Review: I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga

Title: I Hunt Killers (Jasper Dent #1)

Author: Barry Lyga

Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers

Publication date: April 3rd 2012

Buy the book: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

What if the world's worst serial killer...was your dad?

Jasper (Jazz) Dent is a likable teenager. A charmer, one might say.

But he's also the son of the world's most infamous serial killer, and for Dear Old Dad, Take Your Son to Work Day was year-round. Jazz has witnessed crime scenes the way cops wish they could--from the criminal's point of view.

And now bodies are piling up in Lobo's Nod.

In an effort to clear his name, Jazz joins the police in a hunt for a new serial killer. But Jazz has a secret--could he be more like his father than anyone knows?

 (Summary from Goodreads)

Review:

I can honestly say that I Hunt Killers is one of the best books I've ever read. I don't think it was just the fear factor that got me, but I will get to that, it was also the sense of paranoia and excitement that you get reading a book like this. It isn't just a normal mystery/ thriller novel, it's a novel that literally places you in a killer's position. The details that Lyga placed in the story was impeccable and made it all the more creepy and good-bump inducing. I literally felt the hairs on my arms and neck go up as I was reading this book.

I really loved the way Barry Lyga built Jazz as a character. There was a complexity to his personality and character that really intrigued me and drew me in. Being the son of a world famous serial killer really does put a dent into a person’s psychological health and I felt like this issue was one of the things that made Jazz all the more interesting, the fact that there was a sort of trauma that he still had and probably would never go away. Jazz Dent was created with finely woven threads and as the books went on, slowly unraveled and revealed a multi-faceted character. Here is a boy who is loyal to his friends, loves his girlfriend but lives such a hard and conflicted life (I’d give him a pat on his back if I could.) As you read on with the book, you realize and feel the conflict that Jazz is going through. You’ll find out why he’s so haunted by the horrors that his father committed (and possibly he committed…), having to witness the things Jazz did, I’m pretty sure anyone would be scarred.

One of the things that really appealed to me about I Hunt Killers is the details of the book, and did think they were essential to the way the story was built. I really felt like it would’ve been incomplete if the story lacked those details and I really did like them. They made the story more creepy and intriguing.

I Hunt Killers isn’t just a normal thriller novel, it’s about overcoming your fears even if it’s yourself that you’re scared of. Barry Lyga did a wonderful job creating these characters and the story. There were a lot of times where I went “Oh, holy crap! That did NOT just happen” and “Oh. Em. Geee. Take me, Jazz.” It was an exhilarating book and will literally leave you gripping at the edges of the book and turning the pages furiously. Barry Lyga will take you to a dark and creepy world that will suck you in and in the end, will drown you in its magnificent structure and detailed writing. This book will definitely get you hooked and will linger in your mind even after days have passed since you read it. And the end will seriously leave you hanging (and got me cursing the publication date of the next book, which is April 2013.) I guarantee you that you will love this book and will seduce you until all you can do is give in to it wiles.

Rating: