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Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1)
Deeper Than the Dead - Oak Knoll, Bk 1
Author: Tami Hoag
California, 1985. Three children, running in the woods behind their school, stumble upon a partially buried female body, eyes and mouth glued shut. Close behind the children is their teacher, Anne Navarre, shocked by this discovery and heartbroken as she witnesses the end of their innocence. What she doesn’t yet realize is that this will m...  more »
ISBN-13: 9780752883298
ISBN-10: 0752883291
Publication Date: 1/1/2009
Pages: 496
Rating:
  • Currently 4.8/5 Stars.
 5

4.8 stars, based on 5 ratings
Publisher: Orion
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover
Members Wishing: 0
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on
Helpful Score: 4
Great book! I think this is her best book so far.
reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on + 4 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
Having read the three books in the series backwards, culminating with Deeper Than the Dead, my impressions of this book are a little. . .tainted? The problem was that while it was easily as compelling as the other two, I kept trying to remember how the relationships, as introduced, evolved in later books. Easy enough to remember that Vince and Anne hook up, but I kept thinking that I should have known who the killer was. References are made in the other two books, as is what happens to the children. My mind kept trying to slot what happens eventually into what's happening in front of me. Distracting. Great book and series, though. No getting away from that. Highly recommended. So, too, is reading them in order, for reasons stated.
reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on + 26 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
Excellent reading - I would recommend this book to anyone...
reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on + 12 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
Wow! This book was so good! I read the 500 plus page book in just over a day (because life forced me to put it down). There are a lot of interesting twists and turns in this suspenseful story.
sgray29 avatar reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on + 18 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
The first half of the book was just alright for me, but the last 150 pages or so were great! As an elementary school teacher, I identified with the Anne Navarre character. I found her relationships with and actions/reactions toward her students to be believable. I am usually able to spot the killer in a book without much effort, but this one took me longer. I liked that! I did eventually figure it out, but not long before it was revealed.
Read All 41 Book Reviews of "Deeper Than the Dead Oak Knoll Bk 1"

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emeraldfire avatar reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on
California, 1985 - Four children - running through the woods behind their middle school - literally stumble upon a gruesome discovery. Partially buried in a shallow grave and covered by wet leaves is the body of a young woman, her eyes and mouth glued shut. Close behind the children is their teacher, Anne Navarre, shocked by this discovery and heartbroken for her students as she witnesses the end of their innocence. What she doesn't realize is that this discovery will also effectively mark the end of innocence for the entire community of Oak Knoll, as the ties that bind both friends and families are tested by the secrets uncovered in the wake of an apparent serial killer's escalating activity.

FBI investigator Vince Leone, fresh from a law enforcement course at FBI headquarters, is tasked with interpreting those recently revealed secrets. He's using a new technique known as profiling - to develop a theory of the case; a strategy that pulls him ever deeper into the lives of the four children, and brings him closer to the young teacher whose own interest in recent events becomes as intense as his own.

As each new victim is found and the media scrutiny of the investigation intensifies around them, both Investigator Leone and Ms. Navarre wonder if those who suffer the most are the victims themselves - or the family and friends of the killer, blissfully unaware that someone very close to them is actually a cunning, calculating psychopath; capable of such horrific brutality.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. The plot was very exciting and dramatic; jam-packed with action, and filled with enough twists and turns to grab my attention right from the beginning. I was completely engrossed by the story and found that it just wouldn't let me go.

Despite having one or two books by Tami Hoag on my bookshelf already - although I don't think I could tell you where either book actually is at the moment - Deeper Than the Dead by Tami Hoag is the first book that I've read by this author. I would give Deeper Than the Dead a definite A+! and will certainly keep my eyes open for more thrillers by Ms. Hoag to read in the future.
perryfran avatar reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on + 1224 more book reviews
Overall, I thought this was a really great thriller that kept me turning the pages. The novel was set in 1985 before the days of DNA identification, wide-spread use of data analysis, and cell phones. The story is about a serial murderer who glues his victims eyes and mouth shut, deafens them, and then systematically tortures and kills them, leaving the bodies for discovery. The story starts out with one of these bodies being discovered by a group of children who turn out to be the focus of the novel along with their dysfunctional families. As I said, this was a real page-turner; however, I had a good idea who the killer was from the very first few pages. Also another killer was brought into the story and the novel did not really resolve why or who he had killed...this seemed like a major loose end. This is the first Hoag thriller I have read and I intend to read more based on this one with an overall strong recommendation.
reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on + 4 more book reviews
enjoyed very much.
reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on + 8 more book reviews
Fantastic and suspenseful
reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on + 30 more book reviews
This is a very good book! It was well written and kept you guessing until the end.
rae-m avatar reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on + 20 more book reviews
This one should hold your attention from the first page to the last -- Hoag's signature tension is here in full force!
reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on + 241 more book reviews
Tami Hoag at her finest! Twists and turns to the final page that leave you gasping for breath...
reviewed Deeper Than the Dead (Oak Knoll, Bk 1) on + 3152 more book reviews
Set in the 1980's when 'profiling' was in the beginning stages,Vince Leone goes to this town to help to catch the killer and soon finds himself falling for the teacher, fighting the fact that he still has a bullet in his head he still wants love and a life with the woman he has fallen in love with. The children that find the body soon have to deal with new issues within their own families.

Book Wiki

Common Title
Series
Oak Knoll  1 of 3
Original Publication Date (YYYY-MM-DD)
People/Characters
Anne Navarre (Primary Character)
Tony Mendez (Primary Character)
Dr. Peter Crane (Primary Character)
Vincent Leone (Major Character)
Real Places

Genres: