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bmg20's review against another edition
3.0
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
I Hunt Killers introduced us to Jasper Dent, son of Billy Dent who is well known for being a notorious serial killer. Attempting to prove that he’s nothing like his father, he decides to track an apparent serial killer in his hometown. His success in bringing down the killer is noticed and in this second installment, Jasper is asked by the NYPD to come to New York City to help them catch another serial killer. Unsure of himself, but wanting to do what he can to help, Jazz goes to New York and finds himself smack dab in the middle of a game that he never wanted to play.
The thing that worked for I Hunt Killers was absent in Game. In Killers, Jazz took it upon himself to hunt for the serial killer and while not completely realistic was still somewhat credible. In Game, the NYPD has requested his presence in solving a murder because they’ve been unable to stop the guy and the murders continue to pile up.
Come on, really? The NYPD. Asked a teenager. The son of a serial killer. Sure, he may have brought down a serial killer in his hometown, once, but that doesn’t make him some seasoned veteran. Highly unlikely in the full scheme of things and my ability to suspend disbelief could only go so far.
Jazz, Connie, and Howie all find themselves on different paths in this book and subsequently all have their own cliffhanger to boot. I much preferred the gang all together, especially because Connie and Howie’s POVs both managed to grate on my nerves. Connie made some of the most idiotic decisions ever. You knew that something bad was going to happen to her because if it didn’t it would have been completely shocking. Her complete inability to think rationally was a complete contradiction from how she was in the first book so I’m hoping she finds her brain in time for the third book. Howie was the same old Howie but his charming immaturity didn’t win me over as it did in the past mostly because his constant sexual innuendos were straight up cringe-inducing. I realize his importance in a gory tale such as this, comic relief, but I would have appreciated a bit more maturity to go with the seriousness of the situation the characters were going through.
I Hunt Killers was a fabulous thriller with a Dexter-like teenager that you couldn’t help but love. I read the first installment back when it first came out, April 2012, and was desperate to get my hands on the next installment. Clearly, as you might notice, I’ve finally read it and it’s July 2015. Yeah, I’m more than a bit late. When early reviews came out, the groaning and moaning about the cliffhangers left me leery so I quickly decided that I’d just rather binge read both final installments when the third book came out. And I’m finally doing just that. I picked up the third book, Blood of My Blood, right away because you can’t not do just that after the ending(s) Lyga gives us. So word of advice? Definitely have the next book ready to go.
I received this book free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I Hunt Killers introduced us to Jasper Dent, son of Billy Dent who is well known for being a notorious serial killer. Attempting to prove that he’s nothing like his father, he decides to track an apparent serial killer in his hometown. His success in bringing down the killer is noticed and in this second installment, Jasper is asked by the NYPD to come to New York City to help them catch another serial killer. Unsure of himself, but wanting to do what he can to help, Jazz goes to New York and finds himself smack dab in the middle of a game that he never wanted to play.
The thing that worked for I Hunt Killers was absent in Game. In Killers, Jazz took it upon himself to hunt for the serial killer and while not completely realistic was still somewhat credible. In Game, the NYPD has requested his presence in solving a murder because they’ve been unable to stop the guy and the murders continue to pile up.
Come on, really? The NYPD. Asked a teenager. The son of a serial killer. Sure, he may have brought down a serial killer in his hometown, once, but that doesn’t make him some seasoned veteran. Highly unlikely in the full scheme of things and my ability to suspend disbelief could only go so far.
Jazz, Connie, and Howie all find themselves on different paths in this book and subsequently all have their own cliffhanger to boot. I much preferred the gang all together, especially because Connie and Howie’s POVs both managed to grate on my nerves. Connie made some of the most idiotic decisions ever. You knew that something bad was going to happen to her because if it didn’t it would have been completely shocking. Her complete inability to think rationally was a complete contradiction from how she was in the first book so I’m hoping she finds her brain in time for the third book. Howie was the same old Howie but his charming immaturity didn’t win me over as it did in the past mostly because his constant sexual innuendos were straight up cringe-inducing. I realize his importance in a gory tale such as this, comic relief, but I would have appreciated a bit more maturity to go with the seriousness of the situation the characters were going through.
I Hunt Killers was a fabulous thriller with a Dexter-like teenager that you couldn’t help but love. I read the first installment back when it first came out, April 2012, and was desperate to get my hands on the next installment. Clearly, as you might notice, I’ve finally read it and it’s July 2015. Yeah, I’m more than a bit late. When early reviews came out, the groaning and moaning about the cliffhangers left me leery so I quickly decided that I’d just rather binge read both final installments when the third book came out. And I’m finally doing just that. I picked up the third book, Blood of My Blood, right away because you can’t not do just that after the ending(s) Lyga gives us. So word of advice? Definitely have the next book ready to go.
I received this book free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
missgrangerr's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Murder
riahashley's review against another edition
5.0
Very rarely is a second book in a series as good as the first. However, Game was even better than I Hunt Killers. Can’t wait to read the next book.
ka_ask2002's review against another edition
5.0
Just beautiful! I loved it so much, I couldn't put the stupid thing down! The characters were beautiful in everyway! The plot was wonderful, their character development was incomprehensible, and the way it was executed was just fabulous!
debbiesilkserif's review against another edition
3.0
Received via Netgalley from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review.
Jazz, Howie and Connie are back in the squeal to I Hunt Killers. There’s a serial killer running amok in the Big Apple and Jazz has been requested to help out the NYPD. The Hat-Dog Killer has been terrorizing the city, and a little help from the son of the most notorious serial killer might just be the remedy.
The novel was just as much of a page turner as the first; regardless it felt like the story might have dragged near the middle. Jazz has to help the NYPD catch the Hat-Dog killer, but unfortunately the amount of time Jazz spends altering his profile of his father to fit the Hat Dog killer seemed misplaced. Not all serial killers are alike, and not all profiles start from a base serial killer (I did some research into Profiling when I was in Criminology). If I were a high ranking NYPD officer, I would have sent Jazz home immediately because profiling a man who raised you is very different from profiling someone you’ve never met. Jazz is an expert on his father, not all serial killers and to attempt to spread this over to another (unrelated) case is just ridiculous.
To top off the negative aspects of this novel, I can’t see the NYPD asking the advice of a child – regardless of their upbringing. The world just doesn’t work that way. There is a hierarchy, and inserting Jazz into the top echelons of a murder investigation just doesn’t jibe. Not only that but the lack of media attention on the clear desperation and inappropriateness of bringing a minor in on a case, really didn’t sit well with me – regardless if this is YA fiction.
I loved the book, and once I stopped second guessing the reality of the situation, the novel was decent. I just can’t move on from the minor hierarchical issues and the misconceptions the author has on minors in a police investigation. If Jazz is really this big of a rarity that he needs to be called in on cases that adults should be working on (and isn’t in the least bit tied to his father, which is a completely different problem concerning interests) then Jazz’s current circumstances with his nutty grandmother should have been taken care of by now.
This book is worth the read if you like YA fiction, crime fiction or mysteries –but unlike the first it just didn’t hit the spot. Regardless, I am looking forward to the next addition to the Jasper Dent series, what happens to Jazz with this latest cliff hanger?!
Jazz, Howie and Connie are back in the squeal to I Hunt Killers. There’s a serial killer running amok in the Big Apple and Jazz has been requested to help out the NYPD. The Hat-Dog Killer has been terrorizing the city, and a little help from the son of the most notorious serial killer might just be the remedy.
The novel was just as much of a page turner as the first; regardless it felt like the story might have dragged near the middle. Jazz has to help the NYPD catch the Hat-Dog killer, but unfortunately the amount of time Jazz spends altering his profile of his father to fit the Hat Dog killer seemed misplaced. Not all serial killers are alike, and not all profiles start from a base serial killer (I did some research into Profiling when I was in Criminology). If I were a high ranking NYPD officer, I would have sent Jazz home immediately because profiling a man who raised you is very different from profiling someone you’ve never met. Jazz is an expert on his father, not all serial killers and to attempt to spread this over to another (unrelated) case is just ridiculous.
To top off the negative aspects of this novel, I can’t see the NYPD asking the advice of a child – regardless of their upbringing. The world just doesn’t work that way. There is a hierarchy, and inserting Jazz into the top echelons of a murder investigation just doesn’t jibe. Not only that but the lack of media attention on the clear desperation and inappropriateness of bringing a minor in on a case, really didn’t sit well with me – regardless if this is YA fiction.
I loved the book, and once I stopped second guessing the reality of the situation, the novel was decent. I just can’t move on from the minor hierarchical issues and the misconceptions the author has on minors in a police investigation. If Jazz is really this big of a rarity that he needs to be called in on cases that adults should be working on (and isn’t in the least bit tied to his father, which is a completely different problem concerning interests) then Jazz’s current circumstances with his nutty grandmother should have been taken care of by now.
This book is worth the read if you like YA fiction, crime fiction or mysteries –but unlike the first it just didn’t hit the spot. Regardless, I am looking forward to the next addition to the Jasper Dent series, what happens to Jazz with this latest cliff hanger?!
nelsonseye's review against another edition
5.0
Knowing it was a cliff hanger did not even begin to prepare me for this. Awesome. Desperate to read the next in the series.
barbarianlibarian's review against another edition
4.0
ahhh! soooo good but I am pissed it made me slog through 500+ pages just to have it end with a cliff-hanger! definitely upper teen with lots of adult appeal - includes lots of graphic twisted stuff
ashkitty93's review against another edition
5.0
Holy wow.
Loved the inclusion of
Connie seems to have gone off the rails a bit and that was rather irksome, but what exactly happened at the Dent house with Howie and Sam? That whole thing went so fast, I wasn't sure even after I backed it up a couple times. And then Jazz and Morales, I think I rewound that bit four times so it could process in my head.
It seemed a bit jarring in the beginning when I realized that the majority of this book was going to be set in New York, because after the first book I was coming to like Lobo's Nod and didn't necessarily want to be anywhere else but there, but reading this has been a nice nostalgia trip to when I visited NYC for a weekend a few years ago. We didn't make it to Brooklyn, we stayed in Manhattan and did all the touristy stuff, but we saw the Brooklyn Bridge and all of that. I love when NYC shows up in books or movies anymore because I can usually say "I WAS THERE!! :D" teehee.
Ended this and IMMEDIATELY started book 3. Lyga's writing is excellent, gripping and hilarious and terrifying all at once.
Loved the inclusion of
Spoiler
the Monopoly game.Connie seems to have gone off the rails a bit and that was rather irksome, but what exactly happened at the Dent house with Howie and Sam? That whole thing went so fast, I wasn't sure even after I backed it up a couple times.
Spoiler
Did Howie actually kill Grandma (accidentally of course) or did she just have a heart attack and collapse on the spot? I didn't think the gun was loaded.It seemed a bit jarring in the beginning when I realized that the majority of this book was going to be set in New York, because after the first book I was coming to like Lobo's Nod and didn't necessarily want to be anywhere else but there, but reading this has been a nice nostalgia trip to when I visited NYC for a weekend a few years ago. We didn't make it to Brooklyn, we stayed in Manhattan and did all the touristy stuff, but we saw the Brooklyn Bridge and all of that. I love when NYC shows up in books or movies anymore because I can usually say "I WAS THERE!! :D" teehee.
Ended this and IMMEDIATELY started book 3. Lyga's writing is excellent, gripping and hilarious and terrifying all at once.
morguebooks's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0