I Am Not A Serial Killer (John Cleaver, Bk 1)
Author:
Genre: Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
Book Type: Paperback
Author:
Genre: Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
Book Type: Paperback
Helpful Score: 4
John Cleaver has a very simple goal in life: avoid becoming a serial killer. To make sure this mission is accomplished, he's set up some very definite boundaries for himself. When others tick him off, he compliments them to help control his anger. He makes sure that he doesn't pay too much attention to anyone in particular. After all, that kind of obsession could easily lead him down darker paths He spends time helping his mom at the family-run business... which just happens to be a mortuary. And he spends a lot of quality time with his psychologist, discussing the motivations of serial killers he finds so fascinating, such Dahmer, Bundy, and Gacey. And as the story opens, he's doing okay at maintaining the status quo. The monster is on a leash, and he hopes to keep it that way. After all, John tells himself, I AM NOT A SERIAL KILLER.
Unfortunately for John, something macabre disturbs the tranquility of the little town where he's living. As he begins his freshman year of high school, people begin to die in grisly ways. The corpses have body parts missing. A kidney here, lungs there... but the pattern doesn't make sense. John's interest is piqued so he begins investigating, hoping to find out who is the serial killer.
I really liked I AM NOT A SERIAL killer. Dan Wells adopts a very breezy narrative style. It's a quick read that's very entertaining. It's an interesting tight rope act, too. Because of John's youth and perspective, the book has been categorized by some as a young adult novel. It most likely is appropriate for that age, but it isn't dumbed down to meet that target demographic. There's a lot of scenes that occur in the funeral home, and it's pretty obvious that the author has done a lot of research on the subject of mortuary science.
Probably in a year, I'll remember how disciplined a person John is. He recognizes the dark tendencies within him are not normal, so he tries incredibly hard to make sure that he avoids them as much as possible. There's been a lot of comparisons between John and Dexter Morgan, the serial killer vigilante created by Jeff Lindsay. Throughout the novel, John is NOT actively looking to murder people. Where Dexter accepted the dark urges and has found a way to channel them in what he considers a constructive way, John believes that he must deny these urges. The author, Dan Wells, has been contracted for two more books in the series, so it will be interesting to see how John develops in MR. MONSTER and I DON'T WANT TO KILL YOU.
As a final note -- I AM NOT A SERIAL KILLER has a very pervasive supernatural aspect that begins fairly early in the story. If you are not a fan of your murder getting mixed with things that go "bump" in the night, I'd stay away. I'd recommend I AM NOT A SERIAL KILLER for fans of horror, The X-Files, and urban fantasy.
Unfortunately for John, something macabre disturbs the tranquility of the little town where he's living. As he begins his freshman year of high school, people begin to die in grisly ways. The corpses have body parts missing. A kidney here, lungs there... but the pattern doesn't make sense. John's interest is piqued so he begins investigating, hoping to find out who is the serial killer.
I really liked I AM NOT A SERIAL killer. Dan Wells adopts a very breezy narrative style. It's a quick read that's very entertaining. It's an interesting tight rope act, too. Because of John's youth and perspective, the book has been categorized by some as a young adult novel. It most likely is appropriate for that age, but it isn't dumbed down to meet that target demographic. There's a lot of scenes that occur in the funeral home, and it's pretty obvious that the author has done a lot of research on the subject of mortuary science.
Probably in a year, I'll remember how disciplined a person John is. He recognizes the dark tendencies within him are not normal, so he tries incredibly hard to make sure that he avoids them as much as possible. There's been a lot of comparisons between John and Dexter Morgan, the serial killer vigilante created by Jeff Lindsay. Throughout the novel, John is NOT actively looking to murder people. Where Dexter accepted the dark urges and has found a way to channel them in what he considers a constructive way, John believes that he must deny these urges. The author, Dan Wells, has been contracted for two more books in the series, so it will be interesting to see how John develops in MR. MONSTER and I DON'T WANT TO KILL YOU.
As a final note -- I AM NOT A SERIAL KILLER has a very pervasive supernatural aspect that begins fairly early in the story. If you are not a fan of your murder getting mixed with things that go "bump" in the night, I'd stay away. I'd recommend I AM NOT A SERIAL KILLER for fans of horror, The X-Files, and urban fantasy.
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