November 2021 Group Read (spoiler thread): The Killer Inside Me, by Jim Thompson

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

spoiler thread for The Killer Inside Me.

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

So, I'm thinking that this must be one of the earliest American novels that is told from the pov of not only a serial killer, but also a serial killer who is completely aware of his own psychopathy.

[Lisa]

Nancy wrote: "So, I'm thinking that this must be one of the earliest American novels that is told from the pov of not only a serial killer, but also a serial killer who is completely aware of his own psychopathy."

I think you're right. It's unflinching and well-written.

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

Also, the ending makes me wonder about all of Lou's narrative -- who is he telling this story to?

[Aditya]

Nancy wrote: "So, I'm thinking that this must be one of the earliest American novels that is told from the pov of not only a serial killer, but also a serial killer who is completely aware of his own psychopathy."

There was In a Lonely Place but Dix probably is not as self-aware as Lou.

I loved the scene where Lou goes to jail to kill the only friend he has. He regrets it but he knows murder is his only option. Lou never kills without a reason, I liked that about him. He kills to save his ass and Thompson's writing makes it appear completely logical. Completely twisted but also makes sense.

[James]

I found it interesting that a couple of members mentioned James M. Cain's The Postman Always Rings Twice and did not mention the obvious borrowing by Thompson from Cain's book.

The narrator of Cain's story was much like the "bum" Lou Ford assaulted at the beginning and later killed. The Greek shop owner's son that Lou took under his wing is similar to the luncheonette owner who is killed during renovations being made to his business.

While the book does seem similar to Dostoevsky's Crime & Punishment, Lou Ford lacks the appeal and self-awareness of Raskolnikov in that he fails to do anything to redeem himself after committing several murders. Thompson is more of The American Dimestore Existentialist by adopting Sartre's humanism with a penchant for creating aphorisms similar to Nietzsche.

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

Aditya wrote: "Nancy wrote: "So, I'm thinking that this must be one of the earliest American novels that is told from the pov of not only a serial killer, but also a serial killer who is completely aware of his o..."

I'd forgotten about In a Lonely Place -- 1947, predating this one.

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

James wrote: "I found it interesting that a couple of members mentioned James M. Cain's The Postman Always Rings Twice and did not mention the obvious borrowing by Thompson from Cain's book.

The narrator of Cai..."

It's been eons since I've read Postman Always Rings Twice, but if/when I reread it, I'll keep Thompson in the back of my head.

[aPriL does feral sometimes]

Thompson seems to want to make readers complicit in having sympathy for a manipulative serial killer.