting character study particularly as I do enjoy an unreliable narrator. I think as a narrator Thomas could......more

Goodreads review by ❄️BooksofRadiance❄️ on January 22, 2020

2.5⭐️ I’m so confused. So utterly confused by this. I want to say I liked it but there’s something about it that I found incredibly enraging.......more


Quotes

CrimeReads 10 Novels You Should Read in January
PureWow's Most Anticipated Books of 2020

"[An] ingenious slow burn."
Entertainment Weekly "Your Complete Guide to the Season's Best Page-Turners"

"Powerful and unsettling...Produces in the reader a sense of foreboding that builds with ever-increasing intensity to the inevitable and brutal climax...[A] masterly first novel."
Publishers Weekly *starred review*

“As she expertly builds a growing sense of dread, Katz creates an unsettling atmosphere of paranoia, fear, and rage, hinting at the catastrophe to come through ominous comparisons to the tragic operas Thomas loves. This is the sort of relentless novel you can't put down even when you're afraid to read what happens next. An unnerving and absorbing exploration of modern masculinity and how the seeds of violence are sown.”
Kirkus Reviews

"Chillingly good...Katz has delivered a whip-smart, beautifully written meditation on marriage, masculinity and hte thin line between happiness and disaster."
Bookpage

"A mature and wicked debut...Evokes Highsmith's Ripley, or Denise Mina's The Long Drop, and heralds the entry of a fantastic new voice to the genre."
—CrimeReads

"Simulataneously nightmarish and utterly compelling...A masterful, suspenseful tale told by an ultimate unreliable narrator."
Booklist *starred review*

"Sordidly gripping."
—The Guardian

"A Good Man's exploration of masculinity in a world of instability makes it a timely read."
Vanity Fair

"Highly impressive...A striking modern tale of violence, sexual abuse and vindictiveness."
The Independent


“Ani Katz is a brilliant writer. I sat down to read A Good Man and didn’t move until I’d finished it. This is a spellbinding work of psychologically potent art. I can’t wait to read what she does next. I loved this book.”
—Caroline Kepnes, author of You

“Katz draws a life in its most delicate lines, then destroys it. And this is a story you won't forget.”
—Nico Walker, New York Times bestselling author of Cherry

A Good Man slinks into the dark heart of a ripped-from-the-headlines crime fueled by toxic masculinity. As in Leila Slimani’s The Perfect Nanny, the slow unpeeling— layer by layer— of the conventions of sanity left me breathless, saddened, and spooked.”
—Miranda Beverly-Whittemore, New York Times bestselling author of Bittersweet and June

“A profoundly disturbing and deeply unsettling story of a man struggling to reconcile himself with the horrifying act he has committed. Katz deftly embodies her narrator, giving voice to his self-serving recreation of the past and presenting him as he sees himself: a provider, a protector, a patriarch. Richly drawn and laced through with dread, this bold novel is an unflinching examination of what it means to be a man, and how easily a man can become a monster.”
—Kathleen Barber, author of Are You Sleeping

"Surprising, daring, and thrilling to read."
—Flynn Berry, author of Under the Harrow and A Double Life

"Gripping, sly, and ferociously intelligent. I couldn't put it down."
—Jennifer duBois, author of Cartwheel and The Spectators

A Good Man will hold you in its creeping spell from the first lyrical line to the bitter, bitter end. As the narrator’s tale of selfless, industrious striving on his family’s behalf unravels, you’ll be too caught up to look away from the ugly business of a ‘good man’ bringing himself and the others around him down. Ani Katz’s debut is a gorgeously written, profound examination of contemporary masculinity and its potentially lethal side effects.”
—Laura Sims, author of Looker