I Hunt Killers Book Review

Author: Barry Lyga. Release date: 2012. Publisher:  Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. ISBN: 9780316125840.

Annotation: As the only son of one of the world’s most notorious serial killers, Jasper Dent has always been worried that he will follow in his father’s footsteps. Determined to make sure that doesn’t happen, however, Jasper uses the “skills” he learned from his father to try and help solve a recent string of grisly murders in his home town.

   

Personal thoughts: One of my favorite shows on TV is Dexter, the story of a serial killer who only targets other murderers, so when I read about I Hunt Killers, I was immediately intrigued. The story does have some similarities to the popular Showtime series, but is also creative and unique in its own right. I really love reading young adult novels by male authors, especially when the leading character is also a male. Jazz is very believably and well-written, and I found myself genuinely caring about his inner struggle with his gruesome past as well as his relationships with the people in his life. I did get pretty creeped out at several points in the novel (particularly in one scene involving the family dog…eek!), but I had trouble putting the book down despite these trepidations. I’m really looking forward to seeing where Barry Lyga takes this series and would recommend it to mature teen readers, particularly guys, who want something edgy and entertaining.

Plot summary: Four years ago the world discovered the truth about Jasper “Jazz” Dent’s father, Billy: he was a sociopathic serial killer who had murdered over 120 innocent people in his career. Growing up, Jazz never understood that the “lessons” his father gave him on a daily basis were anything but normal: how to dismember a body, how to avoid leaving evidence, how to choose your victim. Once Billy Dent was caught, however, and the world came to know him as the son of a monster, Jazz began to wonder if his dad had accomplished his goal and groomed him to become a serial killer himself. Now Jazz is seventeen and still living in the small town Lobo’s Nod with his grandma. Jazz is determined to avoid following in his father’s footsteps, so when a string of bizarre murders take place, Jazz decides to use the “talents” his father gave him to help the local sheriff’s office solve the case. Together with his best friend, Howie, and his girlfriend, Connie, Jazz tries to put himself in the killer’s shoes: piecing together who the victims were and why they were chosen. As Jazz becomes more immersed in the case, however, terrifying memories from his childhood begin to resurface, memories that he had locked away, making him realize he might not be so different from his father after all.

Review: Gruesome, creepy but strangely entertaining, this first novel in a new series for teens by veteran author Barry Lyga proves to be as disturbing as it is enjoyable. Squeamish readers be warned: the subject matter of this book is not for the faint of heart. Jazz is the son of a serial killer, one who raped, tortured and brutally murdered his victims in a very sadistic fashion. A lot of the grisly details of these crimes, and more, are included in the story, making it appropriate for a high school audience, but not recommended for younger teens or tweens. In fact, much of the novel is more suitable for a mature reader, from Jazz’s internal struggle over the similarities he observes between himself and his father to the new string of murders that he takes it upon himself to help solve. Jazz might still be in high school, but adults can easily enjoy his efforts to come to terms with his past and the methods he uses to unravel the crimes of a serial killer other than his father. The book is very well-written, with a great deal of character development put into Jazz, his best friend, Howie, girlfriend, Connie, and “dear old dad,” Billy. The story ends on a cliffhanger and is intriguing enough that readers who enjoyed I Hunt Killers will definitely be yearning for the sequel, Game, which is set to be released on April 23, 2013.

Genre:  Fiction

Reading level: Grade 9+

Similar titles: Dexter novels by Jeff Lindsay, Rotters by Daniel Kraus, The Sleepwalkers by J. Gabriel Gates.

Themes:  Serial killers, murder, death, father/son relationships, mystery.

Awards/Reviews:  Top Ten Indie Next List pick, positive reviews from authors Joe Hill, Libba Bray, Cassandra Clare and Holly Black.    

Series Information: First book in Jasper Dent series.

Discussion questions:

-        Do you think that Jasper is a sociopath like his father? Why or why not?-        Why do you think Howie has remained a friend to Jasper for such a long time?-      What do you think was the significance of the severed fingers?-        Why do you think G. William didn’t want to believe the murders were being committed by a serial killer?-       What do you think was the motive of the Impressionist?-         What would you like to see happen in the sequel?

Rotters Book Review

Author: Daniel Kraus. Release date: 2011. Publisher:  Delacorte Press. ISBN: 9780385738576.

Annotation:  After his mother’s death, Joey Crouch is sent from his home in Chicago to live with the father he’s never met in Iowa. Ken Harnett is as far from an ideal father as it gets: he lives in a small, filthy shack, is always covered in dirt and a strange, foul odor, and disappears for days at a time leaving Joey to fend for himself. Soon Joey makes a startling discovery about Harnett, however, that explains his strange behavior: his father is a professional grave robber.

Personal thoughts: Wow. This is certainly different from any book I have ever read, and was, at times, very difficult to get through. I’m not sure what to make of it. It is very well written and the characters are engaging, but in a horrifying way. Kraus dives head first into the utterly macabre, and only brave readers should dare to follow him into the world six-feet-under. While the novel will make your stomach turn, you will find yourself unable to wait arriving at the fascinating conclusion. I will definitely remember Rotters for a long time.

Plot summary: Joey Crouch has lived a sheltered life in Chicago with his eccentric but loving mother. After she is tragically killed in a bus accident, Joey is sent to live with the father he has never met in the small town of Bloughton, Iowa. Not sure what to expect, Joey’s worst fears are realized when his new smalltown life fraught with unhappiness: his father, Ken Harnett, is an unkempt and unfriendly man who immediately lets Joey know that his presence is not desired. Joey is treated horribly at his new high school, constantly mocked, bullied, and abused by students and teachers. Joey does find some solace in the company of his friendly band teacher who encourages him to continue playing trumpet, a skill fostered by his mother. But as Joey’s life becomes more and more depressing, even music seems pointless in the endless monotony of torment. One night, Joey decides to learn the truth about his father’s odd behavior and hides in his truck as he leaves for another one of his late night trips. Joey soon discovers Harnett’s secret: he is a professional grave robber, or Digger, who makes a living pawning the treasures he steals from the dead. At first, Joey is horrified. Soon, however, he is drawn into the mysterious world of the Diggers as Harnett teaches him the finer points of uncovering a corpse.

Review:  This tense and often disturbing novel packs a powerful punch on many different fronts. The opening of the novel outlines the strange relationship between Joey and his mother then quickly jumps into the events following her death. After Joey arrives in Middle America, the juxtaposition of his experiences at his new high school and the “adventures” he has with his father makes for an interesting but also horrifying plot. Once Joey learns that he is good at his father’s craft, he uses digging as a means of escaping the torment, abuse, and bullying enacted upon him at his high school. The satisfaction the reader feels at Joey’s overcoming these obstacles is curious in light of the fact that it is obtained through his enjoyment of grave robbing with his long-lost pops. Graphic descriptions of what can be found six-feet-under, including such phrases as “coffin liquor” and “the boneyard blues,” make parts of the novel difficult to get through in a stomach churning way. These horrors, however, are what make Rotters such a unique, utterly original, and highly memorable novel.  Kraus does a fantastic job of turning something as disgusting as grave robbing into a means for a father and son to connect. The novel, while written for young adults, definitely has a place in adult literature as well, and can be enjoyed by any reader who wants something truly different from anything they’ve ever read.

Genre: Fiction/Horror

Reading level: Grade 10+

Similar titles: N/A

Themes:  Father/son relationships, grave robbing, death/loss, high school, bullying, feeling like an outsider, traditions.

Awards/Reviews:  Positive reviews from authors R.L. Stine, Scott Westerfeld, Guillermo Del Toro, Chuck Hogan, and Michael Grant.  

Series Information: N/A

Discussion Questions:

- Had you ever heard of grave robbing before reading this novel? What had you heard? What did you learn?

- Do you think Joey's father's "job" helped the relationship between the two? Why or why not?

- Why do you think Joey was bullied in school? Have you ever been bullied?

- Do you think what Joey and his father did was wrong? Why or why not?

- What does the word "macabre" mean? How does it apply to this novel? 

Counter Clockwise Book Review

Author: Jason Cockcroft. Release date: 2009. Publisher:  HarperCollins Children’s Books. ISBN: 9780061255540.

Annotation:  If you could go back in time and right a wrong, would you do it? And if you did, would it be the right thing to do?  

Personal thoughts:  This was a very interesting read, and I was surprised by the depth of the emotions evoked from the story. I learned some new tidbits about British culture and enjoyed Cockcroft’s writing style. I look forward to more works from this new author.   

Plot summary: Nathan Cobbe’s life changed forever the day his mother was tragically killed in a bus accident. Now he lives with his father, Henry, in a dingy apartment in a run-down project slated to be demolished at anytime. Nathan’s life is humdrum: he attends school but doesn’t really pay attention, his father is making him take physics review at a local community college to prepare for exams, and his only friend, Moll, can’t seem to get through to him. One night, however, during his physics review, Nathan meets someone that takes him on a strange adventure through time: an enormous Beefeater named Bartleby who seems to know quite a bit about Nathan’s life. It seems that Henry is inadvertently travelling through time, trying to stop Nathan’s mother from getting hit by the bus that ended her life. What Nathan learns, however, is that some things in life, and time, are meant to happen, and that changing them can alter the world in unimaginable ways. With Bartleby’s help, Nathan must stop his father from setting time spinning by changing the past, before it’s too late.

Review:  This unique story is British author Jason Cockcroft’s first novel, and provides an interesting and cerebral read for tweens that will get them thinking about topics they might not be familiar with. American readers will likely have to familiarize themselves with certain important terms Cockcroft uses to advance the plot, like Beefeater, another name for the Yeomen Warders who guard the tower of London, and Routemasters, or red double-decker buses. Once the British vocabulary is understood, the story is very gripping. Nathan’s adventures through time are not as exciting or magical as other literary time-travellers. His father is trying, inadvertently, to stop the tragic events that cause the death of Nathan’s mother. Nathan is torn between his desire to set time on the right course and his own grief at the loss of his mother. The relationship between Nathan and his father Henry extends far below the surface interactions that are common in other novels for tweens, giving young readers a chance to truly think about how father and son might bond after the loss of a mother and wife. The character of Bartleby the Beefeater is akin to a large, eccentric and mischievous Fairy Godmother. At first, the reader isn’t sure what to make of him, but as the story progresses, he becomes quite likable. Overall, Counter Clockwise is an unusual story that will appeal to tweens of both genders and of varying degrees of interest in the science fiction genre.

Genre: Science-fiction/Adventure

Reading level: Grade 5+

Similar titles:  100 Cupboards by N.D. Wilson, Charlie Bone series by Jenny Nimmo.

Themes: Time-travel, grief, death, father and son relationships.

Awards/Reviews: Positive review from Publisher’s Weekly and Booklist.  

Series Information:  N/A

Discussion Questions:

- What is the mood of this story?

- Do you think Nathan and his father have a good relationship? How did Nathan's mother's death impact their relationship?

- Do you think time travel is possible? What are some of your favorite time travel stories?

- What are your impressions of Bartleby?