This is exactly the type of "whodunit" and police procedural I enjoy reading. With compelling plots, motives are explored, as the suspense builds. Disappointing when the book is finished, I want more!

Received from NetGalley for my honest review
Completed 8/5/15
400 page ebook

Let me preface this review by saying that I requested this book on accident. I was on NG and I was like "ooooh, new Chris Carter book, yes please" and clicked request. Right after, I realized, oooops, this was an old book, not the new one, and I had read it already. I love CC's books that much that I just didn't pay attention, just wanted it.

I LOOOOOOOVE this series and if you are a murder mystery / serial killer fan and you haven't read this series yet, you are seriously missing out! Carter writes creepy serial killers like no one I've read before, and I've read a lot of murder mystery.

This book is the 7th in the series (9 books out now), so definitely start at the beginning to get the full story. That said, this one wasn't my favorite one. It was still really great, but I did have issues with it. I can't say what those issues are, as they directly relate to the plot of the story, but I've said on Goodreads, if you care to look up my review there. Still it was a solid 4 star book, and the whole series is must read for murder mystery fans!

Setting = A
Plot = A
Conflict = B
Characters = A
Theme = A

Atria/Emily Bestler Books and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of I Am Death. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.
Found near the Los Angeles Airport 7 days after her abduction, the 20 year old woman had been tortured before her death. The killer left behind a clue, but before Detective Robert Hunter can decipher it, a second body is found. Can Detective Hunter use his special skills to track down the killer before it is too late? Will the killer's boldness, the taking of his victims in plain sight from their everyday lives, ultimately be his undoing?

The author is able to achieve a movie thriller feeling with regards to the plot, allowing the reader to experience the terror of the victims for themselves. The escalation of the crimes, in a gruesome fashion, helped to enhance the feeling of suspense while reading. Although I did have an inkling about the identity of the perpetrator, the ultimate reveal was a surprise. Detective Robert Hunter is an interesting character with limitless possibilities for future plot lines. Readers who enjoy police procedurals and suspense thrillers will like I Am Death. I look forward to reading more by this author in the future.

First published in Great Britain in 2015; published by Atria/Emily Bestler Books on May 30, 2017

The serial killer who becomes Robert Hunter’s nemesis in I Am Death is a well-dressed con man who has the ability to set people at ease before he kills them. Fortunately for the real world, serial killers are extremely rare, but thriller writers love to invent them. And of course, the victims are all the sort of people readers like, although they aren’t given much substance beyond “young, attractive, good person.”

In other words, if you read thrillers regularly, you’ve read this one before. Brilliant serial killer leaves tantalizing clues, eventually directing one at the investigating detective. Unfortunately, Hunter misses the meaning of a fairly obvious clue for quite a long time, which is inconsistent with what we are told about his remarkable intelligence. But as we expect of our crime novel heroes, he redeems himself later.

Hunter’s investigation begins with a dead babysitter who was clearly tortured for several days before her body was found. It continues by following the formula of serial killer thrillers: the killer taunts the cops as he keeps killing, leaves clues because he considers himself smarter than the cops, and eventually … well, you know the rest.

There isn’t much subtlety in I Am Death. Bad parents are the worst parents imaginable. Torture killings involve exceptionally brutal torture (sensitive readers may not be able to handle some of the scenes in this book). And while bad people are really, really bad, good people are really, really good. In other words, they are boring and empty.

I don’t have a problem with Chris Carter’s prose. The story moves quickly because it’s written using the formula that some thriller writers love (short chapters, short paragraphs, the kind of book that readers consider a page-turner only because there is so little content on each page). I suppose I should give the ending credit for not being entirely predictable, but Carter only managed that by making the ending entirely contrived. I just didn’t believe much of anything about this novel, which is pretty typical of the serial killer novels that modern crime writers produce so obsessively. I Am Death is far from an awful novel, but it will entertain fans of fast-moving, unchallenging formula fiction more than it will appeal to readers looking for credible plots and substantial characters.

RECOMMENDED WITH RESERVATIONS

This just got too gruesome and unpleasant for me and I did not finish. It is well written and a page turner. Moreover, it's not a bad example of the serial killer genre. The problem for me was that I didn't find any humanity in it and I just didn't enjoy the murder/torture scenes.

First, I would like to express my thanks to Atria/Emily Bestler Books, NetGalley and the author who provided a digital copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
Oh, boy! This is a good one. Chris Carter spins a tale that leaves us utterly disbelieving. I did not see this one coming, and can only speculate at what will come next in the Robert Hunter Series.
This is the seventh installment in the Robert Hunter series, but it is one awesome stand-alone book. There is a serial killer on the loose kidnapping and killing young women. The killer is absolutely meticulous - leaving no clues behind. The killer is also absolutely ruthless. I Am Death, much like many other police procedurals, is a little light with character detail. Plot development moves along almost begrudgingly giving up only what is necessary. This is not a bad thing, it is just the method that Carter employs.
Oh, yes, bad things. This is why I rate the book 3-stars, because the story is quite stellar. I have never considered myself one with a weak stomach for violence, no, far from it. But, Carter pushes the envelope hard. All that I can say is WOW! The violence is very graphic and occurs quite frequently. This may or may not persuade the reader, but this is their decision. It is certainly one to consider.
I am glad that I read Chris Carter’s I Am Death. I do not plan on jumping right in and reading another Chris Carter book in this series. Yet, it was a very good book. The violence was just too over-the-top, IMHO. However, consider this - the violence is my only criticism. 3-Stars.

I Am Death Is a Captivating Read But Grisly

I Am Death is the eighth book in Chris Carter’s Robert Hunter series. It is the first book of this series that I have read.

This novel starts out with a kidnapping of a babysitter, Nicole Wilson, in upper Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles. The scene switches to LAPD Robbery Homicide Division at 2:43 am where Detective Robert Hunter arrives. He is returning from a two-week forced vacation after brutal case that almost took his life and threated his partner, Detective Carlos Garcia, and his family. Detective Hunter did not go on vacation to Hawaii as planned but flew to Quantico to help his close friend who was the head of FBI’s National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime on a case that was closed the day before his return to work in Los Angeles.

A 911 call by a passing bicyclist leads the police to discover Wilson’s body in desolate path of land between the Pacific Ocean and LAX airport. Detective Hunter and his partner, Detective Garcia, catch the case. The positioning of the body seems to indicate a ritualistic killing, but the body’s location could not have been seen at night by a bicyclist on the sidewalk. Could the call have been from the killer?

The story proceeds from this point quite swiftly with many twists and turns and with a chilling parallel story of the killer himself intertwined with the main story. Detective Hunter is a profiler, but his killer does not fit any of the normal profiles of a serial killer. Trying to gain facts quickly captivated my interest. I had to keep reading, I wanted more.

Now for a warning — the methods of killing are very gruesome and described in great detail with one as it occurred. These are some of the worse that I have ever read. If grisly death scenes bother you, skip this book. There also is repeated rape of a young boy. Reader beware.

This novel is Chris Carter’s eighth book, so the B-story, I assume, has been well established. The book also appears have followed a previous work because Chapter 2 seems to be the transition chapter from a previous story. I did not feel any lost or holes in the B-storyline because I did not read those previous works. Chris Carter’s backfill was more than adequate. The B-storyline in this work is rich and supports the main storyline very well. The B-storyline in this work is rich and supports the main storyline very well. Much insight is obtained into the thought process of the main characters.

Overall, this work meets my criteria for a five start rating, but the grisly scenes make me question this high rating. I have decided to give five stars but please head the warning about these grisly scenes.

I have received a free kindle version of this novel through NetGalley from Simon & Schuster with a request for an honest, unbiased review. I wish to thank Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read this novel.

Mastermind Chris Carter returns following An Evil Mind with I AM DEATH –a terrifying, dark, intense, and twisted psychological crime thriller, featuring Robert Hunter front and center in a suspense cat-and-mouse "mind-blowing" chase.

For those who enjoy twisty, smart, edgy, intelligent, gruesome, and very dark psycho-thrillers!

Detective Robert Hunter of the LAPD Robbery Homicide Division grew up as an only child to working class parents in an underprivileged neighborhood of South Los Angeles. His mother lost her battle with cancer when he was only seven and his father never remarried and had to take on two jobs to cope with the demands of raising a child.

He was different. He got bored easily and made his way quickly through school- At the age of twelve Hunter was given a scholarship to the Mirman School for Highly Gifted Children. Only the beginning, making his way to Stanford University. At nineteen he had graduated with a degree in psychology and at twenty-three received his Ph.D. in criminal behavior analysis and biopsychology.

For years the FBI had made attempts to recruit Hunter. Hunter would rather be a detective with the LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division than join the most advanced serial killer—tracking force in the US, and even, the world. however, Hunter would rather be a detective with the local police force than join the most advanced serial-killer tracking task force in the USA. He had continued to decline every offer by Kennedy.

In other words, he is brilliant!

Hunter did not have a family and was not married. No kids. An insomniac. His partner of six years, Detective Carlos Garcia was also his best friend. They headed up a specialized group where all the homicides were overwhelming brutality and or sadism had been used by the perpetrator and tagged by the department as UV crimes.

A young woman about to start her second year of law school at Cal State was found by the LA airport and left in a position of a five-point human star. (A protection against evil)? A symbol that has been associated with evil and devil worshipping.

Nichole Wilson from Indiana and was abducted while babysitting for a wealthy couple. Grisly details. A tube of paper. Lacerations; no two the exact same size. Tortured. Violated. Whipped. Two different instruments. Like cutting brushstrokes onto a canvas. Blood inside the brain. A sadistic killer. A note from the killer in blood, I AM DEATH.

The killer had tortured her for almost six days. They had never come across a killer with this level of confidence.

Hunter knew this meant one thing. He did it for one reason. To let everyone know that this wouldn’t end here. A huge ego. Confident. Intelligent. Knowledgeable. Meticulous. He wanted the body found and the note.

Perpetrators who place their victims’ bodies in specific positions or shapes, with the intention of them being found that way are very particular about every detail.

The abduction, the torturing, the killing, the positioning and disposal of the body and the note. Tremendous detail. He wants them to know how good he is. Did the killer make the call?

Nichole Wilson was only the beginning.

From a flight attendant’s corpse to a kidnapped eleven-year-old boy renamed Squirm. A system that failed him. A serial killer. From taunting notes, photographs, to messages from a monster, a fast-paced action-fueled—terrifying sadistic game. A clue to a double meaning.

Gross, dark, gruesome, bloody, chilling, and brilliantly crafted. As always Chris Carter draws on his personal experience and a pro at creating the most heinous and intelligent of evil psychological crime thrillers. He knows monsters.

An unpredictable twist at the end wraps up another winner by Carter!

A special thank you to Atria and NetGalley for an early reading copy.

JDCMustReadBooks

This serial killer has got to be one of the sickest ones that I have read yet. Not only are his methods grizzly, horrid and totally gross, he also has a tween boy that he abuses daily. Unfortunately, I was eating during the floor licking part, GROSS!

That being said, this was also a book full of action wherein the serial killer has a unique way of picking his victims. He also writes letters to the policemen and he named himself "I am death" as a signature to those letters.

I repeat, the murder are quite grizzly, but the author does not really go into detail. He writes whats happening, but it's like the reader is left to their imagination as to the goriness.

Despite all of that, I was not able to put this book down. I wanted to know why he was doing this and just exactly who this man was. If you can get through the gory parts, it is a really good read that will keep you up way past your bedtime. One you definitely want to start early in the day!

Thanks to Atria Books for approving my request and to Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

This is my favorite one yet in the series! That ending-what a twist!
Chris Carter never seizes to amaze me on- perfect amount of how graphic and detailed the scenes are to the twists and turns. He is hands down one of my favorite authors and will continue to be.

My only gripe is I have read all in the series so far, and this could easily be a stand alone. That being said- for people who have followed the books and the series, I really don't like the repetitive introductions of the characters in every book.

Overall, I can't wait for the next book!

I Am Death (Robert Hunter #7) by Chris Carter , picks up upon the return of the two-week vacation Hunter takes at the end of in the previous book An Evil Mind (Robert Hunter #6). Starting out slowly with what appears to be a missing person's case and the kidnapping of a young boy the story builds in intensity all the way to the dramatic conclusion.

By now the reader knows Robert Hunter’s background, and skill level, so very few pages are spent on these details. I was touched by the scene when Hunter goes to the beach one night and reminisces on why he likes the beach at night, it made him seem more human, and offset the cruelness surrounding him. The working relationship between Hunter and his partner Garcia is strong, supportive and respectful.

The book has very descriptive murder scenes, but nothing like those in An Evil Mind. The book seemed far tamer, and a bit less grizzly than its predecessor, but don’t get me wrong the killer in this book does a few things I would never have thought of. The torture and degradation the young boy faces is heart-wrenching, but is supportive to the storyline and not used for shock value.

There was one timeline jump in the last 3rd of the book that I felt could have been smoother " begin spoiler info" involving Robert knowing who the killer was and an 18th birthday :end spoiler info" but for the most part, the book flowed well, wrapping up any questions by the ending.

I wish to express my thanks to Netgalley and Atria/Emily Bestler Books for the advanced reader copy of the book. I enjoyed the book, and it held my attention. For me, this was a 4-star read.

The book can be read out of order from the rest of the series if the reader wants to.

Someone is killing 20 some year old women and leaving the message "I AM DEATH" at the scenes. The story is told in the voice of the Detective in charge and an adolescent boy who is seemingly abducted by the killer. This story was well written and I don't scare easily but the scenes with the stewardess in her apartment gave me chills. I was blown away by the ending of this that I was not expecting. I would recommend this to be read with the lights on!

I think I may have found a new favorite author.

While this is book seven in a series I will definitely be reading, I was able to read it without feeling like I was missing out, or completely lost on character background and personalities. This is a mark of a highly skilled author – the ability to pull in a reader well past the middle of a series, to keep them hooked and wanting more.

I love thrillers, and crime novels and I Am Death did not disappoint. Detectives Garcia and Hunter are returning to the job after a traumatic workplace situation. Upon their arrival, they are faced with a psychopath who is surprising them at every turn and does not follow a specific M.O. like most serial killers do. This perpetrator, whose only consistencies are horrifying brutal murders and leaving his signature at almost every crime scene: I Am Death.

The chapters fly by and are so full of meaningful, interesting, and captivating information that I hated to see each one end. Carter does something neat with his chapters as he sticks with the detectives for a few chapters and after revealing a huge piece of information, he sometimes flips to the point of view of the killer and his victims, or he might stick with the detectives. You never know what is coming next while you are reading and I love that. I love being on the edge of my seat, loving all story lines and not wishing that one would end so I can go back to the one that I like.

I thought I had this book figured out, I really did. I could not have been more wrong. I love being wrong! The plot twist that happens at the very end of the book blew my mind. I was so shocked and at first confused, I had to read the last few chapters a few times to make sure I was processing what I was reading. It was an amazing ending that I could never have predicted in a million years.

I found detectives Garcia and Hunter to be very likable. I especially liked that Robert Hunter has a Ph. D. in psychology and is constantly being courted by the FBI. He is vastly intelligent, but he never makes his partner or others around him feel as though they are less than. He comes across as a very humble man.

If you like books you can’t put down, difficult or unsolvable crimes, characters who will lead you to want to get to know them better and make you want to read every book written by Chris Carter, then I highly recommend this book to you. Go on a journey with Robert Hunter and try to solve this crime with him. I feel comfortable promising you that you will not be bored or counting the pages until you reach the end. You may need to read a few scenes more than once, but it’s worth it. So worth it.

This was a thriller I read mainly when I was alone and I did not get too scared to the point where I was unable to be comfortable in my own home. It’s terrifying, please don’t get me wrong, but if you read this during the day time, you might be okay. 🙂 At night…maybe cuddle up with your dog(s) or cat(s) and try not to accidentally push your significant other out of the bed because with each turn of the page you inch closer and closer. Not that this happened to me at all…

Chris Carter is a very gifted author. I highly recommend his Robert Hunter Thriller series, but if you can get your hands on I Am Death, I think this can serve as a stand alone novel that will be a good introduction to Robert Hunter and give you a glimpse into who he is as a man and as an elite detective.

I cannot wait to read my next Robert Hunter book. Thank you, Chris Carter.

What a great book! First, it is not for everyone. It is very violent, and if you can't handle extreme violence, this is not the book for you. But if you don't mind that, then read this book! It is very good. Great story line with great, complex characters. A serial killer who kills women in horrific ways The book is well-written and will make you want to read more of his books. This is my first Chris Carter novel, but won't be the last. I plan to read the others in this series. Enjoy!

Robert Hunter and his partner are in search of a killer who has left no clues and can pass thru life as virtually invisible. He can disguise himself and think quickly on his feet to remain free. He is a gruesome killer and each murder is different. Then the killer starts sending letters and goes to Robert Hunter's apartment and leaves Robert a letter addressed to him. Each is signed with " I Am Death". Now it is almost as if the killer is taunting Hunter and he may be closing in on his real identity. Great read. I would like to thank the publisher and net Galley for the chance to read this ARC.

I absolutely devoured this book. This was my first Chris Carter book but certainly won't be the last. All I can say is wow. I am an avid mystery/thriller reader but this book knocked the socks off of me! The detail about the gruesome, depraved killer, it was like a car accident. You're uncomfortable, you want to look away but you can't help but want to know more. The twist at the end - as to who Squirm was - never saw it coming. This was such an excellent thriller and I throughly enjoyed every page. I always say my favorite kind of book is the the kind that you can't wait for work to be over or for free time to read because you're so anxious to get back to the book. This was that kind of book. That is priceless.

Having just turned the last page I have to say this book was fantastic. It was also one of the most disturbing books I've ever read. Talk about taking deviance to a whole new extreme!

You've read one thriller, you've read them all right? I mean some might be better or more thrilling (see what I did there?) than others, but at the end of the day they are all the same basket of fish, eh? Wrong! This one had me hooked from page one and breathless all the way to the end.

I had to find out more about Chris Carter since was the first time I had picked up one of his books. After looking up the author's profile here I admit to finding his history quite fascinating as well...

Can't wait to read more from this series and anything else Carter has penned!

ARC provided by Netgalley for an honest review.