Serial Killers Books

....but nothing special. The plot read like a textbook on serial sexual sadists, and I figured out pretty quickly who the killer was, and that always takes my enjoyment down a notch or two. Also, the editing was horrible! Spelling AND content mistakes...on one page, Kate is taking off her sweater and on the next page, John is ripping the same sweater off her!

This was a pretty good book. I liked the plot, characters & the ending
was a page turner. Although, it reminded me of Patricia Cornwell's Kay
Scarpetta series (however, much better than Cornwell's recent novels).

To me there was a lt. to much "fluff" - the relationship between Kate & John just made the story drag. I got tired of reading over & over about their failed relationship. I got it the 1st time & you knew they were going to get back together so I didn't see the pt. for the repetition/self pity.

My main complaint was that there was no mention of Thor (Kate's Norwegian Forest cat) fate. Okay so I am a big cat lover, but he basically saved her life & was always mentioned whenever Kate was at her house. But in the end, after everything that happens to her house, no word of Thor. I would have liked one sentence about him - Thor ran out of the woods to complain loudly at the late dinner hour. Just one sentence/something about his fate. Oh well, I'll just assume Thor lived happily ever after - after all he's a forest cat & has 9 lives.

I'd give this bk. 4 stars, but the whole cat thing....

Three stars is about all I could muster up for this story. This is my first experience with the author Tami Hoag and unless something fantastic is written and publicized about another one of her works, I am finished reading her books. The basic idea for a murder mystery is there and it is a good one. Women being tortured and burned at the stake, FBI involvement, romance w/a former FBI agent now a victim advocate and a gorgeous, handsome FBI, former love of the ex-FBI agent, turned victim advocate, arriving on the scene (George Clooney and Renee Russo look-alikes at that). The problem with this book is the author. Her heroine, Kate Conlan, is whiny and repetitive, i.e., "I should have stayed with her." That phrase was used continuously and became extremely annoying. I wanted to choke Kate myself every time she said it. Also, I felt the writing, in some areas, was very confusing. There is a part toward the end of the story when there is a shoot out and it is definitely not clear as to who succumbs given the context of the writing. I had to flip back a few times and reread the sentence to figure out who Hoag was talking about because the person I thought died was actually talking in the next chapter - right then I knew I read something very wrong! I figured out the killer a few chapters before he/she was revealed and since I rarely figure these things out, I felt that was a weakness in the author's attempt at good mystery-making as well. If 200 pages were cut and the writing massaged, I would say Ashes to Ashes would definitely deserve my four-star vote!

I always like a murder mystery where I don't know who the murderer is! Tami keeps you guessing throughout.

Enough already with the metaphors, similes and idioms. I get it.

In this laborious story, Kate Conlon, a former FBI agent and currently a child advocate is brought in to help a young witness identify a man, the Cremator, whom she saw in a park late at night setting a body on fire. As this very long story goes, it gets quite twisted as to who are the good guys, who are the bad guys and which characters are brought in to confuse the story even more.

When the third victim of the Cremator is identified as the damaged daughter of a billionaire the big guns are called in, in the form of Special Agent John Quinn, who just happened to be the ex-lover of Kate. One more twist. And of course, now Kate's life is in danger.

The only thing that kept me reading was that I couldn't figure out who the Cremator was; too many major and minor characters were thrown at you in hopes that something would stick and lead you down the wrong path and yet again you would be bouncing back and forth with possibilities.

I don't think I will be reading this author again since about one-third of this book could have been removed and the story would have flowed much better and as an experienced author, for me, she just couldn't keep up the momentum.

This was a wonderful mind bending story full of emotional highs & lows. Patterson has created another fascinating and thrilling book and I would recommend it to everyone. I wish they would make more of the Alex Cross series into movies. S.L. Chessor author of Poodlums, Boogeymen and Booglers and My Tongue Fell Out. Poodlums, Boogeymen and Booglers: A Poetry CollectionMy Tongue Fell Out

James Patterson's "Mary, Mary" is a return to the interesting Alex Cross books that Patterson wrote early on in the series. This novel, the 11th in the series, hits the ground running practically from page one. Cross, while on vacation in California with his family, is thrust into a serial murder mystery that consumes him professionally while threatening to uproot the harmony in his family.

In "Mary, Mary", Patterson spins a complex plot that dares the reader to try and figure out the ending. One or two killers? Male or female killer(s)? These are just a couple of the questions that the reader must try to answer while speed reading through this novel. The usual short chapters and rapid-fire delivery of thrills and chills will keep the reader glued to this book.

If you are a fan of the early Cross novels, then you won't be disappointed with "Mary, Mary". Here's hoping that the 12th entry simply entitled, "Cross" will be just as strong.

James Patterson hits it right on the mark once again with his newest Alex cross novel, "Mary,Mary". The plot twists and turns to a thrilling climax and the characters continue to develop.

Once again we find Dr. Alex Cross torn between balancing his life with his family, significant other, & his work. Never boring, Mr. Patterson starts off & gets us to the mystery very quickly. We believe the serial killer to be a woman until the Storyteller appears. One goes through the novel mystified as to not only the identity of the killer, but the gender, as well. It all comes together very well at the end where all the loose ends are tied very neatly. The identity of the true killer is quite a surprise & unsuspecting. The end of the story gives the belief that Dr. Cross is headed for retirement to spend his time with his family. I doubt & hope that's not the case. As usual, you can't miss with an Alex Cross novel

I haven't read too many James Patterson mystery novels, but I love his love story-type novels. This was very entertaining and I stayed awake way too long each night because I wanted to know "what happens next." It's not the deepest novel I've ever read and doesn't require all that much thinking, but that's what I'm looking for at this stage in my life. I think most people will enjoy this.

this is well written, and worth your time to read.
gives you insight about the reasons why men do
such wicked things.
It's good to know the FBI has figured these guys out, and
are able to track them down more easily.

Mark Olshaker has written a very readable, entertaining, and educational book on the life and career of Special Agent John Douglas of the FBI. Douglas was one of the leading experts on criminal personality profiling and a pioneer of modern criminal investigative analysis. The 'Prologue' tells of the physical breakdown Douglas endured from overwork. This is a shocking and misleading introduction! The nature of violent crime has changed since 1960. The murder rate has gone up and the solution rate had gone down (p.30). Crimes between strangers lack an obvious motive. This need created the behavioral approach to criminal profiling. The Investigative Support Unit assists local police in focusing their investigations. Few towns or counties ever have a serial killer or the experience to learn the techniques for solving rare crimes (p.31). [G. K. Chesterton's "Father Brown" used to solve crimes by getting inside the head of the murderer, a feat that seems illogical compared to "Sherlock Holmes" and other detectives.]

[As I remember it, the "Mad Bomber" was caught when police work matched the handwriting in the letters (p.33) to the employee records. Metesky contracted TB and was then fired for being out sick.] The early chapters tell of Douglas' life, education, military service, and how he joined the FBI. These are colorful stories. Douglas was most successful in clearing bank robberies when he developed a "signature" to link several crimes together (p.86). His background in psychology led him to behavioral science (Chapter 5). After Douglas joined the Behavioral Science group he learned that the academic expert's opinions had limited applicability to law enforcement. [Academics don't get the details known to the police, law officers see a limited area. Only national police can see the whole picture.]

Douglas knew the importance of actual experience (pp.104-105). Chapter 6 tells about a strange murderer who was released against the advice of state psychiatrists (p.107). Chapter 7 tells about other serial murderers. Good psychics can pick up on small, nonverbal clues; keep them away from detectives who know the details (p.151). The following chapters describe the cases that he worked on. Is there a classic profile to a serial killer (p.178)? Can an interrogator educe a confession from a suspect (p.186)? Chapter 11 tells about the Atlanta child murders and the conviction. Chapter 15 tells about the solution to the murder of a two-year old boy. Wrapping the body in a blanket was a clue (p.283).

Serial killers are not legally insane, but not normal either (p.338). Their mental disorders derive from their sexual interests and their character. Insanity means not knowing the difference between right and wrong (p.339). Can a brain tumor cause a murderous rage (p.341)? Violent, sexually based serial killers can not be rehabilitated [except by a death sentence]. If they are released on parole they will return to past behavior (p.343). Don't confuse a psychopath with a psychotic (p.345). Killers are created by a bad background (p.357). [Like Ted Bundy?] That seems like an incurable problem given our society. Crime can be lowered by families at the grassroots level (p.374). [Does it takes a village?] The changes in family life since 1960 has effects. [No mention of the National Highway System since the 1950s and the ease of travel for everyone, including serial killers.]

What can I say other than John Douglas never fails to deliver? This book is a great read, and I loved it!

this book is very similiar to many of his books. This book discusses much of his life. His second book is much better if you are interested in true profiling.

Given Douglas' background there was little question that he would have a story or two to tell. In Mindhunter you get a glimpse of what it takes to conduct good profiling and what an instrumental tool the profile can be. The book covers some of America's most feared monsters and what role the Behavioral Science Unit played in their capture.

James A. Forrest - Eye of the Storm

there are people saying this book is a "waste" but you can only say that if you don't have a fascination for serial killers. Or if you don't mind reading about homosexuality, necrophilia, or cannibalism in every chapter. this book is not for the weak and that is almost an understatement. i love anything to do with gore, suspense, horror or drama. this book took everything i have ever read to another level. i found myself having to put the book down a moment and take a little breather, and my stomach was churning the entire time. even with that said...this book is amaaazing! the writing was superb, her style is different than any other and she cuts deep, deep down. when i read exquisite corpse i felt i was with the characters and i was experiencing everything they were. i highly recommend this book, but like i said before, i warn those you cannot handle explicit graphic details of the life of a serial killer. this book does not shy from telling us every moment, every taste, touch, smell and more. if you can handle horrible situations and perverse acts upon humans, then this is your book and you will be changed by reading it. Enjoy!

Brite writes beautifully. That said, the subject of this book is so ugly and depraved and its characters so loathsome, that I honestly can't see any reason for anyone to read this.

I honestly have no issue with authors sexualizing violence to a degree, as this is part of the human experience for some people. But this book is just a bridge too far. If you are interested in grotesque violence as pornography, then this is your book. But my opinion is that the world can be an ugly and depraved enough place without literature that lovingly festishizes these elements. It's one thing to describe and try to understand the horrors of the human experience, but it's a whole other thing to hold them up and pay homage to them.

This was the first Poppy Z. Brite novel to get my hands and I am glad I did. If you don't mind the graphic-ness of this kind of story, it will literally pull you and in make you fall in love. Twisted but beautiful, it really had me asking for more. Liking Poppy's style so much, I couldn't get enough of this book. You have to have a taste for this stuff, but if you do, it'll satisfy. I think I'll read it again!

I picked up this book in a library because I had heard a bit about this Brite woman and wanted to see what she was like. That is why I began to read it, but I really don't know why I kept going. Was I hoping it would get better?

Plato wrote that literature should only deal with good and uplifting characters. Obviously, he was wrong: we cannot fashion a realistic or even interesting depiction of mankind by concentrating only on the good. Writers need to portray evil so that good may be understood more clearly by contrast.

But likewise, we cannot produce a literature worthy of the name by concentrating solely on evil. This is what Ms Brite has done. Here is a world utterly devoid of goodness, beauty, or any positive value. She seems to have gone out of her way to pile on detail after sickening detail to make the characters and events as loathsome as possible.

Some reviewers have referred to this book as "erotic" - a word that derives from the Greek god of love. But no love is possible in this world of self-obsessed characters, not even a meaningful self-love.

Despite a few well-written passages, this is a work which portrays the worst of mankind, and then tries to make it even worse. This book has no redeeming features. What a tragic waste of talent.

Pity young Tran Vinh. After finding the love of his life, he quickly loses him to madness and jealousy. Then, his father discovers that he is gay, and throws him out of the house. Confused and homeless, Tran can hardly believe that things could get worse. They can, and do, as he crosses paths with Andrew Compton and Jay Byrne, demented lovers who specialize in killing, dismembering, and cannibalizing young gay men. They have Tran in their crosshairs, believing he may represent the zenith of their murderous careers.

Exquisite Corpse is an extraordinary, complex book. Brite carefully develops three storylines which eventually converge on Tran. In the book's opening pages, we are treated to the first person narrative of necrophile Andrew Compton, who describes his murderous activities in gruesome detail. We follow him to America, where he meets Jay Byrne, who dominates the second storyline. Jay has been killing young boys for years, luring them to his apartment under the pretext of photographing them. Jay has fantasized about killing Tran, but hesitates because Tran is a local boy. After meeting Andrew, Jay starts to lose his inhibitions and starts thinking about making his fantasies come true. The last storyline focuses on Luke Ransom, Tran's ex-lover. Luke, the star attraction of WHIV (a pirate radio station), broadcasts diatribes against the straight world under the nom de plume "Lush Rimbaud". Consumed by the loss of his lover, Luke vows he will be with him again.

Comparisons between Exquisite Corpse and Bret Easton Ellis' American Psycho are inevitable, but inappropriate. Where Ellis' book descended into self parody, Brite's comes across as an unsettling, true to life examination of human depravity. Although Exquisite Corpse is not for everyone--the violence (ultraviolence?) is incredibly graphic, and the homosexual elements will undoubtedly turn some readers off--you might want to read it just to vicariously experience the energy and talent Brite brings to the table. She's in control of this grisly narrative every step of the way, providing readers with a disturbing glimpse into the minds of two serial killers. With admirable economy, she exposes an ugly aspect of the human condition, while providing some pretty radical social commentary.

I just read this book for the first time. This was a series that I just never got around to reading, so I figured I'd start with the first book.

This certainly has an early 90s feel to it, which is not a bad thing. The descriptions of the computer database system in the Medical Examiner's office is pretty fun to read, if you remember the time when DOS was the main operating system.

I'm aware that many of these characters will develop throughout the series, and that's fine with me--they're interesting characters, especially Sergent Marino.

This is a suspense novel, not a mystery. I don't want to give too much away here, but if you think you'll be able to "solve" this one half way through it, you won't, at least not from any clues in the novel.

I paid full price for this book which was the most expensive copy listed on Amazon.
No where did it mention that it was coming without a dust jacket. Most of the others specifically mentioned that they did not have a dust jacket.
I feel very strongly that I was misled into paying more money for something than what I had too considering it was not what I wanted.

I love most of the Kaye Scarpetta series. This is definately one of the better novels!!

I enjoyed this book, even though it does show its age a bit with its simplistic descriptions of DNA testing and computer hacking. Another thing, I figured out who the killer was early in the book, something that is very unusual for me. Still, the book has some nice characterizations and the plot moves quickly. Scarpetta is a little whiney, especially for a woman in such an important position, so that didn't track as well. Overall, well worth reading.

After reading some of the other Scarpetta books, I thought it would be fun to see how the series started. I was a bit disappointed as I muddled through the first half of the book, but the emergence of clues and action in the second half was pretty good. The book starts with the murdered body of victim #4 in a sick series of raped/murdered women in Richmond. Much of the first half of the book is fruitless talk among Dr Scarpetta and various police officials on the similarities of the four cases. We get a relationship with a boyfriend who I know doesn't appear in later books. Also, we start to see something sinister happening inside Scarpetta's office, as an inside leak of inappropriate information seems to be a problem.

The book doesn't really get going, though, until victim #5 turns up. This victim has a different connection to the principle characters than the other four (who appeared to be strangers). Scarpetta gradually uncovers clues with microscopic physical details of evidence. Who can she trust? I found it funny she started to doubt she could trust Marino.

The ending is similar to other Scarpetta books. Lets just say it gets personal.

This is the first murder mystery in a long time, where I didn't have everything figured out by the halfway point. I'd never read a Sandford novel before, and am very glad to have been introduced to this author.

The characters, as gritty as they are, were well developed and interesting. I'm not familiar with the Twin Cities, but the Minnesota setting is a nice break from the LA/NYC settings that so many mystery novels take place in. It had a good pace and read well.

I'm looking forward to finding more books in this series.

Man o man, this is some incredible PREY book. Its plotting, suspense, and surprises are at the very top. it also has the filthiest vile situations and scenes Sandford has ever put on the page. It also has one of the smartest, wiliest killers ever--as long as it remains hidden. The victims are about as broken as imaginable. We can only hope that Sandford did not make up all the terrible details, or he may need to be institutionalized. Then again, I fervently hope no one really had to suffer such terror and pain. From unspeakable acts the story moves into an intricately constructed thriller, from raunchiness to diabolical cleverness and criminal madness, from doubtful clues to shadow killers. A brutal ending is a necessary finish to a revolting series of crimes. Only then do you realize how banal was this evil. Not a story for children, for the weak of stomach or heart, for readers who demand socially-redeemed fiction, nor those whose reading oozes easily into their nightmares.

John Sandford is a highly acclaimed author for good reason. His descriptions are unique. Take, for example, the following quote from p.3. "Her brown eyes struck Charlie as cold raindrops, then flicked away when he turned at the impact; he was left with the impression of soft eyebrows, fine skin, and raspberry lipstick." Uniquely put. Now remove the passage and re-read the page. Nothing is lost. It's the kind of passage which critics and English professors love, but the overall impression I get is that Sandford is just trying too hard...over and over. On the positive side, the story jumps right out of the chute and rarely lets up. The twists are all there, although when the ultimate villian is revealed, I feel somewhat let down. Where were the clues which could have led me to him had I paid more attention? Why should I care about this character at all prior to his being revealed as the mastermind? It's as if a background character was chosen at random for this role. But still, overall, a good read...just not as good as it could have been. Graphic violence means that this isn't one for the squeamish.

Mr. Sanford has provided us with an excellent thriller from beginning to end. One need not muddle through a slow, descriptive beginning. The novel hits the ground running in it's story content & description very quickly. When the reader feels the suspect id clearly identified, the author takes the reader in another direction toward another possible suspect. All avenues are neatly tied together in the end, even Lucas Davenport's top 100 rock songs list. Don't miss this one

*** This book should be avoided by anyone without a high tolerance for vulgar language, perverse sexual references, twisted psychology, and explicit violence. ***

I am a fan of mystery stories, but I had not read any of the books in the Lucas Davenport / Prey series. (The main character is Lucas and the titles in this series contain the word Prey.) Despite some things I found distasteful in this book (hence the warning at the beginning of this review), this is one of the best mystery stories I have read in a long time. The narrative is fast-paced and hard to put down. The characters are vivid and engaging. I liked best that I was surprised more than once by plot twists, which hasn't happened to me in a long time! These surprises were natural; they felt right, not as though the author had cheated or played a trick on the reader.

I am not easily impressed, having recently begun two other mysteries and given them away unfinished because they were too easy to put down and forget about. I will be reading more in this series and by this author. If you enjoy James Patterson's and Michael Connelly's mystery novels, you may appreciate John Sandford's as well.

I really enjoyed this book. It is a page turner if there has ever been on. One positive complaint, too many law enforcement acronyms. Other than that I can only say good things about the book. It's really good!

It's a great book, the story is written very well and you can't stop reading once you start. A must read!!!

I thought the first half of this book was great, especially the part set in New York. Hoffman did an excellent job with the emotions associated with being raped and how it turns your life upside down. A little over half way through the book, however, I found that it degenerated. It was still better than many suspense thrillers, but I had hoped for a better ending. Having said that, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes graphic thrillers.

One more thing, I get bored by the constant turf wars between police departments and the FBI that seem to make their way into every thriller. It's such a tired story, almost as tired as the relentless media and the obnoxious reporter. To me, it's just wasted space - the testosterone filled men who fight for jurisdiction - and I usually skip those parts of the story, because they are so predictable.

I'm not going to write a huge synopsis of the book and spoil it for those of you who haven't read it yet. I say buy it. It's this gal's first book and it's very good. I'm very funny about what I read, but this book is very good....it has a great story and is very descriptive without being completely gory. I think she did a great job on it. I'll read whatever she writes next.

It is hard to imagine a serial killer more sadistic than Hannibal Lector. Florida State Prosecutor C.J. Townsend, however, is not only brutally raped by such a monster, but is assigned some ten years later to prosecute him for the highly publicized "valentine" murders (named such due to the removal of the victims' hearts). Embroiled in not only a viscous crime drama, but one of moral compromises, C.J. struggles to maintain her legal ethics while investigating the crimes of her former assailant.

First time author Jilliane Hoffman is a former Attorney and Legal Advisor for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Her attention to forensic and investigative detail makes her story a compelling one. However, her attention to details of sexual violence makes this compulsion much like gawking at the scene of a car wreck - leaving the listener intrigued, and at the same time slightly sick in the stomach. Hoffman describes in excruciating detail not one, but many rapes - so violent that they leave their victims sterile due to uterus damage caused by penetration with knives and other sharp objects. That being said, the reader becomes easily invested in the psychological journey of protagonist C.J. Townsend who struggles to overcome her symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, especially when finding herself face to face with her former assailant. The effect of the rape on C.J.'s personal and professional relationships is clinically accurate, and much of the novel's appeal stems from the listener's true desire to see C.J. heal psychologically. The listener is equally intrigued by whether or not C.J. will succeed in putting this serial rapist and killer behind bars when legal technicalities and botched police procedures threaten her case. When discrepancies begin to arise in the case, C.J. races against the clock to recover the missing victims' hearts, and the further evidence she needs, before the trial date.

Being familiar with reader Martha Plimpton's screen work (Parenthood, I Shot Andy Warhol, Mosquito Coast) I was a bit worried about her nasal voice with a heavy valley-girl lilt. However, she does an excellent and balanced job, switching naturally between genders and accents in a way that distinguishes the characters from one another without distracting the listener with over delineations between voices.

The plot is enhanced by the burgeoning romance between Townsend and the police detective assigned to the case. Their relationship develops naturally and as a believable sideline to the crime drama, and isn't forced, or tagged on as in so many popular suspense novels [read as every Girsham or Crighton novel]. If you enjoy suspenseful court-room novels, and spine tingling detective stories, check out Retribution - a skillful combination of both genres featuring an appealing and believable female heroine.

I really enjoyed this book for one reason: looking at things that would otherwise be mundane and extrapolating philosophy from them until they become relevant. It's something me and my friends do quite often such as suggesting how different Pokémon reflect people we know in real life. Who knew that talks about MTV's Real World, Billy Joel, Saved by the Bell, or the Sims could help us figure out ourselves. I admit for someone in my age group(college kid here) that I could relate to all of the things he talked about fairly well.

Though this book comes across as a cynical, comedic work (and trust me, it does), it has an odd way of being very profound with its assessments on life. I really liked the social commentary that talks about the world that will live in today, with people being shown on the mass media as flat and static characters to be more easily understood.

The best parts of the book were actually when he wasn't talking about the topic on hand. Sometimes Klosterman would get off topic and start talking about esoteric revelations of how people come to label themselves; I really felt was amazing.

The essays might not flow from one chapter to the next, but every one will have you thinking and laughing.

Readers who take Chuck Klosterman at his word will have a hard time with this one. Those who can appreciate some hardcore tongue-in-cheekiness, however, will be rewarded with a highly entertaining collection of essays on a myriad of subjects. Does Klosterman overreach? Of course. Is it savvy, entertaining, and thought-provoking? Definitely.

Chuck Klosterman immediately became my favorite author after reading this book. He has a very good grasp of pop culture and deconstructs them in a hillarious way. You can read sections at a time before going to bed. But in my case, the chapters ended up being too good. It kept me up reading late into the night. Also, the stuff he wrote are good fodder for interesting discussions with friends. I especially liked the section on "questions I have to ask to know if I can fall in love with this person".

This is simply not a book. I went in thinking some kind of story would develop and that some kind of underlying theme would connect everything he wrote about. The first chapter on love even appealed to me. I liked it! Hell that's why I bought the book I thought it was rather witty and insightfull. Then the Sims review came.... Then Real World... Then Billy Joel.... each 'chapter essay' getting worse than the one before. I continued on and only found out that there was a reason this book isnt filed in the Literature section. Its filed under Rock since this cannot be considered an actual literary work.

As for Chuck,I find this man to be pathetic and not cool at all. All he does is whine and complain about things and then throw in insanely idiodic stories about how homeless people are beneath him and how they should remember if they already asked him for money, because clearly their lives aren't so hard.

This guy is just a waste of space. I read the entire book looking for what I thought was humor in his first chapter. His first rambling statements rang true to me, but the rest of the book is about pointless references to pop culture that most people dont even take a second glance over.

My advice. Read the first chapter and throw the book away. The guy thinks hes above everyone when all you ahve to do is look at his picture, the guy is a dork or writes for a magazine for dorks. Don't encourage him anymore.

Were you aware that some people are so insecure and/or vacant that they adopt one-dimensional personalities and behavioral paradigms from popular works of fiction? Did you know that some relationships don't work out because the participants have an unrealistic notion of love due to watching too many movies? If so, you probably don't need to read this book. Even if you didn't know these things, you probably still shouldn't, because you might be naive enough to believe Klosterman's implication that these are somehow distinctly late-twentieth-century, television-era phenomena. Did you know that your musical tastes don't necessarily have to be governed by how "cool" the artist is, by how the genre and style would tend to affect your "image?" I would hope so, at least if you're over the age of 22. I read the blurbs about this book and thought to myself, "Maybe this is some undiscovered genius of a cultural critic who will really shed light on the modern experience." Nope. Klosterman talks about behaviors that people have been exhibiting for millenia and pretends he's making new observations because he illustrates his points using semi-new pop culture products. This is hack work. If you're the kind of person who would be interested in reading a book on culture, you can probably skip this because you're probably already at least as observant as Klosterman. This truly is "low-culture," but not in the way the author thinks.

Creepy, dark, psycho characters in a small town. Loved it! Couldn't put it down. About a woman who returns to her hometown to investigate a child's murder. The ending does not dissapoint.

I did not expect this book to intrigue me as well as it did. The story was disturbing, but kept me interested until the end.

A newspaper reporter at a small Chicago newspaper is sent on assignment to her old hometown in Wind Gap, Mo. to find out why young girls keep showing up dead.

This was a really quick read. I found it very enthralling, especially the parts where the main character described why she cut herself when she was younger. I never understood cutting, so reading a character trying to describe why they say it and what they are thinking when they do it, helps to understand why young girls do it. That isn't the main part of the story, but just a subplot that really helps the reader get inside the main character's head while she is trying to work on the murder story for her paper in a town she did not want to return. She ran away to get away from her mother, but she was back living with her mother and her young half-sister that her mother adores, while also dealing with the haunting reminders of her dead younger sister that her mother obviously loved more than her.

There is a lot going on in the story, but it is very well written. My only complaint was I saw who was committing the murders about halfway through the book. I didn't guess the full reason, but it wasn't surprising when I found out the full reason behind it. Gillian Flynn is a writer for Entertainment Weekly. She reviews television. I wonder if watching and reviewing crime shows gave her some ideas for the book, but from watching my fair share of them myself, I think that was what helped me guess the killer.

That sums up the whole book. The main character, the mom, the step-dad, the sister, the whole town. It's completely cynical, not one redeeming aspect to it.

I gave it 2 stars because I finished it.

Gillian Flynn is the chief TV critic at Entertainment Weekly, so it's no surprise that she's come up with a novel that reads like a TV MOV (Movie of the Week) starring lots of fading actors from now defunct weekly programming. It's not a mystery (you can figure it out it in two minutes). It's not a southern gothic horror thing although Flynn might have been trying to go there. It's not even a good Soapie. Ms. Flynn might have been trying to draw our attention to the very real concerns of female school bullying, child abuse, or cruelty to animals but under her pen it all just adds up to a bunch of superficial shlock tossed up in the air to provide cheap, weepy thrills and a sense of 'poor-me-as-victim' from a comfy distance for her readers and, hopefully I'm sure, make her enough dough to get her out of that Entertainment Weekly grind.

Not a bad title.

This book continued the great quality that Lindsay started with in the first book and is of equal, if not greater, quality. It's also just as gripping as the first book. I read it 2 days, and it only took that long because I made myself take breaks so that it wouldn't be over too soon!

The only complaint I have is the same as the first one. There is a great, suspenseful buildup to the climax of the story, but that climax is quite short with very little story following it. I just wish it were longer.

A gripping read that tantalises and repulses at the same time. Dexter is delicious!

I had to buy the books after watching the first season on CBS. I loved teh show so much I checked out the first book at the library and instantly feel in love. The books (as always) are much better than the series. The author has quite a gift and this series is one page turner after another.

It's book two review and I'm still a Dexter fanatic. I'm still thinking I should have read all the books before watching the show because Michael C. Hall's portrayal of Dexter is better than Book Dexter, in my humble opinion.

I still love the idea of a serial killer who not only kills bad guys, but also adores his "work." The only thing that started to lose me in the book was the unlikely idea of every new serial killer knowing Dexter and meeting with him in some way. You have to kind of throw rational thinking to the wind and say, "Okay, every big serial killer in the planet could very well be in Miami and have an affinity or hatred or a connection with/for Dexter. Why not?"

The show doesn't do this and is much better, much more cohesive, much more believable.

But, yeah, if you're like me and need to read a book because you watch the show or the movie, go ahead, dig deeply into Dexter, but you may be disappointed. Deeply disappointed.

The read is fine, but the thrill is gone. Showtime nails it though.

When Dexter ends up at a crime scene with the victim barely alive and mutilated in such a way as to garner his admiration for his fellow monsters skill he doesn't realise that Deb is about to pressure him to find the killer with his own unique insights.

This second Dexter outing is an enjoyable read. It's the wit of Dexter's comments on ordinary human existence rather than his bloody hobby that make these books such an entertaining read, though I have to say ending the story continues to be one of the authors weak points with plots.

Having seen second season of the TV series its interesting to see what plot points were lifted from the novel. Though I have to say despite enjoying this book, I'm not in a hurry to read book 3 based on the reviews. I'd give this outing 3.5 stars if I could - the book is a quick and sometimes funny read, though it really doesn't contain much depth outside Dexter himself.