Preston L. Allen

What I liked about this book were the sections that told the personal story of our very unreliable protagonist who grows up to be the serial murderer known as The Periwinkle Killer. Was it childhood trauma that made him a killer? familial legacy? Or was it an anomaly within his psychological makeup? Can the murders be justified if the killer targets abusers?

The parts I did not like so much were the murders themselves. They just did not make much sense to me. Wouldn’t a company pizza delivery van with a mattress in the back be somewhat suspicious to other pizza employees? How about the unexplained time away from work (he’s the manager)? And how can he manage to do so much—take care of the kids, keep the house impeccably clean, work, keep his wife happy, kill--in a day?

Besides all this, however, I had a good time reading this book; even with all of the implausibilities. The writing was very good, and the twists and turns were fun.

I would like to thank Akashic Books and LibraryThing for the opportunity to read and review this book.… (mais)

This work of fiction follows the motivation of serial killer who is known in Miami as the Periwinkle Killer. Most serial killers have predatory behaviors, and staying true to this characteristic, the author, Preston Allen has created the main character to proudly, and egotistically, refer to himself as “the hunter” throughout the book. This is how we are introduced to him too, but in a third person perspective, and that makes things a bit confusing at times. Who is this “hunter”?

Well, his real name is Poe, and like most serial killers, he has had a troubled childhood, an absent father, broken home life, and was bullied at school. But he does have some redeeming qualities. He is intelligent. He has a long-standing relationship with his best friend, and a girlfriend who he loves. However, these may have been the only things that could have saved him from spiraling into a psychopathic killer. Disaster struck here as well. His friend committed suicide. He was unfaithful and got another girl pregnant. He lost the only two people where there existed mutual love and respect for one another.

And it is here is where the hunter is born. The hunter claims to be a protector of children. Perhaps he is trying to protect the loss of innocence, as that loss of his own innocence may have been Poe’s turning point. The hunter believes that he is a defender of innocent children and women. The hunter kills those who threaten the lives of good families.

As an adult, Poe has a family. A growing one, as his girlfriend, who he calls his wife, although she has not agreed to marry him, is pregnant. His girlfriend is the same one during his teens that became pregnant and caused him to break up with the girl he loved. Their relationship is strained as she works several jobs, and Poe works as an ordinary pizza delivery man, conveniently driving a van at night to make his pizza deliveries. The van is used to capture his murder victims.

As the hunter, Poe has already murdered. And his girlfriend has a lover, who Poe plans to murder. This takes up a lot of the story.

There were some twists and turns at the end, which I won’t ruin.

The book began with Poe as an adult, then flashed back to him as a teen. It was at this point, the writing seemed to change, and it really dragged on. Then it went back to him being an adult, and parts of that I had to force myself to read. There were chapters that just seemed to be repetitive. I found myself really losing interest.

I thought this book would be more interesting and get into the psychological profiling of serial killers, but in the end, it was just telling a story, not answering questions as to whether a serial killer is born or made from the factors that take place in a person’s life. After all, it is a work of fiction.… (mais)

Received as part of the Early Reviewers program. The topic of serial killers, whether fictional or non fictional, is usually always interesting. The Hunter is an interesting serial killer that can be added to the long list of current ones. Despite the main character being interesting, the writing style of this novel does not work. It is confusing. There are dashes that are not needed-some indicate time change, some indicate different POV. The writing style could be influenced by the main character's name sake-Poe-but it just does not work. It is a quick read and interesting enough to finish.… (mais)