Look Closer by David Ellis: A Spoiler-Free Review (Book and Audiobook)

7 min readAug 31, 2022

Look Closer is a mystery novel by David Ellis, published by Putnam. This is a book and audiobook review by D.K. Fynn.

If you like well-plotted mysteries and psychological suspense, then you may want to consider David Ellis’ Look Closer.

Don’t worry about spoilers. In this review, I’ll take a more abstract approach to describe my reading experience. I agree with other reviewers: it’s best you go into this book with as few details as possible.

Last week, I went to a local bookstore to pick up a book I had ordered and was eagerly awaiting: Look Closer by David Ellis.

Although this was going to be my first time reading a book that was written exclusively by David Ellis, it was not my first time reading a book written by him.

You see, I’ve read a number of books by James Patterson, who co-authors with a number of writers. David Ellis is one of James Patterson’s co-authors. Of the Patterson-Ellis efforts, I’ve read (and thoroughly enjoyed) The Black Book, Invisible, Unsolved, and The Red Book.

(I’ve also read The Murder House, but I liked the other ones better.)

And while David Ellis has written other books on his own, Look Closer is my first read that was written exclusively by Ellis.

4+Star Ratings on Goodreads, NetGalley, and Audible

Before ordering from a local bookstore, I visited the book’s pages on Goodreads, NetGalley, and Audible.

One of the first things I saw was the 4+ average star rating.

That’s always good to see. For me personally, it’s hard to consider reading a book that has anything less than a 4.

Many, many reviewers said they thought the plotting was brilliant and that they enjoyed the plot twists.

Even other authors have enjoyed David Ellis’ book. Lisa Scottoline, James Patterson, and Hank Phillippi Ryan have all praised this accomplishment.

Reading + Listening = A More Immersive Experience

In addition to reading Look Closer, I also listened to it on Audible.

By itself, a good audiobook makes for a great learning experience. I find that when an audiobook has well-selected narrators, you can really “hear” the characters while you read. When paired with the simultaneous reading of the same book, the involvement of more senses makes for a more immersive experience.

That was the experience I had with Look Closer.

In fact, as you’ll read below, I had a few good laughs. These would not have been the same had it not been for the great voice acting of Will Damron.

So, What Was My Experience?

Wow!

There’s a lot I can say about this story. Because I promised I wouldn’t reveal any plot details, I’ll just generalize my findings.

Many feel that Look Closer is a fitting title for this story (and specifically, the way it was told). That’s because many reviewers found that when they finished the book, they were amazed at how things were done, and wanted to go through it again, in order to…look closer.

I agree.

In fact, during an author interview with Hank Phillippi Ryan, Ryan told Ellis, “I have to tell you that when I finished it, I went back to the beginning and started reading it again to deconstruct it a little bit, to see how you did it.”

Driving Themes and Genre(s)

You may be wondering what themes drive Look Closer, and what genre(s) I’d categorize it in.

I’ll start by listing what I think are the 3 main themes:

Theme #1: Loyalty

Loyalty.

Throughout history, some have chosen to die rather than be unloyal to their ideals, country, or friends.

There’s something about loyalty that binds us to the ideals and people we care about.

So much so that, when something happens to those we love, we may seek….

Theme #2: Justice. (Not necessarily in a legal sense.)

The events of this story may cause the reader to wonder about justice–perhaps not legally, but morally.

Some people are willing to ensure (what they think of as) justice, even if it goes to the extent of…

Theme #3: Revenge

You’ll see what I mean when you read and/or listen to this story.

(Of course, one can say that there are other themes in this book, but I think those are the three that stood out the most, and were the drivers of this story.)

My Opinion: Mostly Mystery, Secondly a Thriller, and Thirdly, Suspense

If you’re an avid book reader, you’re probably familiar with the acronym, MTS, which stands for Mystery Thriller Suspense.

MTS is sometimes used as a catch-all term for books that are mysteries, thrillers, and/or suspense. (And of course, there are many books that incorporate elements of all three genres, which is probably why they’re grouped together under MTS.)

I mention this because there are some books that have more elements of one than the other. (For example, some are more mystery than thriller, etc.) While some may say that Look Closer is a thriller, I would say that while it does have one element seen in a lot of thrillers (an approaching deadline), it’s primarily a mystery novel, then secondly a thriller, and third, suspense.

(As with many of the book’s reviewers, David Ellis also considers Look Closer the perfect title for this story. And, if you consider that mystery novels are symbolically associated with a magnifying glass, then that hints that this is indeed a mystery.)

That said, during an interview with Sara DiVello, David Ellis said that his publishers would probably categorize Look Closer as a domestic suspense novel.

Others may call this a psychological drama or a psychological thriller.

I feel that what makes this primarily a mystery novel are the whydunit, whodunit, and perhaps most interestingly, the howdunit aspects of this story. (In fact, even the approaching deadline, which is usually an element found in thrillers, is part of the howdunit of this novel.)

A Few Interesting Things About Look Closer (And…Ellis’ Next Book)

Look Closer Was Not The Original Title (and Was Actually the Name for Another Writer’s Book)

The title Look Closer was not the working title of the book. Originally, Ellis wanted the title to be Remember Me?

However, his publisher (Putnam/Penguin) didn’t feel that Remember Me? fit the book.

Together with his publisher, they tried to come up with a title. They had come up with some potential titles, none of which were Look Closer.

David has a writer friend who has since departed. She had written a (presumably unpublished) book.

The name of the book was Look Closer.

So, in order to honour his friend’s memory, he suggested Look Closer, which his publisher (and readers) enthusiastically felt was a perfect fit.

The Chapters Are Short

While the book probably isn’t short (the audiobook is 13 hours long), the chapters are short. This makes the 464 pages seem to go by quicker.

The Story Isn’t Told Linearly

There’s a back-and-forth to the telling of this story.

There Are Multiple Perspectives

I don’t want to give too much away, but I will say that the audiobook has 4 narrators.

There Are a Couple of Moments Where You’ll Ask, “How Do They Know That?!”

I can recall 2 moments where the point-of-view character knew something that they normally wouldn’t.

These moments surprised me and piqued my curiosity for answers.

Chapters 93 and 94 (Particularly of the Audiobook) Are Hilarious!

This is not a comedy book, but I must say: I enjoyed the matter-of-fact sarcasm of the point-of-view character. In fact, I found myself laughing out loud.

I won’t get into details, but basically, there are people talking, and one person is very calm and sarcastic. (What makes it really funny is that the reader (hopefully) laughs at the fact that one character says something, but the other character has no idea what’s actually being implied.)

Inside jokes, basically.

And you can only appreciate them if you read. (Or listen. Actually, it’s better if you listen, since you can hear the character’s tone and sarcasm.)

Kudos to Will Damron for conveying the character’s rehearsed, carefree demeanor.

David Ellis Pulled His Next Book Away From His Publisher

During a live interview (around the 50:50 mark), David Ellis was asked what his next book is.

He said it was titled The Best Lies (though he’s not sure that’ll be the final name). It’s not a sequel to Look Closer.

He submitted it in July, but because Look Closer is special, David feels he’s set a new standard, and doesn’t want to do anything less.

So, after some reflection, David didn’t feel happy with The Best Lies, so he decided to pull it from his publisher.

It was an agonizing decision for him, but David didn’t feel that it was ready. He wants to spend more time on it to make it as good as it can possibly be.

I’ve never heard of an author pulling a book away from a publisher.

That speaks to Ellis’ integrity, and the interviewer commended him for that.

Final Verdict: 4.5 Stars! (But Possibly Deserving a 5)

This book is really, really good.

One small thing I noticed was that there’s a sub-plot that I felt could’ve been tied more closely to the overall plot. (I’m personally not sure how this could be done, but I think that with enough effort, it could be.)

But really, it’s just a small observation. The sub-plot did add depth to one of the characters.

I had one concern, though: there’s a storytelling method (or trope) that Ellis uses very well, but…if you’re not a fan of that methodology, you might not fully embrace the way this story is told.

I hesitate to mention what this storytelling method is, because I want you to experience Look Closer at face value.

But I will say this: it’ll make you want to look closer.