Becoming the Boogeyman by Richard Chizmar: Complete Book Guide

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Quick Facts

Short Summary

Becoming the Boogeyman is a metafictional thriller about author-narrator Richard Chizmar, who is drawn into a copycat murder investigation after human remains are found near his home. The killer imitates imprisoned serial killer Joshua Gallagher, the Boogeyman, using the same burlap mask and signature methods. Richard struggles with public backlash, marital strain, and his own past trauma involving a predatory coworker, Henry Metheny. The copycat escalates, abducting two more victims and terrorizing Richard’s family. The investigation leads to a prison interview with Gallagher, who plays psychological games. The climax occurs when Richard’s wife, Kara, kills a home intruder, Sean Phillips, whom the police identify as the copycat. Richard decides to step away from the case and prioritize his family. The book ends with unresolved questions about Gallagher’s true role and the lasting impact of the copycat effect.

Full Summary

Becoming the Boogeyman opens with an author’s note declaring the novel is fiction, using real places and people for verisimilitude while other elements come from imagination—setting a metafictional tone that persists throughout.

The main story begins on June 3, 2022, when Richard Chizmar discovers an industrial garbage bag during a walk with his dog. Police find human remains inside, identified as Anne Taylor Riggs, the sole survivor of Gallagher’s 1988 murders. Security footage shows a masked man in a burlap bag depositing the remains. Richard receives a collect call from imprisoned serial killer Joshua Gallagher, who claims innocence. Kara, Richard’s wife, expresses fear that Gallagher’s influence is consuming their lives.

Richard reflects on his past exclusive access to Gallagher. After his 2019 arrest, Gallagher confessed to seven murders and hinted at more. The chapter details Gallagher’s transformation into a true-crime celebrity, with fan mail, merchandise, and podcasts glorifying him. Richard wonders about the public’s fascination with evil.

The next day, Richard learns the killer used a burlap mask and a contractor bag; Annie Riggs’s head was missing. He drives through Edgewood, visits her house, and finds a makeshift memorial in his yard. He reads threatening texts and recalls public backlash against his book. Calling his sisters and agent, he expresses a desire to see Gallagher before writing a follow-up.

Richard’s meeting with Gallagher is delayed. The Baltimore Sun publishes a front-page article linking Gallagher to the new crime. Richard’s son Billy reports a dark truck possibly tailing them. McClernan updates the investigation: no DNA on the bag, the victim’s car found unlocked, a person of interest with an alibi, and no contraband in Gallagher’s cell. Kara confronts Richard about his obsession. That night, Richard receives a silent phone call reminiscent of Gallagher’s pranks. He has a nightmare of the masked man revealing Gallagher’s face and trying to break in.

A flashback reveals Richard’s first encounter with evil. In summer 1983, he befriended coworker Hank Metheny, who exhibited increasingly unsettling behavior—staring, asking about human fingers, appearing outside Richard’s home, and eventually trying to abduct him from a car with no inside door handle. Richard escaped with a piece of rebar but did not report the incident. Eight months later, Metheny was arrested for multiple murders involving stabbing, dismemberment, and cannibalism. Richard realizes his silence may have cost a woman her life.

The present timeline intensifies. Peyton Bair, a sixteen-year-old lifeguard, disappears from the Willoughby Woods Swim Club. Her body is found on a bridge over Winters Run by a drunken fisherman. Gallagher calls Richard, apologizing for the coming turmoil and implying a copycat is at work. After Peyton’s murder, fear and media chaos grip Edgewood. Richard faces public backlash after a combative live interview. His neighbor blames him for press intrusion. Security camera footage reveals a masked person near Richard’s springhouse.

A chapter on Grace Sunday provides a parallel story. In 1983, aspiring actress Grace kills a serial killer in self-defense. Seven years later, her boyfriend Bradley Love is shot by SWAT, revealed as another serial killer. Grace leaves Hollywood permanently. Richard reflects on Edgewood’s history of violent oddities, suggesting the town may be haunted.

McClernan and Gonzalez accuse Richard of staging the security footage. They reveal a photograph of Peyton Bair’s hand with a hangman drawing marked “7,” directly linking the murder to Gallagher. Kara threatens to leave with Billy. Town chaos escalates: a teen in a mask is nearly shot, Fox News journalists attacked, a couple reports a sniffing intruder. Richard participates in a podcast; a live caller taunts him and promises more deaths. The chapter ends with a Reddit thread debating the caller’s identity.

On Saturday, June 11, a mass shooting occurs at a furniture store, and the hoax caller is identified as Nicky McClane. Peyton Bair’s funeral draws five hundred mourners. Thirteen-year-old Renee Glover goes missing but is found safe. Police name suspects Johnathon Russell and Stephen Grant in the Riggs and Bair murders. That night, the police guard abandons his post. Kara retrieves the mail and discovers mannequins hanging in a tree, one wearing Anne Riggs’s severed head.

Richard’s home becomes a crime scene. The killer exploited a security blind spot. Kara refuses to flee. The media reveals that Peyton Bair’s killer left a hangman drawing on her palm and removed her ear postmortem—echoing Gallagher’s methods. At a press conference, a crowd member publicly accuses Richard of anticipating the murders and profiting. Online forums erupt with conspiracy theories. Richard researches the copycat effect, questioning his own role.

Old friend Carly Albright visits unexpectedly. She quit the Washington Post and traveled to heal. They drive through Edgewood, reconcile, and watch the security footage—Carly finds something familiar about the masked figure. Gallagher calls Richard from prison, offers to give a fourth name if police rerun his DNA, and chillingly mentions Carly by name. Richard’s guilt deepens.

A 1993 Psychology Journal article by James Largent details Henry Metheny’s abusive childhood and his first murder of his best friend in 1978. Richard discovered the article in 1997, fearing exposure, but realized Metheny had forgotten him.

Richard drives to Cumberland Penitentiary to meet Gallagher, seeking answers about the copycat. New suspects emerge. Gallagher appears healthier, denies knowledge of the killer, names suspicious pen pal Benjamin Thacker, and speculates the copycat is jealous of his bond with Richard. He cryptically states he is changing.

After the prison interview, Richard learns the mannequins were purchased in Hanover, where Gallagher once lived. Detective Gonzalez investigates neighbor Ken Klein, who has a true-crime shrine. Richard’s wife Kara and daughter Carly persuade him to hold the annual Chizapalooza bonfire. At the party, Richard steps into the woods and is attacked with an axe handle by Jeremy Hollister, stepfather of Peyton Bair. Richard suffers a concussion and thirty-three stitches. Police find weapons in Hollister’s truck. Richard agrees to press charges.

Mallory Tucker, a 17-year-old, is abducted from a playground by a man in a burlap mask. Her body is found staked to the ground like a scarecrow, with an “8” on both cheeks, defensive wounds, and a missing left ear. No hangman sign is left. Richard realizes the location is described in his unpublished manuscript, raising the possibility the killer has accessed it.

Cybercrime officers examine Richard’s devices and confirm his laptops were remotely infiltrated. Richard and Carly sort Gallagher’s fan mail and find three letters mentioning “Meyers” and window wells, suspecting orchestrated clues. They visit the Meyers House at night and dig up three objects stolen from Richard’s home: a Stephen King–signed baseball, Kara’s missing sunglasses, and his father’s carved ashtray. As they hide, a humming stranger (mimicking Gallagher’s habit) arrives and enters the house.

McClernan confronts Richard about bribing a guard for Gallagher’s files. Richard confesses his childhood trauma with Henry Metheny. Police discover guard Carl Runk gave Gallagher a burner phone. Bite marks on Mallory Tucker match Gallagher’s dentals. In an interview, Gallagher denies knowing the copycat but admits two phone calls via the burner. He calls Richard “Richie Rich”—a nickname only Metheny used. McClernan reveals Metheny is in a coma in federal prison. Carly identifies a leg-length discrepancy in the suspect from security footage.

Carly confirms the killer has a gait issue, matching a shoe-insert clue. Watching Gallagher’s video, Richard spots a reference to “pawn,” leading to the discovery that Gallagher used online crossword puzzles to communicate with followers. This leads to mailman Daniel Kelly and his girlfriend Alicia Fetterman. A search of Richard’s old house uncovers a soundproofed garage with an embalming table. Richard confesses to Kara about Henry Metheny. That night, Sean Phillips attacks Richard; Kara kills him with a fireplace poker. Richard resolves to leave the investigation and focus on his family.

The chapter titled “After” suggests consequences, but specific details are not provided in the outline.

The Author’s Note (Chapter 24) explains how the sequel was conceived while mowing his lawn in summer 2022. Chizmar confirms much of the personal detail (family, home, landmarks) is genuine but characters like Carly Albright are fictional amalgams. He reveals the staged nature of photographs, describing how he and his son Billy used neighbors and friends as actors—including himself as Mallory Tucker’s corpse. He hints at more secrets and promises the Boogeyman story will continue.

Main Characters

• Richard Chizmar – The author-narrator drawn into a copycat investigation, struggling with past trauma and public backlash.
• Joshua Gallagher – The imprisoned serial killer known as the Boogeyman who manipulates Richard from prison and hints at a copycat.
• Kara Chizmar – Richard’s wife who fears Gallagher’s influence and ultimately kills an attacker to protect her family.
• Lieutenant Clara McClernan – The police lieutenant investigating the murders, who suspects Richard may be staging events and later uncovers evidence linking crimes to Gallagher.
• Carly Albright – An old friend and former journalist who helps analyze security footage and identifies a leg-length discrepancy in the suspect.
• Henry Metheny – A former coworker who tried to abduct Richard in the 1980s and was later revealed to be a serial killer, haunting Richard’s past.

Themes

• Copycat Effect – Media coverage of crime inspires imitation, driving the killer’s methods and public fear.
• True Crime Obsession – Society’s fascination with serial killers depicted through fan mail, online forums, and Richard’s conflicted role as a true-crime writer.
• Blurring Reality and Fiction – The metafictional narrative mixes real people and places with invented events, challenging reader trust.
• Guilt and Complicity – Richard’s internal struggle over whether his past silence and bestselling book have caused harm or inspired violence.
• Performance of Evil – Killers like Gallagher and the copycat stage their crimes for an audience, manipulating media and public perception.

Symbols

• Burlap Mask – Worn by both Gallagher and the copycat, symbolizing anonymity, terror, and the legacy of the Boogeyman.
• Mannequins – Dismembered mannequins displayed in Richard’s yard, used by the killer to taunt the family.
• Hangman Drawing – A hangman game image on victims’ palms linking the copycat to Gallagher’s signature.
• Number Eight – Carved into Mallory Tucker’s cheeks, marking the copycat’s departure from Gallagher’s pattern and escalation.

Ending Overview

The climax occurs when Sean Phillips, identified as the copycat, breaks into Richard’s home. Kara Chizmar kills Phillips with a fireplace poker to protect her husband and family. Afterward, Richard confesses to Kara about his childhood trauma with Henry Metheny. He resolves to step away from the investigation and focus on his wife and children. The police close the case with Phillips dead, but questions remain about how much Gallagher orchestrated. Gallagher remains in prison, and the final author’s note suggests there are more secrets to be revealed in future installments.

Chapter-by-Chapter Summary

Common Questions

1. Is Becoming the Boogeyman based on a true story? No. The author’s note states it is a work of fiction, though it uses real places, people, and media outlets fictitiously for verisimilitude.

2. Is this book connected to Chasing the Boogeyman? Yes. It is a sequel to Chasing the Boogeyman, continuing the metafictional homage to the author’s hometown and true-crime passion.

3. Who is the copycat killer? The copycat is Sean Phillips, an HVAC worker with a criminal record who had access to Richard’s home. He is killed by Kara in the climax.

4. What is the hangman drawing? It is a hangman game image left on victims’ palms, used by both Gallagher and the copycat. Peyton Bair had a hangman with the number “7” drawn on her hand.

5. What does the number eight mean? The number eight is carved into Mallory Tucker’s cheeks. It marks a departure from Gallagher’s pattern and signifies the copycat’s escalation.

6. Does Richard’s family survive? Yes. Richard, Kara, and their sons Billy and Noah survive the ordeal, though they endure trauma and a home invasion.

7. Is Joshua Gallagher the mastermind? Gallagher denies knowing the copycat, but evidence suggests he used a burner phone to communicate with Phillips and possibly orchestrated events from prison by providing clues. The book leaves ambiguity.

8. How does the book end? Kara kills the copycat Sean Phillips. Richard confesses his past trauma to Kara and decides to leave the investigation to protect his family. The author’s note hints at future installments.

Explore More

• Detailed chapter summaries: Chapter 1 through Chapter 24
• Character profiles: Richard Chizmar, Joshua Gallagher, Kara Chizmar, Lt. Clara McClernan, Carly Albright, Henry Metheny
• Themes in depth: Copycat Effect, True Crime Obsession, Blurring Reality and Fiction, Guilt and Complicity, Performance of Evil
• Symbol analysis: Burlap Mask, Mannequins, Hangman Drawing, Number Eight
• Ending Explained
• Questions and Answers
• Quiz
• Essay Prompts