Review: Sick Murders in New Orleans After Hurricane Katrina.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 08 14, 2012
If I didn't read the news regularly I would have found it hard to believe the sick minds and warped thinking described in this very disturbing thriller. I won't be relocating, to the book's setting of New Orleans, anytime soon. This isn't one for the tourist board.To be honest, I didn't really take to any of the characters, even the ones I assume we are meant to like. Of course, I had weaved my own detail into the various players. As with most well written fright literature the worst visions come from our own imaginations as much as directly from the crafted words. Findorff manipulates our view, forcing us to pry the dark recesses of our own minds.As I have said I don't much like the owner of the narrative voice, Decland. But to qualify that, I wanted him to win, if only in order to save the lives of the small army of his unfortunate ex-girlfriends. My opinion, almost to the last page, was that Decland was a murderer and his words where merely his attempt to lead us astray. I'm still not actually sure if he was or wasn't. I wonder if Findorff has left only me unsure.Although, as stated, the writing is generally very good I was left with the feeling that a poor editor had ripped out some plot enhancing paragraphs of backstory, leaving some scenes a bit disjointed. This is probably more to do with personal taste than something most readers will agree with; however, I couldn't escape the feeling that good proof reading and less editing would have served the script better. Despite my particular misgivings this is still a really good read, a thriller with real menace.The backdrop of a post Katrina New Orleans is clearly based on a good deal of real knowledge. The struggles of humanity in this then terribly damaged society and the things that the evil can get away with when systems fail come through loud and clear.It seemed clear that the unhinged would win, in this disaster weakened city. There were more than a few unhinged minds, as well as unhinged doors on flood-damaged houses, and the creaking hinges of an overworked justice system. Then digging deeper we have the unhinged sexual relationships of the killer, and the capacity for terrible violence even sometimes from within the ranks of law enforcement.I am not sure I will be up to reading more works of this type for a while. This is very disturbing book, which has all the ingredients for the plot of a very exciting movie.