Review: Confronting, compelling
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 4, 2014
Wow. Killing Sam Knight delivers on the promise of its subtitle: “dark, erotic thriller”. To be honest, this kind of horror is not my thing and I found a number of scenes in the book, confrontingly sexual, violent, or both. That said, it is to John Cassian's credit and skill as a writer that I kept reading until the end. Cassian's portrayal of his two profoundly flawed and disturbing protagonists is compelling. As in American Psycho, we are given confronting depictions of aberrant psychology, which, in Cassian's hands, is interestingly both horrifying and fascinating.Even the most lurid gore and perverse sexual behaviour can pall with repetition. But here, again, Cassian deals with his subject matter with flair and imagination – perhaps too much for readers like myself. The novel moves at a cracking pace. It is one of the few books I've read recently where I have not felt the need to skip a few paragraphs until the action picks up again. This is a non-stop thriller. The plot has some amazing twists and turns and some mind-blowing moments. For instance, I was particularly struck by the introduction to the plot of the serial-killer fan websites and the content therein.Four stars for Killing Sam Knight because it was, at times, a bit too graphic for me. This is of course a matter of personal taste, other readers may be more comfortable (!?) with this. I look forward to the next in the series.