They call him the Skull Cracker Killer. He drugs his victims. Breaks open their skulls with a hammer and chisel. The rest is inhuman.
Five years ago he terrorized New York City, claiming twelve victims before the killing stopped. Now heâs racking up victims on a fresh hunting ground. Where former LAPD homicide detective Morris Brick is working as a consultant on a serial-killer film. Where a desperate mayor pleads with Brick to take on the case. And where the only way he can stop the next wave of murders is by outsmarting a madmanâbefore he strikes again, this time much too close to home . . .
âWhether heâs writing as Dave Zeltserman or Jacob Stone, you can expect the best in suspense writing.â âMax Allan Collins
âA fascinating and exciting blend of misdirection, topsy-turvy, and violence.â âReed Farrel Coleman
âA dark and different serial killer novel that will haunt the reader long after the book is closed.â âJohn Lutz
âLos Angeles has seldom seen such grisly fun. Itâs James Ellroy meets Alfred Hitchcock on the psychotic side of the street.â âPaul Levine
âOne of the most compelling, thrilling, and truth be told, at times look-away-from-page-frightening serial killer novels I've read in a long, long time.â âVincent ZandriJacob Stone is the pseudonym chosen by Dave Zeltserman, an award-winning author of crime, mystery, and horror fiction, for his Morris Brick thriller seriesâDeranged, Crazed, Malicious, Cruel, and Unleashed. His crime novels Small Crimes and Pariah were both named by the Washington Post as best books of the year, with Small Crimes also topping National Public Radio's list of best crime and mystery novels of 2008. His horror novel, The Caretaker of the Lorne Field, was short listed by the American Library Association for best horror novel of 2010, a Black Quill nominee for best dark genre book, and a Library Journal horror gem. His Frankenstein retelling Monster was named by Booklist as one of the 10 best horror novels of the year, and by WBUR as one of the best novels of the year. His mystery fiction is regularly published by Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, has won Shamus and Derringer awards, and twice has won the Ellery Queenâs Readers Choice award. Daveâs novels have been translated to German, French, Italian, Dutch, Lithuanian, and Thai. His novel Small Crimes has been made into a film starring Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Molly Parker, Gary Cole, Robert Forster, and Jacki Weaver, and can be seen on Netflix. His novels Outsourced and The Caretaker of Lorne Field are currently in development.