

*Book source ~ Purchased on Amazon
There’s a serial killer out there and it’s name is Cruelty. But Cruelty is just the tool for the true serial killer. Who else is out there waiting for some unsuspecting stranger to cross paths with Cruelty?
This is Episode One of a 10-part serial and it starts out with a prostitute and a deaf guy walking down the road. No, really. I was like…wtf is going on here? But having read Lorn’s work before I knew this was only the benign beginning and everything was about to go to shit for the characters. I hate when I’m right.
Poor 19-yr-old Will only wants to get laid. His friend Kirk sets him up with a prostitute he happens to know to get the job done, but Will has no idea this one little decision by his small head is going to be the absolute worst one in his entire life. I’m sure there are many guys who have made those same kinds of decisions at one point or another, but for Will it means his decision puts him in the path of Cruelty.
Then there’s Innis who catches her skunk of a boyfriend cheating on her. Her heat of the moment decision to grab her dog Merlo and take off is another such bad decision that certainly didn’t seem bad at the time.
Texas State Trooper Tom Morgan is on his routine nightly patrol when the B&E call comes in. He probably figured it would be a typical call, teens causing trouble or drug addicts trying to score some cash. Little does he know…
This story is well-written and the different POVs come together to dovetail very nicely. The creepiest POV is Cruelty’s. Who wants to be in the mind of a giant baby doll serial killer? Not me. My only complaint about this story is Cruelty’s physical self. I just can’t seem to get scared enough of a giant baby doll. Yes, it is a serial killer. That part of Cruelty is definitely Depends-worthy, but maybe I’m not appropriately scared of Cruelty because baby dolls don’t creep me out. I’m not sure, but the rest of this story is creeptastic and horrifying in a Holy Shit! kind of way and don’t get me started on Cruelty’s Master. Gah! I’m hooked and can’t wait to see what happens next.