Jill

by C.W. Schultz

At home, Rachel Rhodes is a mother and wife. At work, she is a manager. At night, she is the infamous serial killer known only as Jill. Her secret will eventually affect everyone in her life, from her family members to the detectives investigating the case.

Luck starts off on her side as she befriends heartbroken detective Cole Dale, who’s an important link to the investigation. However, that luck seems to fade when Rachel meets Cole’s partner, an unorthodox and mentally unstable detective, Perry Charleton, driven by personal reasons to stop Jill using any means necessary.

The novel is told in an omniscient narrative style, allowing the story to have a hauntingly neutral perspective which disguises everything as it progresses and leaves no room for predictability, entangling the reader in a web of evil. Layered with symbolism and motifs, leaving the story to come together like a puzzle through the characters’ actions and interactions; its themes deal with such issues as dysfunction, impressionability and influence, sexism, racism and even humiliation.

As with any C. W. Schultz novel, “JILL” is a study in candor. The author himself calls “JILL” “a serial killer soap opera” as Rachel seeks the romantic, fairy tale ending that only a deranged woman would believe possible after the things she has done.

Genres: Thriller

314 pages, Paperback

First published December 7, 2012

About the author

C. W. Schultz is an American author who was born in Seattle, WA on January 24, 1985. On July 5, 2007, Schultz’s debut novel “YEVAL” was released, a story which came to be through a script Schultz had written for a film. Schultz, being a major animal lover, started 2008 with a short-lived blog about bird care for the fallen Seattle Post-Intelligencer called “BIRDIE BASICS”, but soon resigned due to finding it unnecessarily repetitive, explaining that, “You can’t eternally expand something written in the manner of a textbook. I said what needed to be said for basic information about bird care for beginners. It’s time to move on. The blog is complete. The mission is accomplished.” Throughout much of 2008, Schultz got a gig writing trivia questions for game-show “EASTERN EXPEDITION” before the show was eventually cancelled. In 2010, Schultz released his second novel “THE PACK” and wrote the film “WATCH” which premiered at the Gig Harbor Film Festival in 2012 and was well-received, being listed as the Director’s Choice Awards’ First Runner-Up for Best Short Film. Schultz's third novel "JILL" was released on December 7, 2012; and his fourth novel "A BOOK ABOUT A FILM" on September 8, 2015.

Reviews

[Mỹ Khương · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love thriller!! And I love the author!! Therefore I'm so going to love this book!! Can you give me this book because I want to read it so bad? :(

[Jae Park · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free autographed copy of "Jill" from Goodreads Giveaways, thank you!

The story follows a female serial killer named Rachel who targets men who seem to remind her of her husband, who she cannot kill because she knows she would be the first suspect. Dubbed 'Jill the Ripper' by the investigators, she brutally kills and dismembers her victims. Then she leaves an actual calling card, a green card with a black spider on one side, and her lip prints on the other.

(Sidenote - just after reading the description of the card, I turned the page and ack! a card! Jill's calling card! Gave me a bit of a scare! Mr. Schultz, you have a great sense of humor, thank you! It made a great bookmark.)

The two main detectives, Cole and Perry, work the case together. Perry realizes the new woman Cole is dating actually is Jill the ripper fairly soon in the story, and makes the ultimate sacrifice to try to stop her killing spree.

Loved this book, the action was non-stop and the characters were fascinating. Rachel's (AKA Jill) son Matthew, and her co-worker join in the general mayhem to make this book one of the best books I've read this year. So if you like serial killers and dismemberment, this one's for you.