Book Review: "I Hunt Killers" by Barry Lyga

There are a lot of teens out there who feel like their parent(s) are terrible, awful people who might even also act a little crazy sometimes.  Well, Jasper Dent has it worse.  Because when he is scared of his terrible, awful father – he has every right to be as his father is the infamous serial killer Billy Dent.  He is locked up now, but he raised Jasper to be just like him.  Jazz is now seventeen, and as you can imagine, he has a few issues to work through.  When murder victim after murder victim surfaces in their small town though – Jazz has trouble keeping it together.  He is compelled to help the police catch the killer, if only to prove his innocence.

This creepy mystery is told mostly from Jazz’s point of view, so the reader can see just how messed up he is.  In fact, that point gets beat into your brain a little too much so that it starts to feel overly-repetitive.  Until you pick up on that desperate crazy sort of vibe, and you start to question his overall sanity.  He has a decent support system though, in his girlfriend who is as steady as a rock, and in his best friend Howie who would stand by him no matter what, even if he is quite fragile himself.  Without these two, Jazz would be lost to his demons.

The mystery at hand – who is the killer here? – is kind of a slow and meandering tale, which only really gets exciting at the end.  Along the way though, we are treated to some pretty disturbing and grotesque murder scenes and memories that are certainly designed to shock.  The creepiest angle has to be the way Billy gets into Jasper’s head, and the manipulation that takes place.  As I said, the ending is the most exciting part, and it naturally leads into a cliffhanger for the next book in the series – which is already out, so if you get hooked into this story, you can satisfy yourself pretty quickly.  I think I’ll be able to hold off a bit though – as much as I thought this story was different from what I’m used to reading in YA, it didn’t always keep my attention very well.  I will keep it in mind however, for when I need a little something in this genre, as I hope the excitement from the end of the book will carry over into the next.  And honestly, the little excerpt from the back of my paperback copy does seem promising.

*****
I Hunt Killers
by Barry Lyga
Little, Brown, 2012
361 pages
Series:  Jasper Dent #1
Source:  Purchased New
*****
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I Hunt Killers

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