Was great until...

I love the narrator! He has great voices, inflections, and tempo. I wish he had done Sanitarium!

Honestly, I was all on board and enjoying the story, the character development, and even the writing (even though the prose and grammar all feel archaic), until...

The plot twist at the end.

I don't give spoilers, so all I'll say is it doesn't happen until literally the very end and it completely ruined the book for me. It's just so out of left field and feels so contrived (and like it was done purely for the sake of having a twist), I just can't respect the book after that.

3 people found this helpful

Don't bother

This book is so boring I could not even finish it. Norman's not even in the book after the first couple of chapter and it's all about Norman's psychiatrist and the actors in a movie. Trust me, watch the movie Psycho II its so much better then this book.

2 people found this helpful

Not my Psycho

With all due respect to the man who created the franchise, Robert Bloch, this book in no way inhabits the world that attracted the world to Psycho in the beginning. It is more social commentary and a dissection of Hollywood than it is a story about horror, suspense or psychology. Filled with characters that I have no interest in... How can you make a Psycho story where Norman Bates is absent throughout almost the entire piece? The movies did a great job at continuing the Psycho story, but unfortunately this book does not.

2 people found this helpful

Really really bad.

Paul Michael Garcia is my new favorite narrator. in fact his narration was the only thing that helped me keep listening. i really struggled to finish this. I had read Hitchcock, about how the original Psycho book was adapted. then i read the original psycho. I LOVED both books and will listen to them again. so when i saw this sequel i was SO EXCITED! It starts like a b horror movie sequal. but that didnt bother me. i actually really enjoyed the begining. but then it pulls an Alien 3. (that's all ill say, so i dont spoil anything.) then goes full on stephen king. bad stephen king. too many side characters. too much pointless back story. randomly bizarre, perverse, and perverted scenes. a convoluted plot. a story that breaks numerous, basic "how to tell a good story" rules. just bad. through all of this, the great narration and entertaining opening chapters convinced me i should stick with it. I hoped there would be a redeeming ending that would make it all worth it. I never guess an ending, but this time i did. in the middle of the book, i briefly guessed an ending, but immediately pushed the thought aside. I thought, "No way the author would do that. it's just too silly..." Then that ending actually happened. PARTS of the ending actually surprised me. however, the final payoff left me angry and wishing i could go back in time and re-read the first book instead. Like i said, this book started good , but pulled an Alien 3. by this, i mean that it moved away from characters and elements i enjoyed about the previous book, and actually ruined a lot of them. There is actually a third (maybe fourth?) book in the psycho series, which i had planned on reading. after this disappointment, i doubt i'll read them.

2 people found this helpful

if only the movie...

had followed this story instead of what actually was fillmed, it would make a great bundle! the story as it is...is a typical yet entertaining sequel. i enjoyed it.

1 person found this helpful

Suppressing Expectations.

Psycho 2 was an interesting book, it's fun and even suspenseful. The book goes in a different direction than you'd expect but I enjoyed it all the way through.

1 person found this helpful

Great Sequel

I read Psycho having not seen the movie or knowing what happens. In that book the twist became apparent to me. This great sequel is as fun to read with many more twists and turns. Paul Michael Garcia does a great job narrating this thrilling book. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys the psychological thrill genre or the original Psycho novel.

1 person found this helpful

Could not keep my attention

I can’t tell if it was the performance or just the story, but this was not enjoyable. A few times, it was on the edge of being suspenseful, but it never quite got there. I started this some months back and realized I was not paying attention. I started the book over recently and again had trouble paying attention. Full of characters that never really get developed, so no one to root for except Norman I finally finished it today and am just glad it’s over.

Praise 4 Paul

Paul’s character narration makes me want to listen to whatever project he takes on. Bravo!

Psyskip it....

Narration over the top. Story tried hard to make a point about violence in society and then has a schlock ending.
I am not one to say the film was better, but in this case go with Hitchock's original film and skip the written (and major film) sequels.