I Am Not a Serial Killer - #1 in the John Wayne Cleaver Series
John Wayne Cleaver is a teenager wrestling with an inner darkness he recognizes as being sociopathy. His obsession with learning about serial killers is a way to discover more about the monster within himself and how to keep it tamed. His family knows he's different. He even attends therapy to help manage his feelings and attempt to get to the root of the problem. When murders start popping up throughout his home town, he takes it upon himself to find out who the serial killer is and either confront them or join them.
This was a smooth-sailing type of read for me. It was easy to finish and I was always engaged in the thoughts of John Wayne Cleaver. It was also easy to relate to his family members and the people around him trying to connect to a boy with an apparent lack of empathy. Having read a lot about serial killers myself, I adored all of the little details peppered in and the thought Dan Wells put into writing this character and story.
As soon as I closed this book, I had to make sure the author actually continued with this character in a book series. I was so relieved and gleeful to find he did, and the next book is called "Mr. Monster." "I Am Not a Serial Killer" is a complete story, but the distinct feeling of needing to know what comes next for John Wayne Cleaver is palpable. I must watch the growth and unfolding of this character who harbours all the behavioural patterns that could result in a full-blown adult serial killer.
