The Skin Gods: A Novel of Suspense (Hardcover)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this high-body-count chiller from the author of The Rosary Girls, Philadelphia homicide detectives Jessica Balzano and Kevin Byrne are up against a savagely inventive serial killer with a yen for stomach-churning cinema verité. Copycat murders modeled on Psycho, Fatal Attraction and other movies are terrorizing the city, as the "auteur" slayer splices film of his bloody re-enactments into rental videos surreptitiously stolen from and then returned to video stores. Byrne, recovering from a near-fatal gunshot wound and swallowing Vicodin like candy, is working half time, so it's up to his eager partner, Balzano, to take the lead in the investigation. Montanari's short, punchy chapters propel the convoluted—and kinky—plot, which caroms between the big-budget movie sets of a Philadelphia filmmaker made good and an underground porn industry where good girls go bad. Several potential perpetrators rear their creepy heads, but the real killer comes out of left field—though readers very attentive to scattered clues won't be too taken aback by the gory denouement. Byrne's awkward relationship with his deaf teenage daughter, Colleen, after his divorce, and Balzano's concern for her precocious three-year-old daughter, Sophie, after she boots her philandering husband (and fellow cop) out of the house, add welcome humanity to a grisly, atmospheric thriller. (Mar.)
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From Booklist

In Philadelphia, a serial killer is replicating death scenes from famous movies, even going so far as to splice his grizzly re-creations (the shower scene from Psycho, the chainsaw scene from Scarface) into VHS rental copies of the films. Homicide cops Jessica Balzano and Kevin Byrne are tough, inventive detectives who are determined to bring the killer down, assuming they can figure out the madness to his method. The two cops make a good team, their individual strengths and weaknesses playing off each other nicely; the author avoids the usual lighthearted cop-banter, which would have been distracting in this intensely dramatic story. Every hero needs a villain, naturally, and, in chapters written from the killer's point of view, Montanari lets us get up close and personal with the murderous psycho. The book is full of supporting characters that could be central to the plot or could be elaborate red herrings; either way, the author keeps us on our toes. And one of the story's many threads, which leads us into Kevin Byrne's past, packs a solid emotional wallop. The best-selling Montanari has another hit on his hands here. The Skin Gods is perfect for anyone who enjoys a well-crafted thriller. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (March 14, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345470974
• ISBN-13: 978-0345470973
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.5 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #899,298 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful police procedural will keep you awake., May 1, 2006

By	Jerry Saperstein (Evanston, IL USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)

A blurb on the dustjacket touting one of the author's earlier works says "Be prepared to stay up all night." I can tell you that James Ellroy was indeed right on the money where "The Skin Gods" is concerned. Though I had to be up earlier than usual, I didn't get to sleep until I finished the book: the sun was just a few minutes from rising. "The Skin Gods" is that good.

Detective Kevin Byrne, of the Philadelphia Police Department, is still recovering from wounds. His leg is not what it should be, not what it was. He returns to very limited duty and his partner, Detective Jessica Balzano.

A copy of "Psycho" has been found in a local video rental store. Spliced into the rental copy of the movie is a real life murder scene. The corpse start piling up quickly as a murderer seems intent on proving that life follows art. The killer stages scenes of famous movies as he strikes down one victim after another. The killer videotapes their handiwork and edits them into the namesake movies, leaving them at various video rental stores.

Slowly, as the result of solid police work by Byrne and Balzano, a story of death emerges, its tentacles ensnaring in some way each of the victims. Throughout, we are led to believe that we are in the killer's mind . . . or, more accurately, in the minds of killers because Montanari deploys a powerful backstory involving Byrne on a mission of personal revenge.

Montanari is essentially flawless. His plot is absolutely lush with twists and turns, each of them perfectly executed. The reader is brought into a labyrinth and Montanari never misses a step as he guides you where he wants you to go, all of which increases the power of the little and not-so-little surprises he pulls off along the way. The author is truly a master of plot.

The characters are well developed as well. Kevin Byrne is weighed down with a few devils of his own, but Montanari is wise in his treatment. None of these problems leave Byrne's character stereotyped, but rather make him more interesting. Balzano isn't as deep as Byrne, but she gets plenty of time onstage and is believable.

Montanari handles several backstories well. Some of them you know are going to become important and they do. Some of them are just backstories.

I don't like to describe the action of a novel in detail, especially when it's as good as "The Skin Gods." For me, that kind of advance knowledge takes away from my reading pleasure.

Suffice it to say that there's plenty of action in "The Skin Gods and lots of surprises. James Ellroy is right about Montanari's writing: be prepared to stay up all night.

Jerry

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Very Entertaining Book, March 23, 2007

By	Joshua Miller "Josh" (Coeur d'Alene,ID) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

"The Skin Gods" is the first novel I've read by Richard Montanari and I got two words for you...Great book! It's a detective story laced with movie history and is totally original. The main characters are Jessica Balzano and Kevin Byrne, two Philadelphia Homicide detectives who are searching for The Actor. The Actor is a serial killer, who has recently stolen the video "Psycho" from an independent video store. When it was rented and the scene where Janet Leigh is killed finally arrives, the tape cuts to a real murder committed exactly like that one. As the detectives try to find out what he'll pick next and figure out his motive (as well as who the victim is), The Actor stikes again...The movie is filled with movie references and is really fun to read for a movie fanatic, but you don't REALLY need to know anything about movies to enjoy the book. It's got short, brisk chapters (there's 98 chapters and an Epilogue) with the story progressing from several different perspectives. It's actually pretty suspenseful. Some of the story is told from The Actor's perspective, but, wisely, Montanari doesn't tell us anything that the police don't know. The book is filled with false leads, making us second guess ourselves the entire time while never seeming forced. I highly recommend this book...It's the first book I've read by Montanari, but it's certainly not the last.

GRADE: A-

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Be Prepared to be Terrified, February 14, 2007

By	J. Chippindale (England) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

Richard Montanari was born in Cleveland, Ohio. As a young man Richard travelled Europe extensively and lived for a time in London, before returning to work in the family construction business. Five years and a few damaged thumbs later, he decided that writing may be a less painful occupation. He has now written several very successful suspense novels.

The Skin Gods is a suspense novel in the true sense of the word, sometimes violent and brutal, but not just for the sake of it It delves into the seedy world of cheap nightclubs and even cheaper women, pornography and all the other things that make a large city tick. Detectives Kevin Byrne and Jessica Balzano are trawling the streets of Philadelphia in the blazing summer heat. A series of crimes has shattered the quiet of the city. A secretary has been slashed to death in a seedy motel shower and a street hustler has been brutally murdered with a chain saw.

Someone is recreating copy cat murders from famous Hollywood murder scenes and placing the clips in videos for the unsuspecting public to find while they are eating their pizzas and popcorn in their own living rooms. Is this some local psycho or is it something even more sinister . . .