Genre: YA Thriller/Mystery
Jasper Dent series, Book 1
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Description (taken from Barry Lyga's website):
It was a beautiful day. It was a beautiful field.
Except for the body.
*****
Jazz is a likable teenager. A charmer, some 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, even though Dad has been in jail for years, bodies are piling up in the sleepy town of Lobo’s Nod. Again.
In an effort to prove murder doesn’t run in the family, Jazz joins the police in the hunt for this new serial killer. But Jazz has a secret—could he be more like his father than anyone knows?
I'm still not sure whether or not I like Jazz' personality. At the beginning of the book, he comes off as super cocky. But later, we start to see that he is very much haunted by his past, his father is still manipulating him while behind bars, and he doesn't see how he can be a good person. So, he sort of grows on you.
We're in a world where Jazz is the expert on serial killers because his dad was one of the best (or most gruesome). And with that in mind, it seems he knows better than the cops and will be needed for insights to investigate some recent murders. This bothered me a little, but we wouldn't really have a young adult story without the young adult character, right? And there was one tiny flaw with one of the murder investigations that I noticed (but I'm not going to tell others in the hopes that they don't notice).
This book definitely borders the line of being a little disturbing. It's kind of like someone telling you to not look in a box because the sight isn't pretty. So you have to look in the box to verify that it ain't pretty. That's how this book was to me. Was it good? Yes. Was it gruesome? Yes. Was it different? Yes. Would I let my little tween sister read it? Heck no...
So let me tell you a little secret. I'm still planning to read the second book. This book was different from others because you're going to feel a little evil (or dirty) while reading it. And that maybe, sort of, kind of, maybe not really worked for me.
Challenges: Young Adult Reading Challenge
We're in a world where Jazz is the expert on serial killers because his dad was one of the best (or most gruesome). And with that in mind, it seems he knows better than the cops and will be needed for insights to investigate some recent murders. This bothered me a little, but we wouldn't really have a young adult story without the young adult character, right? And there was one tiny flaw with one of the murder investigations that I noticed (but I'm not going to tell others in the hopes that they don't notice).
This book definitely borders the line of being a little disturbing. It's kind of like someone telling you to not look in a box because the sight isn't pretty. So you have to look in the box to verify that it ain't pretty. That's how this book was to me. Was it good? Yes. Was it gruesome? Yes. Was it different? Yes. Would I let my little tween sister read it? Heck no...
So let me tell you a little secret. I'm still planning to read the second book. This book was different from others because you're going to feel a little evil (or dirty) while reading it. And that maybe, sort of, kind of, maybe not really worked for me.
Challenges: Young Adult Reading Challenge
I'm so excited for this one! I actually really enjoy disturbing reads lol so based off your review I bet I will really like it. I'm a big fan of Dexter and it has some way disturbing scenes.
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