Act of Love [Mass Market Paperback]

Joe R. Lansdale (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1990

Telling the tautly plotted story of a modern Jack the Ripper's spree in Houston, Lansdale creates a powerful combination of crime, police work, and social commentary--all with an eye for graphic detail. Act of Love, his first novel, is a collector's item for Lansdale's old fans and essential reading for his new ones.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Before Clive Barker or splatterpunk, Lansdale wrote this pioneering serial killer novel, set in Houston. "The closest thing to what I wanted to do at that time was the work of Sam Peckinpah," Lansdale says. "I wanted to make violence nasty, I wanted to make it bother you, but I wanted to make the story compelling. The thing that made me write Act of Love was anger. I was angry that so much attention was directed to psychopaths and murderers and very little attention given to their victims." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback
• Publisher: Zebra Books (July 1, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0821730800
• ISBN-13: 978-0821730805
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,475,701 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Joe R. Lansdale is the author of over thirty novels and numerous short stories. His work has appeared in national anthologies, magazines, and collections, as well as numerous foreign publications. He has written for comics, television, film, newspapers, and Internet sites. His work has been collected in eighteen short-story collections, and he has edited or co-edited over a dozen anthologies. He has received the Edgar Award, eight Bram Stoker Awards, the Horror Writers Association Lifetime Achievement Award, the British Fantasy Award, the Grinzani Cavour Prize for Literature, the Herodotus Historical Fiction Award, the Inkpot Award for Contributions to Science Fiction and Fantasy, and many others. His novella Bubba Hotep was adapted to film by Don Coscarelli, starring Bruce Campbell and Ossie Davis. His story "Incident On and Off a Mountain Road" was adapted to film for Showtime's "Masters of Horror." He is currently co-producing several films, among them The Bottoms, based on his Edgar Award-winning novel, with Bill Paxton and Brad Wyman, and The Drive-In, with Greg Nicotero. He is Writer In Residence at Stephen F. Austin State University, and is the founder of the martial arts system Shen Chuan: Martial Science and its affiliate, Shen Chuan Family System. He is a member of both the United States and International Martial Arts Halls of Fame. He lives in Nacogdoches, Texas with his wife, dog, and two cats.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Gritty, gory, gripping, June 1, 2000

By 

mellion108 (Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Act of Love (Paperback)

Turn on a light and check all your locks. You'll need that sense of security while reading this novel. We're so numb to serial killer fiction at this point that it's difficult to remember a time when this genre was relatively unknown. ACT is one of the first, and Lansdale adds his incredible touch to make it a unique and chilling novel of a horrific killer and the men trying to catch him.

Lansdale doesn't ease into this subject: the first few pages describe a grotesque murder, the first of the "Houston Hacker", a self-proclaimed hunter of women. Enter Marvin Hanson and Joe Clark as the cops assigned to solve the series of grisly murders. Hanson is a unique character for horror fiction: he's a black cop in the South. He's disgusted by the murders and takes on a personal vendetta against the Hacker. Lansdale leads the reader on to various possibilities as to the identity of the killer without totally giving away anything until near the end. Do not doubt: this novel is not for the squeamish. Lansdale never pulls any punches in his novels; these murders are grotesque. The novel is packed with scenes depicting racial and gender hatred so prevalent in society; there are loads of racial slurs between some of the characters. If you can read this without cringing, check your pulse.

Lansdale is always worth the read. He's a master storyteller. This edition is especially worth it for the intro written by Andrew Vachss as well as the afterword written by Lansdale himself; he explains how the novel came into being, and it's an interesting saga.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lansdale off to a good start., February 22, 2002

By 

Church of The Flaming Sword - See all my reviews

This review is from: Act of Love (Paperback)

Act of Love is one of Lansdale's earliest, if not the earliest, books. AoL's writing lacks the polish or homespun humor that readers would come to expect from Lansdale. Yet, he showed a great deal of potential that would be realized in his later works. Be forewarned, Act of Love is not for the squeamish or the easily offended.

The novel centers around Houston police detective Marvin Hanson, who has the unenviable task of bringing down a modern day Jack The Ripper. The killer is very unpredictable in his methods much like the aforementioned Jack. For instance, one night he'll[choose]a prostitute in a slum-ridden section of the city. The next night, he'll [choose] someone from an affluent suburb. When a few (emphasis on FEW) of the killer's patterns become apparent, everyone becomes a suspect - especially Hanson himself. Hanson not only has to contend with the killer, he has to coexist with his partner Joe Clark as well. Both Hanson and Clark are mutually suspicious about one another. And to make matters worse, Hanson has to restrain himself around an amoral tabloid reporter who likes to further his career by besmirching the Police.

Those expecting the humor of Lansdale's Hap and Leonard novels, which incidentally Hanson appears in starting with Mucho Mojo, may be disappointed. Act of love is still a solid mystery if you have a strong stomach.

Overall rating: 4.5 stars

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great!, April 20, 2000

By 

M. Midlock (LaGrange, GA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Act of Love (Paperback)

I recently discovered the great talent of J. Lansdale and I'm thunderstruck! Landsdale has an unbelievable way with words. This book is a simple serial-killer novel, but Lansdale's magical touch makes it so much more than that. Recommended.