I confess I am slightly obsessed with Chris Whitaker’s writing so when I met up with lovely editor Emad Akhtar at a bookish event and he promised to send me a copy of Chris’s latest book, All the Colours of the Dark, I was on tenterhooks waiting for it to arrive. My hugely grateful thanks to Emad for fulfilling that promise.

You’ll find my reviews of Chris’s other books, Tall Oaks, All the Wicked Girls, We Begin at the End and his Young Adult book The Forevers here.

Published by Orion on 16th July 2024, All The Colours of the Dark is available for pre-order through the links here.

All the Colours of the Dark

A missing persons mystery, a serial killer thriller, and an epic love story – with a unique twist on each…

* * * * *

Late one summer, the town of Monta Clare is shattered by the abduction of teenager Joseph ‘Patch’ Macauley. Nobody more so than Saint Brown, who will risk everything to find her best friend.

But when she does: it will break her heart.

Patch lies alone in a pitch-black room – until he feels a hand in his. Her name is Grace and, though they cannot see each other, she lights their world with her words.

But when he escapes: there is no sign she ever even existed.

Left with only her voice and her name, he paints her from broken memories – and charts an epic search to find her.

As years turn to decades, and hope becomes obsession, Saint will shadow his journey – on a darker path to hunt down the man who took them – and set free the only boy she ever loved.

Even if finding the truth means losing each other forever…

My Review of All the Colours of the Dark

Patch has gone missing.

I genuinely think this is the hardest review I’ve ever written. I am a huge fan of Chris Whitaker’s writing, had heard nothing but glowing praise for All the Colours of the Dark and probably had outrageously and ridiculously high expectations before I read it. I was, therefore, prepared to be disappointed as it would not be possible to meet these expectations. How wrong could I be? I am at a loss to know how to express my thoughts because I genuinely don’t think I have read a book that has affected me more. I appreciate that I am an emotional reader, often moved to tears, laughter or anger by a narrative, but All the Colours of the Dark has rendered me a shattered, emotional wreck who has been reassembled differently. I loved this book. Entirely and absolutely. 

It doesn’t feel adequate to comment on style, plot, theme, setting and character as I usually do in a review as I was so rapt that I feel more that I’ve lived the story rather than read it. I’ve been with Patch and Saint every single second. They are the most compelling, engaging characters I think I’ve encountered in fiction. Both characters are fiercely loyal, strong, vulnerable, responsible and reckless. What is so impactful is their capacity for love so that their actions might be illegal, obsessive or foolhardy but are exactly the actions the reader would carry out in their place. 

It’s difficult to define the book’s genre as Chris Whitaker has provided a fast paced cat and mouse thriller, a police procedural, a murder mystery, a small town domestic drama, and a searing, multi-layered, love story that imprints itself indelibly on the reader’s heart. And yet, whilst being all of those things, All the Colours of the Dark is so much more than any of them. The narrative takes the conventions of right and wrong, and of morality, and shifts the accepted rules and perceptions of society until those like Patch, who commit crime, become the very people we love unreservedly, whilst others who might usually be venerated are reviled. The story considers obsession, creativity and relationships with such skill that I found I could hardly breathe and despite the short chapters I had to keep pausing to allow myself to recover. I lost count of the number of times I cried because the pain endured by the characters felt completely real and visceral and I felt it vicariously. All the Colours of the Dark is intense, mesmerising and completely overwhelming.

That said, in the same way Patch uses the depths of the dark and Grace’s descriptions to create the most incredibly beautiful paintings, so Chris Whitaker writes with scenic poetry so that settings are vivid and colourful, and he uses frequent, understated, humour that alleviates the intensity of sadness, rage and emotion felt by both characters and readers. There’s enormous positivity and hope here. 

The plot is, quite simply, stunning. The story ranges over a quarter of a century but there isn’t a single wasted syllable or moment. I think what works so effectively is that, in the same way Saint’s music might be played, the plot has moments of high drama contrasted with prosaic quietness so that this is a book that is perfectly balanced and nuanced. 

I’m aware I’ve rambled without really saying anything but I don’t want to spoil the read for others. I think that All the Colours of the Dark is the book I have felt most affected by – ever. I’m frequently asked which book is the ‘best’ I’ve ever read. Whilst that’s an imprecise definition, I would say that All the Colours of the Dark is the book I will refer to as the one I would recommend above all others because it has something for lovers of every genre. I cannot express how much I adored every single syllable. I thought it was magnificent. I won’t forget Saint and Patch and I urge you to meet them too, but be prepared to lose your heart to them both.

About Chris Whitaker

Chris Whitaker is the award-winning author of Tall Oaks, All the Wicked Girls and We Begin at the End. All three books were published to widespread critical acclaim, with Tall Oaks going on to win the CWA John Creasey New Blood Dagger Award.
An instant New York Times bestseller and the #1 Indie Next Pick, We Begin at the End was also a Waterstones Thriller of the Month, a Barnes & Noble Book Club Pick and a Good Morning America Buzz Pick. It was shortlisted for both the Gold and the Steel Dagger Awards, and for the Theakston’s Crime Novel of the Year. Chris lives in the UK with his wife and three children.

For further information, visit Chris’s website, follow him on Twitter/X @WhittyAuthor and find Chris on Instagram.