I Hunt Killers

by Barry Lyga
Hennepin County Library audiobook 8 discs
read by Charlie Thurston
genre: YA murder mystery

This book creeped me out more than I anticipated. Jasper Dent is the main character. He was raised by notorious serial killer Billy Dent, who was finally caught and sent to prison after 124(?) victims. Billy's "voice" lives in Jasper's head, as do all the grisly things the boy saw his dad do. So how does a seventeen-year-old with that kind of heritage have a normal life? He doesn't.

Early in the story, I tried to guess the identity of the new killer on the loose in Lobo's Nod(?). I thought The Impressionist was the new deputy, Erickson, or perhaps the odd doctor IDing Billy Dent's MO on television, or the creepy reporter (I almost wanted it to be him), or perhaps Fulton . . . see spoiler alert at the end of this post if you want.

Note - "constant self-recrimination gets old" / As Jasper kept questioning his own motives and potential to do evil as his father did, I got irritated. I was glad when Connie blew up at him. "Stop the pity party!" Amen, sister.

Grandma's evil words were so hard to hear, too. She was a nasty piece of work. I wish Melissa had been able to get Jasper into a different situation.

The scene about Rusty and Jasper's crying . . . that was truly horrifying. I can't believe a boy could grow up into someone as nice and normal as Jasper with that sociopath raising him. The part where Billy is talking about being precise vs accurate was downright eerie. "Dear old dad" was effective in his role!

The narrator did a fantastic job with the voices, making each person distinctive. G William was a good guy. Howie and the tattoos . . . great details, wonderful writing. (Even the self-recriminations that bugged me so much - "Her death was all my fault . . . " that added tension when Jaz was with the dying Ginny (?) Davis. I actually thought he might strangle her to bring an end to her suffering.

I probably won't read book two or three, but this one is intense and now I know what kind of reader to "talk" it to.


In my notes that I jotted, I put "Fulton? Dad grief. (red herring?) . . . yup. Not actually Fulton, whose daughter had been one of Billy's victims, but a serial killer pretending to be Fulton.