I Am Not a Serial Killer by Dan Wells

I Am Not a Serial Killer (John Cleaver #1)
by Dan Wells

YA Horror
272 pages, softcover
Target Reader: 14+

TOR
978-0-7653-2782-6
Release Date: March 30, 2010



From the publisher:

John Wayne Cleaver is dangerous, and he knows it. He’s spent his life doing his best not to live up to his potential.

He’s obsessed with serial killers, but really doesn’t want to become one. So for his own sake, and the safety of those around him, he lives by rigid rules he’s written for himself, practicing normal life as if it were a private religion that could save him from damnation.

Dead bodies are normal to John. He likes them, actually. They don’t demand or expect the empathy he’s unable to offer. Perhaps that’s what gives him the objectivity to recognize that there’s something different about the body the police have just found behind the Wash-n-Dry Laundromat—and to appreciate what that difference means.

Now, for the first time, John has to confront a danger outside himself, a threat he can’t control, a menace to everything and everyone he would love, if only he could.

2009 Whitney Award Winner: Best Novel by a New Author

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This book was released in the UK by Headline Publishing Group (UK imprint of Hachette) before it came to the U.S. I have the UK version because I picked it up at a writers conference that Dan Wells attended.

Unlikely hero, John Wayne Cleaver (what a name!) IS a sociopath, by classic psychological definitions. However, unlike most sociopaths, but like most teens, he works very, very hard to overcome his darker side and his negative impulses. John realizes he has choices and that it's not his impulses or thoughts, but his behaviors define him as a person. I think this is an important message to teens these days; it's subtle, but it's there.

The story line and plot points are fast-paced and keep you turning the pages. It was imaginative and unique. The writing is wonderful. The characters are realistic, their thoughts and actions believable, the family dynamics fascinating.

This book is very well-written and descriptive. There are some gross and violent scenes; there is a very detailed description of an embalming at the beginning of the book. There is also some "light" swearing. That said, I think the book will be very appealing to teens, especially boys, and I think the subtle positive messages more than balance out some of the harsher scenes.

Intense and riveting, I totally recommend this book to teens (14 and older) and anyone who enjoys a light horror story that is scarey enough to get your adrenaline moving, but not so hopeless and dark that it leaves you sleeping with the lights on.

Plot:

Characters:

Ending:

Cover: I like the UK version better.



Content Ratings

Language: Some mild swearing, like what's in the Bible.

Violence: A pretty graphic and gross embalming scene. Graphic descriptions of dead bodies, murder victims. Violent fighting scenes between John and the demon.

Drugs/Alcohol:

Immorality:

Values/Themes: The value messages are good, but not preachy. However, some of the themes—discussion on what it's like to be a sociopath, thoughts and feelings, etc. are a little rough and not for everyone.

Age Appropriate: Depends upon the maturity of the reader. Some readers will find this too disturbing.

Writing Mechanics:


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