GAME

Son of a notorious serial killer, Jazz Dent goes to New York City to continue his hunt for killers like his father—and maybe the old man himself.

Seventeen-year-old Jasper “Jazz” Dent and his hometown of Lobo’s Nod have mostly recovered from the predations of the Impressionist, a serial killer who impersonated Jazz’s father, Billy, but Billy’s out there somewhere, killing again. When NYPD Detective Louis Hughes comes to Jazz’s door asking for help in catching the Hat-Dog Killer, Jazz says no—but he can’t deny that he’s an expert on serial-killer behavior, since his notorious father raised him to be one. Jazz and his girlfriend, Connie, head to NYC to help, but they find themselves caught up in a grisly game with no idea of who the players are or whom they can trust. Jazz isn’t even sure he can trust himself. Lyga’s second serial-killer–hunting title is even more open-ended (and overstuffed) than the first (I Hunt Killers, 2012). Chapters from the perspectives of the various killers undercut the mystery aspects of the tale, and extraneous subplots distract from what could have been a complex thriller. Jazz is believable, but the other characters are mostly flat; Billy himself often comes off as more Bozo than Bundy.

Even fans may balk at the closureless close, but there is obviously more to come.