A review by sam_hartwig
I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga

4.0

This book should come with a warning "Not for the faint hearted"! It was very disturbing at times. But don't think that I didn't like it, because I did!

Serial killer Billy Dent has taught his son, Jazz Dent, everything there is to know about how to kill people and get rid of their bodies - how to become the perfect serial killer just like him. Jazz doesn't want to like his dad though and tries hard to get him out of his head, which is hard when dead bodies start showing up in his local town. Jazz desperately wants to help the police in figuring out who the killer is. As the bodies pile up will they be able to find the killer before he/she moves on? You will have to read to find out.

Jazz is a hard character to like - he's a bit like Dexter (for any one who has ever watched that show like me). In the TV show you come to love Dexter because he has real feelings and is a good person even though he has evil tendencies and wants to kill people. Jazz is similar because he hunts down serial killers like Dexter except he doesn't kill them. Jazz is trying to fit into society after his father is convicted and thrown into jail. Before this Jazz had been there for all of "Dear Old Dad's" triple number kills, he didn't witness them all but he may well have because his father would give him a play by play how it happened. Poor kid!

The secondary characters were very easy to like. Jazz's best friend, Howie, is a hemophiliac (someone who's blood is thin and would bleed out quite quickly with a small cut). He has a quirky sense of humor and lightens, at times, a dark novel.

Then there's Connie, Jazz's level headed African-American girlfriend and lastly G. William, who is the typical round, older sheriff of the town. He already has a connection with Jazz because of their past, but they become closer as the book goes on.

There's a little twist at the end and I didn't guess who the killer was which as always is a good thing. I can not wait to read the rest of the books. Even though this is in the teen books, I think adults who love crime would love this series. I don't recommend this to younger teens, some sections are gruesome.

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