Serial Killers Uncut (SKU) is a perfect companion piece, not only to Desert Places and Locked Doors (it contains Break You) but to the amazing work of my frequent writing partners J.A. Konrath and Jack Kilborn. All the main characters from the Thicker Than Blood Trilogy appear in Serial Killers Uncut, including Orson, Andy, Luther, and Violet. SKU is like a glove that fits in between Desert Places and Locked Doors, and presents some crucial scenes in the development of the major characters.
A product description follows, and then an excerpt...
PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: For everyone who thinks the bad guys are so much more fun to read than the good guys, we've written a book just for you, and now the definitive volume containing every major villain from the Crouch/Kilborn/Konrath Universe is here.
First, there was Serial, the collaborative smash-hit that has been downloaded 500,000 times and optioned for film.
Then came Serial Uncut, which expanded on that story.
Then Killers, the sequel to Serial.
Then Birds of Prey and Killers Uncut, which introduced every major villain the writers had ever created into one cohesive novel.
And now, all that and more has been brought together for the definitive, omnibus monster, which at 120,000 words, is the length of two full novels...
Serial Killers Uncut
This epic work, over two years in the making, contains Serial Uncut, Killers Uncut, Birds of Prey, Crouch's Break You, an interview with the authors, and more. If you haven't read anything by Crouch, Kilborn, or Konrath, Serial Killers Uncut is the perfect introduction to the dark side of their universe. And if you enjoy a good bad guy (or bad girl), you're going to love this.
Because there are TWENTY-ONE of them featured in this book: Lucy and Donaldson from Serial, Orson and Luther from Desert Places, Locked Doors, and Break You, Mr. K from Shaken, Alex and Charles Kork from Whiskey Sour and Rusty Nail, Isaiah from Abandon, Javier from Snowbound, and many, many more...
'Get in here, boys!' Jeanette shouted. 'It's happening, and you're missing it! Andrew! Orson! Come on!'
The eight-year-old twins raced each other down the hall and into the living room, where they skidded to a stop on the green shag carpet.
'You have to see this,' their mother said, pointing at the television screen.
'What's wrong with Dad?' Orson asked.
Andy looked over at their father who sat on the edge of an ottoman, leaning toward the television with his forearms on his knees and tears running down his face.
'Nothing, son,' he said, dabbing at his eyes with a handkerchief. 'Just never thought I'd be alive to see something like this.'
'Can we go outside?' Andy said.
'It's too late,' Jeannette said. 'Ya'll need to get ready for bed.'
'Aw, come on, Mom. Just for ten minutes,' Orson begged.
'Five minutes,' their mother said. 'And don't make me come out there looking for you.'
The boys rushed out the front door into the night, the screen door banging shut after them.
It was July and warm, lightning bugs floating everywhere like airborne embers, sparking and fading, sparking and fading.
'Look at me!' Andy screamed, running out into the long, cool grass in the front yard. 'I'm floating!'
When the boy stopped, he glanced back toward the driveway, saw his brother lying on his back, staring up at the sky.
Andy moved back toward him in exaggerated hops, pretending to bounce along through reduced gravity.
He lay down on the warm concrete beside his brother, their shoulders barely touching, and stared up into the sky.
The gibbous moon shone with a subdued brilliance through the humid southern night.
'I can see them up there,' Andy said.
Orson glanced at him, brow furrowed. 'Really?'
Andy smiled. 'Of course not, I'm just kidding.'
'I knew that.'
They were quiet for a bit, and then Orson said, 'I think there's something wrong with me.'
'I know, my stomach always hurts after Mom's meatloaf, too.'
'No, it's not that.'
'What?'
'You ever feel different?' Orson said.
'Different? Like how?'
'Like from other people, stupid.'
'I don't know. I don't guess so.'
'Yeah, that's because you're normal.'
'So are you.'
'No, I'm not.'
'Yes, you are, you're my brother.'
'That doesn't make me normal, Andy.'
'I know you and there's nothing wrong—'
'But you only know my outside. You don't know what's inside. The thoughts I have.'
'What thoughts?'
'Just thoughts.'
'Normal ones?'
'I don't think so.'
'Like what?' Andy asked.
'I don't want to tell. They're mine.'
'Tell me.'
Orson looked over at Andy. Now there were tears in his eyes. Glassy in the moonlight.
'You'll tell Mom and Dad.'
'No, I won't.'
'You promise?'
'I promise.'
Orson looked back into the sky.
'Everyone's real excited about what's happening.'
'I know.'
'But you know what I'm thinking?'
'How could I?'
Orson hesitated. Then: 'No, I don't want to say.'
'Orson.' Andy reached over and took hold of his brother's hand. 'You can trust me. Always.'
Orson blinked twice, and then said, 'I wish Neil Armstrong would die up there.'
'Why?'
Orson shrugged. 'I don't know. But I wish his friend would leave him on the moon or the Eagle would blow up
