A young woman’s brutally tortured body is found in a deserted house, etched into the back of her neck is the symbol of a double cross. Two years after he was supposedly caught and executed, the Crucifix killer is back in business and for LA Homicide cop Robert Hunter and his new partner the nightmare has only just begun. 

There is no question that Chris Carter’s debut novel is high on blood and gore, it should not though be taken as a simple pulp shocker. Carter, a former member of the Michigan State District Attorney’s Criminal Psychology team brings his knowledge and professional experience to bear on this enjoyable, if often disturbing thriller. 

The understanding he shows of the way serial killers behave does much to rescue a plot that a times stretches credibility, although to his credit Carter ties up every lose end in the novel’s denouement, he also, as you would imagine, shows an implicit understanding of the pressures dealing with the darkest aspects of human behaviour on a daily basis places on police officers. 

Chris Carter has, in the shape of Robert Hunter created an engaging series character with the right mix of kick-ass attitude and troubled intelligence to make it an almost sure bet that The Crucifix Killer and its sequels will attract the attention of Hollywood.