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Monday, September 8, 2014
By Barry Lyga
Published by Little, Brown
Release Date: September 9, 2014
Disclaimer: Copy received for review consideration via NetGalley
My Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2
Jazz Dent has been shot and left to
die in New York City. His girlfriend Connie is in the clutches of Jazz's serial
killer father, Billy. And his best friend Howie is bleeding to death on the
floor of Jazz's own home in tiny Lobo's Nod. Somehow, these three must rise
above the horrors their lives have become and find a way to come together in
pursuit of Billy. But then Jazz crosses a line he's never crossed before, and
soon the entire country is wondering: "Like father, like son?" Who is
the true monster?
The chase is on, and beyond Billy there lurks something much, much worse. Prepare to meet...the Crow King.
Review: After loving the first two books in this trilogy and enduring the intense cliffhanger that is the ending of the second book, I had high expectations for this conclusion. Luckily this book delivered. It's the engaging storytelling I have come to expect from Barry Lyga and a good end to the trilogy. The cliffhanger is resolved fairly quickly, through some very tense moments where the survival of my favorite character was definitely not guaranteed. The action continues to ratchet up as Jazz begins his single-minded pursuit of serial-killing Billy, hoping to rescue his last remaining family.
Connie and Howie, Jazz's girlfriend and best friend, both have their parts to play and their relationships with Jazz are more important than ever. The reader also gets the POV of NY police detective Louis Hughes, the man whose murder investigation is now in shambles due to Jazz's interference, and who finds Jazz in the middle of a scene of carnage. Needless to say, his views on Jazz are not complimentary, providing an insight into how anyone not in Jazz's personal circle would assume about the delinquent son of a serial killer. Jazz himself still struggles with the belief that his traumatic upbringing has made him a monster, and he makes some questionable choices in his desperation to catch Billy, coming ever closer to crossing a line he cannot return from.
All mysteries regarding Jazz's past are solved, the killer mastermind in the shadows is revealed, and Jazz's choice as to his identity is made. It's a satisfying conclusion that is all I could have asked for, and an unique take on the old nature vs. nurture debate. Is there any hope for an individual to break a cycle of abuse when both their DNA and their upbringing are against them? This story provides an answer. Be warned, as with the preceding books the subject matter makes for some dark and disturbing scenes, though usually implied rather than described in graphic detail.
I'd recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys psychological thrillers, television shows such as Criminal Minds or Law and Order, or Jennifer Lynn Barnes's YA novel The Naturals. Now that all three in the trilogy are released, I'd suggest binge reading them to avoid the agony of the cliffhanger. I'm not kidding, the ending of The Game is evil.
From the archive I Hunt Killers Review
A RIPIX Read
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Monday, September 8, 2014
Review: Blood of My Blood (Jasper Dent #3) by Barry Lyga
By Barry Lyga
Published by Little, Brown
Release Date: September 9, 2014
Disclaimer: Copy received for review consideration via NetGalley
My Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2
Jazz Dent has been shot and left to
die in New York City. His girlfriend Connie is in the clutches of Jazz's serial
killer father, Billy. And his best friend Howie is bleeding to death on the
floor of Jazz's own home in tiny Lobo's Nod. Somehow, these three must rise
above the horrors their lives have become and find a way to come together in
pursuit of Billy. But then Jazz crosses a line he's never crossed before, and
soon the entire country is wondering: "Like father, like son?" Who is
the true monster?
The chase is on, and beyond Billy there lurks something much, much worse. Prepare to meet...the Crow King.
Review: After loving the first two books in this trilogy and enduring the intense cliffhanger that is the ending of the second book, I had high expectations for this conclusion. Luckily this book delivered. It's the engaging storytelling I have come to expect from Barry Lyga and a good end to the trilogy. The cliffhanger is resolved fairly quickly, through some very tense moments where the survival of my favorite character was definitely not guaranteed. The action continues to ratchet up as Jazz begins his single-minded pursuit of serial-killing Billy, hoping to rescue his last remaining family.
Connie and Howie, Jazz's girlfriend and best friend, both have their parts to play and their relationships with Jazz are more important than ever. The reader also gets the POV of NY police detective Louis Hughes, the man whose murder investigation is now in shambles due to Jazz's interference, and who finds Jazz in the middle of a scene of carnage. Needless to say, his views on Jazz are not complimentary, providing an insight into how anyone not in Jazz's personal circle would assume about the delinquent son of a serial killer. Jazz himself still struggles with the belief that his traumatic upbringing has made him a monster, and he makes some questionable choices in his desperation to catch Billy, coming ever closer to crossing a line he cannot return from.
All mysteries regarding Jazz's past are solved, the killer mastermind in the shadows is revealed, and Jazz's choice as to his identity is made. It's a satisfying conclusion that is all I could have asked for, and an unique take on the old nature vs. nurture debate. Is there any hope for an individual to break a cycle of abuse when both their DNA and their upbringing are against them? This story provides an answer. Be warned, as with the preceding books the subject matter makes for some dark and disturbing scenes, though usually implied rather than described in graphic detail.
I'd recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys psychological thrillers, television shows such as Criminal Minds or Law and Order, or Jennifer Lynn Barnes's YA novel The Naturals. Now that all three in the trilogy are released, I'd suggest binge reading them to avoid the agony of the cliffhanger. I'm not kidding, the ending of The Game is evil.
From the archive I Hunt Killers Review
A RIPIX Read
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