I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga

[amybo82]

I guess I should start with a disclaimer that I'm not a big fan of Barry Lyga in the first place. I read The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl about a year ago, and I was sorely disappointed. His writing style just rubbed me the wrong way. The reason I read I Hunt Killers is that it was nominated for a South Carolina Book Award this year, and as a librarian, I've been trying to go through and read all 80 books across all 4 lists. (I'm about half way through.) Ok, disclaimer over. On to the review.

Jazz Dent is a charming teen who has a knack for solving crimes, namely murders. The reason he's so great? His dad happens to be one of the greatest (in the grossest sense of the word) serial killers of all time. From a young age, Billy Dent, Jazz's dad, used Jazz as his accomplice. Billy's locked up now, so the world is safe from him. Until a rash of murders begin. Jazz realizes before anyone else that the new killer is imitating Billy's kill list one-by-one. Now it's up to Jazz to help find the murderer. At the same time, he is struggling with his own identity, afraid that he is one breakdown from becoming more like his father.

The thing that gets me about this book is that the concept of the story is actually kind of interesting. However, the writing put me off. I can't stand how every chapter ends with a cliffhanger. I can't stand how the author starts sentences and then just leaves them in the middle or says something like, "It can't be true!" but doesn't explain what it is that can't be true. Sometimes, this can be effective, as it keeps you coming back for more. In this case, I was just annoyed by it. Yeah, teachers may like it because there are definitely some SAT words in there, but they seem out of place with the rest of the text.

Another gripe I have about Lyga is that he can't write a likeable and/or relatable character. Even the ones that I'm supposed to be rooting for, I just feel indifferent toward. Lots of people have had problems with the violence and the gore in the book, and while I didn't particularly like it, I guess I can understand why he put it in there. The more disturbing part, to me, is the interview between Libba Bray and Lyga, where he says that he didn't really think the gore and violence were all that gory or violent. Dude, they totally were.

Overall, I'm not going to recommend this book to any of my readers. I think there are just better books out there!

[SClancy]

See, I was the opposite way. I shot gun the entire series and survived on minimal sleep because I just had to read the next chapter to see what happened. I couldn't even wait for the paperback release so willingly got the hard back that didn't match the set and I hate doing that.
I will also give him a shout out for making a believable teenager. By that I mean he starts cocky with a "Dude, I got this" attitude and then gets side swiped by reality and has to admit he is in way over his head.
I concede that you do have a few points but in all I really like the series.

[MindyW]

Not only was this an extremely original book, it also struck me as very possible. The main character is not the only view point you get to see from. The switch between is clear, but the similarities are there too. Perhaps if you are not a true crime fan you may not spot it. Perhaps, if you are the sort to like rainbows and perfect endings, you may feel robbed by such books. The world is full of people who are not only different in behavior, they are very different in thinking, in view point. To take the idea of a boy who was raised to think one way, and struggles every day of his life against that thinking, is not a new concept. The idea of having that young man raised to be a super serial killer, groomed since birth, is very much not like any other book I know of.
Yes, you may thing to Dexter. The cleaver pathologist who's cop father seen in him the tell tale signs of what he could be, what his father was sure he was. Said father wanted to use that for a good purpose; to ride the world of psycho killers. Dexter takes to it like a duck to water.
Barry Lyga's character refuses to be what his father has told him he is destined to become. He riles against that grain and even refuses to do anything that would mark him, in the smallest manner, to be like his father. His father, the notorious Billy Dent, killed at least 123 victims. 124 according to Jazz's count, adding his mother. Everyone, even Jazz, is like a pawn to dear old dad. To push against who he is expected to be, he mentally argues with himself in the same way a person who is raised prejudice struggles. Only, really, that is such a mild comparison. You would have to be the son of the head of the KKK, groomed to be the next leader, to even come CLOSE to what his father has done.
His father's voice sits inside his head every day like this great weight that just will not shut up. Like it lives in his mind and refuses to be silenced. Those who deal with Psychosis know that feeling. To daily make it through that struggle endears me to Jazz. His strength, his triumph, his desire to reprogram himself, all make him a very likeable person.

I rate this book, as is, 4 out of 4 stars.

Mindy W.