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My Pet Serial Killer
"A rowdy menagerie of the unexpected, this book will delight and disturb even the bravest of readers; all preconceptions of what to trust and what to fear are masterfully upended." —Alissa Nutting, author of Tampa
"Seidlinger takes the slasher-horror movie, snuff film, found footage, webcam porn, and serial killer docudrama, cuts them all to pieces, pulls out their internal organs, reorganizes them in an 'aesthetically pleasing arrangement,' and shows us a story that is at once hilarious, pathetically sad, and a brilliant social critique. This is one where you'll want to eat the offal." —Jamie Iredell, author of The Book of Freaks
Dexter meets Secretary in Michael J. Seidlinger's provocative, disturbing literary thriller that reinvents the serial killer genre, exploring the psychology of desire.
Claire studies forensic science, Victor is the Gentleman Killer. Subverting expectations, Clair seduces Victor and keeps him in her apartment as her pet, her darkest secret. Beautifully written, provocative to read, Seidlinger delves into Claire's motivations and impetus to present a compelling psychosexual portrait of a woman obsessed with performance, with power, with sex, and with gore.
Michael J. Seidlinger is an Asian American author of a number of novels including Falter Kingdom and The Strangest. He is director of publicity at Dzanc Books, book reviews editor at Electric Literature, and publisher in chief of Civil Coping Mechanisms, an indie press specializing in innovative fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. He lives in Brooklyn, where he never sleeps and is forever searching for the next best cup of coffee. michaeljseidlinger.com | @mjseidlinger
"Seidlinger takes the slasher-horror movie, snuff film, found footage, webcam porn, and serial killer docudrama, cuts them all to pieces, pulls out their internal organs, reorganizes them in an 'aesthetically pleasing arrangement,' and shows us a story that is at once hilarious, pathetically sad, and a brilliant social critique. This is one where you'll want to eat the offal." —Jamie Iredell, author of The Book of Freaks
Dexter meets Secretary in Michael J. Seidlinger's provocative, disturbing literary thriller that reinvents the serial killer genre, exploring the psychology of desire.
Claire studies forensic science, Victor is the Gentleman Killer. Subverting expectations, Clair seduces Victor and keeps him in her apartment as her pet, her darkest secret. Beautifully written, provocative to read, Seidlinger delves into Claire's motivations and impetus to present a compelling psychosexual portrait of a woman obsessed with performance, with power, with sex, and with gore.
Michael J. Seidlinger is an Asian American author of a number of novels including Falter Kingdom and The Strangest. He is director of publicity at Dzanc Books, book reviews editor at Electric Literature, and publisher in chief of Civil Coping Mechanisms, an indie press specializing in innovative fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. He lives in Brooklyn, where he never sleeps and is forever searching for the next best cup of coffee. michaeljseidlinger.com | @mjseidlinger
464 pages, Paperback
First published January 21, 2013
13 people are currently reading
1925 people want to read
About the author
Michael J. Seidlinger
32 books458 followersMICHAEL J. SEIDLINGER is the Filipino American author of The Body Harvest, Anybody Home?, and other books. He has written for, among others, Wired, Buzzfeed, Thrillist, Goodreads, The Observer, Polygon, The Believer, and Publishers Weekly. He teaches at Portland State University and has led workshops at Catapult, Kettle Pond Writer's Conference, and Sarah Lawrence. You can find him at michaeljseidlinger.com.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
September 30, 2018
Sex, violence and titillation are the active counterparts of this novel. Underlying the visceral action is a psychological relationship involving an audience, the reader and the main players in this game of control. Master and pet vie for attention under guises of self-assurance, yet each is subject to bouts of dangerous insecurity. The author's writing style is edgy and semi-abstract, provoking the reader to contemplate the words and the mysteries they describe. The master and her pet serial killers are on a path of discovery, seeking the source of true devotion and perfection through the basest of means. Audience participation is optional, but as a reader, it is impossible not to get involved. I greatly enjoyed the conceptual underpinnings of this story as the main two characters reached their ultimate conclusion.
November 14, 2012
FIVE STARS OF SHAMELESSNESS!
June 4, 2019
"She winks at him. There's a killer on every corner, even if they don't know inside if they have what it takes. She'll show them how."
My Pet Serial Killer is unlike any novel I've read before. Flipping the script on the traditional method of storytelling, the book really throws the reader in at the deep end. Concentrate or capitulate.
Alternating between sequences of pure violence, pick-up schemes, study, and filmography, My Pet Serial Killer maintains a consistent rapid fire pace in which the reader never quite knows what to expect next.
The interesting plot device invokes reader participation as a voyeur to the characters violence. This method makes for a unique perspective as we follow Claire, a professional chameleon, as she sates her bloodlust vicariously through serial killers under her control.
Claire doesn't have relationships. She has pets - and we're not talking fluffy cats and timid dogs, we're talking dangerous humans who revel in the demise of others in the most macabre manner they can fashion. As the story progress it becomes apparent Claire isn't as put together as she makes out...
There's an unreliable narrator theme which poses a constant question about the stability of Claire and the gruesome events which take place in her apartment, at night clubs, on the side of highways, and in prison. The omnipresent instability heightens the reader experience as you never know what level of debauchery (true or imagined) lays in wait on the next pages.
I thoroughly enjoyed My Pet Serial Killer, in part because of the unique storytelling but more-so due to the complexities of Claire and the horrors she so willingly brought to life.
My rating: 5/5 stars.
My Pet Serial Killer is unlike any novel I've read before. Flipping the script on the traditional method of storytelling, the book really throws the reader in at the deep end. Concentrate or capitulate.
Alternating between sequences of pure violence, pick-up schemes, study, and filmography, My Pet Serial Killer maintains a consistent rapid fire pace in which the reader never quite knows what to expect next.
The interesting plot device invokes reader participation as a voyeur to the characters violence. This method makes for a unique perspective as we follow Claire, a professional chameleon, as she sates her bloodlust vicariously through serial killers under her control.
Claire doesn't have relationships. She has pets - and we're not talking fluffy cats and timid dogs, we're talking dangerous humans who revel in the demise of others in the most macabre manner they can fashion. As the story progress it becomes apparent Claire isn't as put together as she makes out...
There's an unreliable narrator theme which poses a constant question about the stability of Claire and the gruesome events which take place in her apartment, at night clubs, on the side of highways, and in prison. The omnipresent instability heightens the reader experience as you never know what level of debauchery (true or imagined) lays in wait on the next pages.
I thoroughly enjoyed My Pet Serial Killer, in part because of the unique storytelling but more-so due to the complexities of Claire and the horrors she so willingly brought to life.
My rating: 5/5 stars.
November 15, 2021
This is the worst case of “amazing concept terrible execution” I’ve ever seen. I gobble up serial killer media and will put up with a hell of a lot. I’ve rarely read prose this bad in my entire life.
This is all stream of consciousness from the girl who has more or less adopted a serial killer boyfriend and has a dominant relationship to him. This story sounded like a dream for me. A perfect match.
Little did I know the prose was unconnected choppy and isolating ranting that doesn’t allow you to connect with or understand any of the characters or their relationships. Remember Girl A? If you thought that was bad, this is worse. The lack of spirit, passion, sex, or anything resembling a personality in a book with a concept THIS good earns a rare and furious one star from me. This book needed an editor before getting dropped off to print.
This is all stream of consciousness from the girl who has more or less adopted a serial killer boyfriend and has a dominant relationship to him. This story sounded like a dream for me. A perfect match.
Little did I know the prose was unconnected choppy and isolating ranting that doesn’t allow you to connect with or understand any of the characters or their relationships. Remember Girl A? If you thought that was bad, this is worse. The lack of spirit, passion, sex, or anything resembling a personality in a book with a concept THIS good earns a rare and furious one star from me. This book needed an editor before getting dropped off to print.
February 18, 2013
I read this book in a single sitting at work. I thoroughly enjoy this book and I can honestly say I have never read anything like it. I love Claire and felt a very deep connection and I love the symbolism of the pet and the master. This book is fucked up and more people should read it because it is fucked but also beautiful and incredibly well-written. so go read it now shitheads 5 motherfucking stars. Now I need to go read everything else that Michael J. Seidlinger has written.
September 30, 2018
Initially, the reader may wonder which is more twisted, master or pet? Master will accept nothing but a flawless killer, one that will be legend. She is very thorough, leaving no detail unaddressed. I was enthralled while wondering how long the current state of things could be maintained and anticipating how things might unravel. Would the pet lose his "fight?" This would certainly not be acceptable. The killer must have all of the natural qualities and be truly obedient to become the best at what he does. Recurring themes were this fight and the relevance of mystery.
The author utilizes many tools to make My Pet Serial Killer unique. An example of this would be the inclusion of what are deemed "optional" scenes in italics. They added another dimension to the story, like a movie that is running parallel to, and taking license with the main plot. The commentary within these scenes gives another point of view into something that in itself is purposely mysterious in nature. The 2nd half of the book and its focus on filming something monumental kept the pace and interest going strong till the end. The refreshing format and writing are highlights. My Pet Serial Killer speaks to our obsessions and our culture in an unexpected way, looking deep into why mass murder is such a commodity.
The author utilizes many tools to make My Pet Serial Killer unique. An example of this would be the inclusion of what are deemed "optional" scenes in italics. They added another dimension to the story, like a movie that is running parallel to, and taking license with the main plot. The commentary within these scenes gives another point of view into something that in itself is purposely mysterious in nature. The 2nd half of the book and its focus on filming something monumental kept the pace and interest going strong till the end. The refreshing format and writing are highlights. My Pet Serial Killer speaks to our obsessions and our culture in an unexpected way, looking deep into why mass murder is such a commodity.
September 15, 2018
In a crowded bar, you watch the patrons around you, sizing up a potential partner and the potential competition. You see something you like, a particular hair color or style, a smile, nice arms, nice legs, a nice chest, a pretty face or a handsome jawline. They catch you watching. Signals are exchanged, subtle but inviting. You make your move, your approach invited, expected, desired. There is, for at least a brief moment, and maybe longer if you're lucky, potential. You've been looking for certain attractive qualities, waiting for that one person who is a match. Such is the way of dating. But, what if you're looking for more than a common date? What if you're looking for, say, a serial killer?
This is, at its earliest and most basic, the premise of Michael J. Seidlinger's My Pet Serial Killer. Claire is a student studying forensic science, but she has some very particular fetishes and she knows how to find those particular qualities that she finds desirable in a mate with unerring accuracy. She could, presumably, easily become a victim, but some mysterious kink in the rules of attraction gives her an upper hand, as it has with Victor, dubbed the Gentleman Killer by the media at large.
Serial murder is most often about power and control, and is typically inextricably tied to sexual pleasure. In the world of BDSM, those who possess positions of power in their daily life often seek out sexually submissive roles in their carnal affairs. I'm sure we've all heard stories about the powerful executive who absolutely dominates the boardroom during the day, only to frequent certain types of clubs at night where he can be handcuffed and spanked. It makes sense, in certain perverse ways, that a serial killer, whose carnal activities are literally matters of life and death, who possess total and complete power over another, would enter into a submissive affair. After all, don't serial killers need love, too, and what would be the nature of their relationships?
Enter Claire. Smart and domineering, she makes killers her pets. She breaks them down piece by piece, destroying their defenses until they are left entirely subordinate to her, until a serial rapist and murderer like Victor is left wearing nothing more than a leash and literally licking her kitchen floor clean.
My Pet Serial Killer is as much about psychosexual fantasy and fetishes as it is about murder, and Seidlinger puts all of it on graphic display for readers. Perhaps more than any of these, though, My Pet Serial Killer is all about voyeurism. Claire rigs her home with webcams so she can watch Victor at work with his prey, and they routinely speak via computer chat programs like FaceTime. Written in first person, Claire tells her story directly to readers. Other chapters tell us of the eventual movie and television series based on Claire's work and relationships.
Seidlinger himself uses these various techniques and this story as a whole to riff on the relationship between his readers and the appeal that serial killer stories hold for them. Serial murderers are certainly fascinating taboo subjects, and it's fair to say there is a certain voyeuristic allure to such crimes. In both fiction and true crime works, the serial killer genre allows readers to explore dark fantasies, real or imagined, and observe horrifying experiences, descend into psychological madness, and escape all of it free from any lasting harm. We watch, disconnected and safe, seeking some degree of satisfaction from such stories. We seek understanding in the unraveling of these mysteries of a serial killer's mind, and in this understanding we've come to dominate the killer, being neither a victim nor the incarcerated murderer, reducing these crimes and the various actors within to little more than digestible forms of entertainment, making these brutal acts of atrocity and those who commit them submissive to our own morbid curiosities. We have made them into little more than performers.
My Pet Serial Killer is an interesting and intense meditation on the relationship between killers and the women who derive companionship from them, while also establishing a meta connection between the readers and the material. Claire is a forensic scientist, but Seidlinger demands that we be forensic readers, studying the crimes and the relationships presented to us to unravel the mystery, while also examining our own relationship to that which we are consuming. Is Claire any better than the killers she has dominated since the burgeoning of her sexuality, directing them to kill for her entertainment, and even going so far as to supply them with their victims and bury the evidence? Are we any better than Claire in our search and consumption of such stories, particularly true crime narratives in which actual human beings have been murdered in awfully grisly ways so that we can gaze salaciously upon them for a few hours of entertainment?
Seidlinger brings an uncomfortable fourth dimension into the equation, subverting ones typical expectations of a serial killer horror novel if you're willing to dig deeply enough and get your hands dirty. You can certainly enjoy My Pet Serial Killer on a superficial level, digging into it for its brutal kill scenes and kinky sex, but it's a far more engaging and rewarding read when approached with thoughtful deliberation and a bit of psychological studiousness. To get the most out of My Pet Serial Killer requires a willing degree of complicity and submissiveness. How you'll fare with it, though, is all part of the mystery.
[Note: I received an advance reading copy of this title from the publisher, Fangoria.]
This is, at its earliest and most basic, the premise of Michael J. Seidlinger's My Pet Serial Killer. Claire is a student studying forensic science, but she has some very particular fetishes and she knows how to find those particular qualities that she finds desirable in a mate with unerring accuracy. She could, presumably, easily become a victim, but some mysterious kink in the rules of attraction gives her an upper hand, as it has with Victor, dubbed the Gentleman Killer by the media at large.
Serial murder is most often about power and control, and is typically inextricably tied to sexual pleasure. In the world of BDSM, those who possess positions of power in their daily life often seek out sexually submissive roles in their carnal affairs. I'm sure we've all heard stories about the powerful executive who absolutely dominates the boardroom during the day, only to frequent certain types of clubs at night where he can be handcuffed and spanked. It makes sense, in certain perverse ways, that a serial killer, whose carnal activities are literally matters of life and death, who possess total and complete power over another, would enter into a submissive affair. After all, don't serial killers need love, too, and what would be the nature of their relationships?
Enter Claire. Smart and domineering, she makes killers her pets. She breaks them down piece by piece, destroying their defenses until they are left entirely subordinate to her, until a serial rapist and murderer like Victor is left wearing nothing more than a leash and literally licking her kitchen floor clean.
My Pet Serial Killer is as much about psychosexual fantasy and fetishes as it is about murder, and Seidlinger puts all of it on graphic display for readers. Perhaps more than any of these, though, My Pet Serial Killer is all about voyeurism. Claire rigs her home with webcams so she can watch Victor at work with his prey, and they routinely speak via computer chat programs like FaceTime. Written in first person, Claire tells her story directly to readers. Other chapters tell us of the eventual movie and television series based on Claire's work and relationships.
Seidlinger himself uses these various techniques and this story as a whole to riff on the relationship between his readers and the appeal that serial killer stories hold for them. Serial murderers are certainly fascinating taboo subjects, and it's fair to say there is a certain voyeuristic allure to such crimes. In both fiction and true crime works, the serial killer genre allows readers to explore dark fantasies, real or imagined, and observe horrifying experiences, descend into psychological madness, and escape all of it free from any lasting harm. We watch, disconnected and safe, seeking some degree of satisfaction from such stories. We seek understanding in the unraveling of these mysteries of a serial killer's mind, and in this understanding we've come to dominate the killer, being neither a victim nor the incarcerated murderer, reducing these crimes and the various actors within to little more than digestible forms of entertainment, making these brutal acts of atrocity and those who commit them submissive to our own morbid curiosities. We have made them into little more than performers.
My Pet Serial Killer is an interesting and intense meditation on the relationship between killers and the women who derive companionship from them, while also establishing a meta connection between the readers and the material. Claire is a forensic scientist, but Seidlinger demands that we be forensic readers, studying the crimes and the relationships presented to us to unravel the mystery, while also examining our own relationship to that which we are consuming. Is Claire any better than the killers she has dominated since the burgeoning of her sexuality, directing them to kill for her entertainment, and even going so far as to supply them with their victims and bury the evidence? Are we any better than Claire in our search and consumption of such stories, particularly true crime narratives in which actual human beings have been murdered in awfully grisly ways so that we can gaze salaciously upon them for a few hours of entertainment?
Seidlinger brings an uncomfortable fourth dimension into the equation, subverting ones typical expectations of a serial killer horror novel if you're willing to dig deeply enough and get your hands dirty. You can certainly enjoy My Pet Serial Killer on a superficial level, digging into it for its brutal kill scenes and kinky sex, but it's a far more engaging and rewarding read when approached with thoughtful deliberation and a bit of psychological studiousness. To get the most out of My Pet Serial Killer requires a willing degree of complicity and submissiveness. How you'll fare with it, though, is all part of the mystery.
[Note: I received an advance reading copy of this title from the publisher, Fangoria.]
February 5, 2019
Я, желая понять, откуда у книги достаточно высокий рейтинг на Goodreads (3,92, хотя проголосовало всего 89 человек, так что это можно не брать в расчет, учитывая, что книга 2013-го года, т.е. практически никто ее не читал), прочитала несколько рецензий тех, кому эта книга понравилась. Большинство из них пишет, что они были в восторге от Клэр и чувствовали с ней некую связь, им казалось, что она их родственная душа. На самом деле, меня такие заявления, как психолога (да и просто человека), настораживают. Клэр - садистка-маньяк и жуткая извращенка, которая жестоко убивает людей руками другого человека, насилующего трупы.... И прочая жуть. Какую связь вы можете с ней чувствовать? Желание убивать и насиловать жертв?
Я не чувствовала ни к Клэр, ни к «питомцу» ничего, кроме отвращения и желания засадить их за решетку. Эти «герои» (мне сложно называть их «героями») не заслуживают ни уважения, ни понимания… И, может, я слишком старомодна, но я привыкла читать про людей, которые хоть немного заслуживают моей симпатии. И я никак не могу понять, как человек, под руководством которого было жестоко, извращенно убито так много человек, может получить свой хэппи-энд (относительный), и как с ним можно чувствовать «связь».
Я читала и другие книги на подобную тему. Что-то вроде отношений похитителей и жертв. И какими бы темными и грязными не были делишки этих персонажей, стокгольмский синдром в таких книгах обычно появляется у жертвы, когда похитители делают хоть что-то хорошее по отношению к ней или другим. Здесь же персонажи не сделали абсолютно ничего даже немного достойного, просто жестоко убивали людей, наслаждаясь этим. Нет, я таких персонажей, хоть убейте, понять не могу.
Самое ужасное, что я когда-либо читала. Ни за что больше не притронулись ни к чему подобному. Омерзительно и при этом скучно (а как иначе, если книга состоит только из извращенных способов убийства людей, как меня это может заинтересовать?).
Просто кошмар. 3/4 книги, и травма на всю оставшуюся жизнь обеспеченна.
Я не чувствовала ни к Клэр, ни к «питомцу» ничего, кроме отвращения и желания засадить их за решетку. Эти «герои» (мне сложно называть их «героями») не заслуживают ни уважения, ни понимания… И, может, я слишком старомодна, но я привыкла читать про людей, которые хоть немного заслуживают моей симпатии. И я никак не могу понять, как человек, под руководством которого было жестоко, извращенно убито так много человек, может получить свой хэппи-энд (относительный), и как с ним можно чувствовать «связь».
Я читала и другие книги на подобную тему. Что-то вроде отношений похитителей и жертв. И какими бы темными и грязными не были делишки этих персонажей, стокгольмский синдром в таких книгах обычно появляется у жертвы, когда похитители делают хоть что-то хорошее по отношению к ней или другим. Здесь же персонажи не сделали абсолютно ничего даже немного достойного, просто жестоко убивали людей, наслаждаясь этим. Нет, я таких персонажей, хоть убейте, понять не могу.
Самое ужасное, что я когда-либо читала. Ни за что больше не притронулись ни к чему подобному. Омерзительно и при этом скучно (а как иначе, если книга состоит только из извращенных способов убийства людей, как меня это может заинтересовать?).
Просто кошмар. 3/4 книги, и травма на всю оставшуюся жизнь обеспеченна.
May 5, 2017
This is the 2nd book I have read from the author, and a monster of a story. Dark, and innovative, it is not your ordinary serial killer story. Initially, the reader wonders who is the most twisted, master or pet? Master will accept nothing but a flawless killer, one that will be legend. She is very thorough, leaving no detail unaddressed. I was enthralled while wondering how long the current state of things could be maintained and anticipating how things might unravel. Would the pet lose his "fight?" This would not be acceptable. Recurring themes were this "fight within" and the relevance of mystery in the plot.
The author utilizes many tools to make My Pet Serial Killer unique and mesmerizing. An example of this (innovation as a trademark of Michael Seidlinger) would be the inclusion of what are deemed "optional" scenes in italics. They added another dimension to the story, akin to a movie that is running parallel to, and taking license with the main plot. You are seeing the story through another lens. The commentary within these scenes gives another point of view into something that in itself is purposely mysterious in nature. Nobody I have read writes like Michael Seidlinger. Recommended highly!
The author utilizes many tools to make My Pet Serial Killer unique and mesmerizing. An example of this (innovation as a trademark of Michael Seidlinger) would be the inclusion of what are deemed "optional" scenes in italics. They added another dimension to the story, akin to a movie that is running parallel to, and taking license with the main plot. You are seeing the story through another lens. The commentary within these scenes gives another point of view into something that in itself is purposely mysterious in nature. Nobody I have read writes like Michael Seidlinger. Recommended highly!
December 29, 2012
An emasculated serial killer; strange fetishes; a Mystery. Michael J Seidlinger has an obsession with the concept of filmic image, overlapping and becoming reality--where people are never people, but embodiments of an idea, of currents in society, produced by art. In this case, he focuses on the ambiguity of a filmed surface: a man's face, impassive; the silhouette of a Gentleman Killer, the perfect idea of violence. Dropping one star because I'm not interested in serial killers to begin with, so a lot of the mystique was lost on me--but, even taking that into consideration, this was a great book. It takes everything you would expect and turns it upside down, and does it in sharp prose, with an effective edge of formal innovation.
November 19, 2018
Books in this category -- lurid, button-pushing, sensationalist fiction -- are often all style and little substance. This book has no style either.
March 5, 2017
Quick fact: this is/was my first Michael J. Seidlinger book.
And a couple things: MY PET SERIAL KILLER is a lot LOT like a movie. And I was pleasantly surprised by how dark the book was. Truth be told though, I had some troubles (at first) really 'getting into' MY PET SERIAL KILLER. But then once it got my attention, I was hooked. I dunno, maybe I was just distracted by stuff in real life or maybe I was dreading starting a new book (which is very likely) but once I 'got into it,' it became something that became very good.
Quickly, MY PET SERIAL KILLER is about bars and girls and men who are like boys and dance floors and gentleman killers and parties and sweating and drinking and different types of drinks and really bad poems written in pencil and going to school and subterranean ducts and tunnels...
...and then this chick named Claire.
Michael doesn't hand you anything on a silver platter though. He makes you think with MY PET SERIAL KILLER and if you take the time to let the world of MY PET SERIAL KILLER engulf you in its brilliance, well, you're in for a pleasant treat. (Though there were times where I certainly thought: "Stop being so clever about this Michael J. Seidlinger and just tell me what's really going on already! Let it happen." And in hindsight, that stuff was good for me though, I feel. A nice challenge).
I want to compare Michael J. Seidlinger to some authors I have read but I cannot (most likely because I have not yet read authors who are like Michael J. Seidlinger, if there are any) so I can honestly say MY PET SERIAL KILLER is different from any other serial killer novel I have ever read. Really. And perhaps, in some later/future review of some other serial killer novel, I will say "This author reads like Michael J. Seidlinger." Who knows?
And I recommend this book to people who like to read something that is a little like nothing else they have ever read. And smart. Especially when it comes to serial killer novels.
Yeah.
And a couple things: MY PET SERIAL KILLER is a lot LOT like a movie. And I was pleasantly surprised by how dark the book was. Truth be told though, I had some troubles (at first) really 'getting into' MY PET SERIAL KILLER. But then once it got my attention, I was hooked. I dunno, maybe I was just distracted by stuff in real life or maybe I was dreading starting a new book (which is very likely) but once I 'got into it,' it became something that became very good.
Quickly, MY PET SERIAL KILLER is about bars and girls and men who are like boys and dance floors and gentleman killers and parties and sweating and drinking and different types of drinks and really bad poems written in pencil and going to school and subterranean ducts and tunnels...
...and then this chick named Claire.
Michael doesn't hand you anything on a silver platter though. He makes you think with MY PET SERIAL KILLER and if you take the time to let the world of MY PET SERIAL KILLER engulf you in its brilliance, well, you're in for a pleasant treat. (Though there were times where I certainly thought: "Stop being so clever about this Michael J. Seidlinger and just tell me what's really going on already! Let it happen." And in hindsight, that stuff was good for me though, I feel. A nice challenge).
I want to compare Michael J. Seidlinger to some authors I have read but I cannot (most likely because I have not yet read authors who are like Michael J. Seidlinger, if there are any) so I can honestly say MY PET SERIAL KILLER is different from any other serial killer novel I have ever read. Really. And perhaps, in some later/future review of some other serial killer novel, I will say "This author reads like Michael J. Seidlinger." Who knows?
And I recommend this book to people who like to read something that is a little like nothing else they have ever read. And smart. Especially when it comes to serial killer novels.
Yeah.
February 5, 2014
I generally don't like serial killer fiction for various reasons, but this is quite good for all the ways it isn't what you expect it to be.
Damn close to being five stars, but just one aspect held it back for me.
Full review at Word Riot.
Damn close to being five stars, but just one aspect held it back for me.
Full review at Word Riot.
July 20, 2013
Many people like getting scared by horror, because it’s easy and unreal. We can read those books and move on with our lives, knowing no monsters stalk outside. Books like this though, haunt us well after we finish the last page.
Claire is a forensics student with a morbid obsession about serial killers. She takes an emerging killer under her wing as her “pet.” Readers listen in equally morbid fascination as she calmly explains the process of training her killer, with the occasional interruption of a paralleling movie.
At first, I found the movie sections a tad annoying. Much later I realized what was happening and accepted them, though they are really only justified by the final commentary about the meaning of the often-mentioned “mystery.” But this was a truly interesting and cringe-inducing story. I only wish it had been proofread better (or at all), because there were a fair amount of typos throughout.
Also, the description is a bit misleading. This is very much Claire’s story, not the killer as the back suggests. But then, that is quite evident from the moment you begin reading.
I recommend this to readers with strong stomachs, as there is some pretty gruesome and explicit content in here. If you can handle that, you’re in for one hell of a ride.
Claire is a forensics student with a morbid obsession about serial killers. She takes an emerging killer under her wing as her “pet.” Readers listen in equally morbid fascination as she calmly explains the process of training her killer, with the occasional interruption of a paralleling movie.
At first, I found the movie sections a tad annoying. Much later I realized what was happening and accepted them, though they are really only justified by the final commentary about the meaning of the often-mentioned “mystery.” But this was a truly interesting and cringe-inducing story. I only wish it had been proofread better (or at all), because there were a fair amount of typos throughout.
Also, the description is a bit misleading. This is very much Claire’s story, not the killer as the back suggests. But then, that is quite evident from the moment you begin reading.
I recommend this to readers with strong stomachs, as there is some pretty gruesome and explicit content in here. If you can handle that, you’re in for one hell of a ride.
February 6, 2013
Claire lets us into her world, but only the bits she wants us to see. Just as she possess her Pet, she possesses the reader, and how the reader uncovers the mystery. As the book progresses we begin to see how Claire is telling us this story by her terms but like any narrative there is more to see than what is readily apparent. Her "project" begins to take a life of its own (the Pet, the Mystery, the Narrative, the Fiction) and she can no longer control every aspect of "her" world just as she cannot control the reader, she cannot truly possess her Pet. She is a character who demands respect and discipline, but offers nothing from her end except her own selfish act of possession, she is an irresponsible master. A master who will never be satisfied by blood, sex, or violence. Reading this book I found myself constantly engaging with the character, questioning her, learning from her, being disturbed by her. This is her story, but she will never learn that in giving it to the reader she gives up the act of possession, and she will NEVER be satisfied.
April 3, 2019
This book is really dark, but it is also really good. I've never been a huge one for serial killer books, but for some strange reason I don't think of this as one. Sure, that's the subject matter and all, but there's more to it than that. I can definitely say that Seidlinger's work appears to be getting more subtle. You see all the killing, but there's more there below the surface about interactions, lives, and all sorts of other things I may not even have picked up on. It is quite graphic in parts, but the psychology is mesmerizing. Claire's reach really does extend beyond the book, right out to the reader. The psychology, and the language itself, is impossible to ignore. I think this very well might be my favorite Seidlinger work so far.
Updated for the new edition: I thought this was complete in the original, but there was so much more it could be and is now. So much to deepen, so much to expand. So glad I read it the first time and then came back to read the new. So much new to see and consider.
Updated for the new edition: I thought this was complete in the original, but there was so much more it could be and is now. So much to deepen, so much to expand. So glad I read it the first time and then came back to read the new. So much new to see and consider.
March 17, 2013
maybe even 4.5. VERY interesting and unique book. a take on serial killers i've never seen. not too graphic either, only a couple of parts that might make some people cringe, the real chilling part is how much more disturbing the narrator is than the actual serial killer himself. i would have given it a 5 but i found myself rushing through some of the italicized chapters and not enjoying those quite as much as the rest of the story. (i know that it said you could skip those, but really who's going to do that, i still wanted to read it all, come on!) but overall i thought it was an amazing book and i loved the way it was written and the way the narrator completely controlled how much the reader knew and when we knew it. i know that all books are essentially 'controlled' by the narrator but you just felt in this one like she had so much more power and she doled out the story and herself so well. i'd definitely recommend this one, wholeheartedly!
February 17, 2013
'My Pet Serial Killer' A perfect cross of indulgent madness and buffet of gritty mystery. Michael J Seidlinger brings the reader in with literary torture-devices that have you turning the page with anticipation and a skipped heart beat. Step behind the behind the scenes and into the world of rainy paranoia where the killer might just be your own lack of comprehension. imagine the films 'The Cell', 'Waking Life', and 'We Need To Talk About Kevin' after Michael has melted them down and injected the goop through his unique brand of melancholy brilliance into blazing black on white. The result is a chilling literary revolution of classic mystery and edgy ideals. Put down your red plastic cup, scoot over to the bar, and take home some mystery before it takes you home!
January 5, 2025
This was a very interesting writing style. You will either love or hate this book. Lots of violence and sex, and a great character study. I look forward to reading more of Michael J. Seidlinger books.
February 25, 2022
Like an experimental mashup of American Psycho and Natural Born Killers, but told entirely from the perspective of a string-pulling, fourth-wall-breaking, borderline-omnipotent female academic, My Pet Serial Killer begs so many upsetting questions, and gleefully crosses so many lines, that it's virtually impossible not to engage with it (and with your own reasons for reading it) by the time you're done. In proud pet-owner Claire, author Michael Seidlinger has created an antagonist for the ages - a woman who identifies, nurtures, and breeds serial killers for the express purpose of studying humanity at its most uncompromisingly evil (and, probably, because she gets off on it a little bit too). Determined to plumb the absolute depths of her terrible power, Claire pushes her "pets," her "assistants," and herself beyond all reasonable limits in a cross-country spree of exponentially unspeakable violence, perpetually upping the ante until even you, the reader, can no longer deny your complicity. Though not for the faint of heart, My Pet Serial Killer is one of the wildest, and most original reading experiences I've had this year. Both brutal, and brutally funny, it's a must for anyone who thinks they're no longer capable of being shocked, or anyone who's ever wondered why they want to be.
June 30, 2013
"No matter how much or how little torture is shown in a movie, for the victim, it has to be never-ending. Real time freezes and torture time is the new reality. Places in Michael J. Seidlinger’s novel My Pet Serial Killer froze in time--but not for the victim--for the killer. The novel opens with college student Claire attending parties and going to clubs to find the perfect person. She emphasizes she’s an “observer,” lest we forget, which makes her seem extra creepy; she’s looking for the perfect boyfriend, right? Not true--Claire wants the perfect serial killer, one she can take home and call her own, her “pet.” Naturally, a pet needs a master, and Claire becomes just that to the man she finds, Victor..."
Full review now up at The Next Best Book Club: http://thenextbestbookblog.blogspot.c...
Full review now up at The Next Best Book Club: http://thenextbestbookblog.blogspot.c...
July 28, 2013
My Pet Serial Killer is one of the most effective transgressive novels I have ever read. Rather than relying upon the same tired gimmicks that authors before him have used to present a transgression of societal norms, Seidlinger works against those gimmicks to present a transgression of transgressive fiction itself. He strips away our established notions and expectations of the serial killer concept, showing us the painstaking vulnerability, passivity, and (especially) mystery that underlies all of the blood, guts, and drama.
Read
April 17, 2016The idea of a sociopath controlling a serial killer yet essentially enabling the killer to proceed with his killings is an interesting concept. I love Michael J. seidlinger's writing (the laughter of strangers, the fun we've had, etc) and the abstract film directions in between chapters were neat but it kind of reminded me of a Christopher Pike or R.L Stine novel for teen girls. While the prose is great, it doesn't necessRily gel well. Though I'd definitely read this hard to find novel again for sure. I loved how much of a dark, guilty pleasure this book was!
December 18, 2018
I didn't like this at all. There is nothing here but violence. Violence can be used to say something, but this has nothing to say. An interesting premise, what if someone controls a serial killer; but what you end up with is two characters you loathe. There is nothing shocking here, anyone who has read Jack Ketchum or Brett Easton Ellis has read worse, but those authors made the violence hit you on a deeper level. This book is like a child cursing, there's no substance. The author has a way with words but couldn't put together a plot.
January 14, 2019
There is not much I can say about this book. There were sections that were not needed for the narrative and the narrative itself is not strong. If the second half of the book had been the actual book itself, I probably would have enjoyed this book more. With absolutely no characters to like in this novel, not to mention a number of editorial errors, I cannot recommend this novel. If you still want to read this novel, just read at your own risk. I can't believe I actually forced myself to finish it.
Want to read
December 17, 2013Won this from the giveaways. Thank-you.
September 2, 2013
A unique take on noir.
May 27, 2018
This was gruesome and also boring somehow. The author had a weird meandering style I could not take to.
July 22, 2014
I really liked this book. It was odd to say the least, but quite entertaining.
June 27, 2021
This book was a chore to read. I don’t mean that due to the content, it wasn’t the gore, or the subject matter - actually that was the only thing that helped me push forward. But, Claire - the book being in her narcissistic first person perspective was dull. It was repetitive, boring, annoying and pretentious. This book thought it was unique when it was the most shitty version of an art house indie movie rolled into the pages. It’s the type of “movie” you heard about at the Toronto Film Festival that all the “high brow” critics are praising but really as a true film fan you’re left with “Has anyone even watched a movie before praising this lazy shit?” I’m a huge fan of dark lit, mystery and serial killers in fiction. This? This book thought if it said the word MYSTERY enough then it would be one - when it was very clear what motives, drives and what exactly Claire was going to do before it even got interesting. This book barely GOT interesting at all - really want to emphasize that. Every time I thought it was getting good I was left bored and annoyed. It didn’t go hard enough or deprived enough to even be considered “scary” or horror. It almost pushed the envelope but then just copped out into stereotypical MTV horror show aesthetic. I only gave it the rating I did for the methodology of her exes and the road trip.
Trigger Warning For: rape, sexual torment, fake BDSM that is actual just abuse/grooming, and light gore.
Trigger Warning For: rape, sexual torment, fake BDSM that is actual just abuse/grooming, and light gore.
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