Headhunter

Michael Slade's "Headhunter"--originally published in 1984--is a thrill seeker's wet dream: a dark, brooding, visceral offering of psychological suspense that also functions splendidly as a mystery, yet--with its sudden jolts of brutally graphic violence and grisly descriptions of traumatized bodies--is also unafraid to revel in the conventions of the horror genre. As a high school sophomore in 1985, I clearly remember being drawn to "Headhunter"'s lurid cover art (later toned down for subsequent printings), and I quickly devoured the story hidden beneath that leering, hate-filled death mask. Of course, I have been settling down with Slade consistently over the past twenty years (he released his tenth novel "Bed of Nails" in 2003), but "Headhunter" remains the benchmark by which I measure all of his work. And having recently re-read the complete text, I can easily say that none of the powerful imagery has diminished over the years; in fact, I found it so absorbing and provocative that it was like reading it for the first time. Now an adult, I am able to fully appreciate all of the elements that mesh together so well to make "Headhunter" one of the most accomplished thrillers in contemporary fiction. Slade (a pseudonym for retired lawyer Jay Clarke and his daughter Rebecca) is, in my humble opinion, criminally overlooked by American audiences (though celebrated in his native Canada), so I decided to write a review I hope will pull more of you into his nightmarish universe of sex, death, and psychosis. Potential readers should also note that Slade's characters (mostly detectives, pathologists, and forensics experts) are recurring throughout all ten novels in his body of work, so if you enjoy "Headhunter," you can look forward to seeing them again in later works--of course, this applies only to those who survive! Now on to the story: It is October 1982 in the beautiful but cold city of Vancouver, and a homicidal maniac is on the loose. With two unspeakably mutilated bodies discovered--and linked by the same weapon--the Royal Canadian Mounted Police must admit the terrible truth: in all probability a serial killer is at work. Enter Superintendent Robert DeClercq, a retired uber-detective who has seen his own share of personal tragedy over the years. Beckoned by the powers that be to spearhead the investigation into the murders, DeClerq assumes command of the Headhunter Squad and immediately assembles a crack team of Special External (Special X) investigators to help ferret out the diabolical killer. With political pressure mounting and widespread hysteria gripping the city, the stalwart DeClercq and his team must race against time to catch their cunning adversary before the next victim is butchered. As Slade slowly begins to divulge pertinent details about the genesis of the killer's madness through a series of bizarre and gruesome flashbacks, the playing field of characters (both seemingly good and blatantly bad) widens and it is left u

I've been a big fan of Michael Slade ever since reading his EVIL EYE. This one HEADHUNTER is the first novel in his/ theirs series of horror/mystery/thrillers featuring policemen Robert DeClerq (here still without Zinc Chandler) and the Canadian Special X unit of the Royal Mounted Police.HEADHUNTER is about this serial killer who kills women and takes their heads. The above mentioned unit is called in to track the killer down and a nerve shattering, and extremely deadly game of cat and mous ensues.I refuse to go into the plot any further. I just have to tell you there's this mindboggling twist in the end which turns the book you've just been reading completely on it's head (no pun intented) and had me - as an aspiring writer - seeing green with envy- as brilliant as I thought the ending was. That same twist also makes reading the book for a second time almost a must!HEADHUNTER really is that good a book. I can understand some of the criticism in that Slade doesn't pay all that much attention to the killers motives and his/ their priorities clearly lie with the police procedural-whodunnit aspects of the plot.For me personally that didn't spoil the fun though and I still give it a maximum score of five stars.I also just have to say a few things about the author. For who doens't know it Michael Slade is the pseudonym for a bunch of Canadian lawyers, and their expertise (and their knowledge of both policework and the justice system) clearly is evident in their books. Besides HEADHUNTER and EVIL EYE I'd also recommend RIPPER and especially GHOUL.Although I catagorise Slade here as a thrillerwriter the series above all really is horror. It was marketed like that by ONYX in the late eighties and got rave reviews from FANGORIA magazine. Almost un-typically I also found Slade's name under the 'horror section' at my local bookshop. Having concluded that, there's (not suprisingly) enough gruesomeness here to give even the most diehard horrorfan a run for his money, and it gets worse (or better?) with every following volume in this series. Just don't go expecting the next Stephen King novel. BE WARNED!

This was the first of Slade's novels I had ever read, and there is no other horror writer to compare with charachterization or plotting. Gory, heart-wrenching, with an ending that will just totally blow you away. Been hooked on Slade ever since.

This is the second book Ive read by Michael Slade and it is just as good as the other, which was a latter book, CUTTHROAT. While I enjoyed this, I still think I liked CUTTHROAT more. Anyway, this book is fascinating-it puts you inside the mind of the killer, lends insight into DeClerq's torments, and is filled with lots of insights into criminal psychology. It is good for a serial killer buff and for thriller fans. This is a really good one-BUY IT.

I read this book when it came out and it is a pleasant surprise--a first novel written well enough to be by an accomplished author. Michael Slade is actually more than one person, written in collaboration but it flows as if from one mind. I've read all Slade books since and have yet to be disappointed. If you like Thomas Harris' Hannibal books you will like Slade. This book is seriously under-rated and is one of my all-time favorites. It will keep you guessing til the end. BUY IT!