Reviews tagging 'Schizophrenia/Psychosis '

I Am Not a Serial Killer by Dan Wells

5 reviews

calamitywindpetal's review against another edition

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emotional informative tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5


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eternallyunsatisfied's review

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5


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rhythmofryn's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0


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sexualedward's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25


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elly29's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This is certainly an interesting premise: a sociopath who fights against his desire to become a serial killer, and who instead uses his knowledge to solve a string of murders. 

This felt like a first novel, definitely. I listened to the version John Allen Nelson narrates. (Apparently, Kirby Heyborne's version is supposed to be really good.) I was turned off in the first few chapters, because Nelson's narration was gratingly similar to Will Wheaton's narration of "Ready Player One," which I loathed (I also loathed the writing). The books have in common a whiny, angry, angsty teenage boy who hates the world around him. And, they also have some mary-sue levels of self-control and self-discipline.

But, things took a turn, and here be spoilers.

I didn't realize that this book had
an element or fantasy to it, ie the murderer is a demon
. So, that was a fun surprise. Shame on me for going purely on my friend's recommendation and not reading the synopsis. Had the book not had some level of the fantastical to it, I think I would've liked it a lot less. I could chew on something other than the main character's one-dimensionality.

I think a book like this is important in that it really gets inside the head of a sociopath (and perhaps if one is a sociopath, it signals what one should not do, such as not stalk the girl you have a crush on). Again, interesting premise. Rather creepy.

Oh, and an early scene describes in-detail the process of embalming in a mortuary. I had to skip over a lot of that.

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