The Prophet

Ethan Cross

Average Rating 8/10 (1 Review)

OLD ENEMIES...
Francis Ackerman Jr. is one of America's most prolific serial killers. Having kept a low profile for the past year, he is ready to return to work - and he's more brutal, cunning, and dangerous than ever.

NEW THREATS...
Scarred from their past battles, Special Agent Marcus Williams cannot shake Ackerman from his mind. But now Marcus must focus on catching the Anarchist, a new killer who drugs and kidnaps women before burning them alive.

HIDDEN TERRORS...
Marcus knows the Anarchist will strike again soon. And Ackerman is still free. But worse than this is a mysterious figure, unknown to the authorities, who controls the actions of the Anarchist and many like him. He is the Prophet - and his plans are more terrible than even his own disciples can imagine.

With attacks coming from every side, Marcus faces a race against time to save the lives of a group of innocent people chosen as sacrifices in the Prophet's final dark ritual.

'Gory, gruesome stuff that you will read in one sitting - with the light on.'

Review by Chrissi (310313) Rating (8/10)

Review by Chrissi
Rating 8/10
I liked this book, it is an examination of different types of serial killers, all inter-connected with relationships between each that at first are unsuspected. I do not know the name for a group of serial killers, after all, the word murder is used for crows, but whatever they are called, it is probably not a good idea to meet a group of them.

The central relationship of the story is between Special Agent Marcus Williams and the escaped serial killer Francis Ackerman. Ackerman has decided to help Williams in his search for a killer known as the Anarchist but it leaves Williams in a quandary. Ackerman has a way of knowing what the investigator needs to know, and his methods of obtaining information are effective but in a terminal manner, leaving Williams feeling that he is an accessory to crimes committed on his behalf. Williams is struggling with his role as a Special Agent and the requirement to take the lives of killers, the justification of saving lives of innocent people is not quite enough for him and as the story develops, this is complicated by his relationship with Ackerman.

The Anarchist kidnaps women and kills them. He has been quiet for a period and this causes the team hunting him to feel that there is only a limited window of opportunity to catch him before he drops out of sight again.

One of the reasons that this book works as well as it does is the exploration of the serial killer as someone capable of relationships, plausible and charming, he can form attachments and kills for many different reasons. These reasons and the justification are part of dilemma experienced by Williams, and this is complicated by a sense that there is a secret in his life just waiting to be exposed and his relationship with Ackerman may be a part of not just his present but also his past.

I had forgotten quite how much I like characters like Hannibal Lecter and Dexter, and in Ackerman I can see a very similar attraction, however, the level of gore may be a little much if you have a delicate stomach, although it is no more gruesome than other modern authors, so it’s probably more a comment on my sensibilities than those of the book.
Chrissi (31st March 2013)