New York: Ballantine Books, 2007-07-31. Mass Market Paperback. Good. 6x4x1. No Stock Photos! We photograph every item. spine creasing, edge wear; The streets of Philadelphia are blistering in the summer heat, the homicide rate is soaring and the nights belong to the mad. Detectives Kevin Byrne and Jessica Balzano are prowling the streets with a growing sense of unease. Where next will evil rear its ugly head? When a series of seemingly unrelated crimes shatter the restless silence of the city, their worst fears are confirmed. A beautiful secretary is slashed to death in a grimy motel shower. A street hustler brutally murdered with a chainsaw. Piece by piece, a strange and sickening puzzle presents itself: someone is meticulously recreating Hollywood's most well-known and horrifying murder scenes, capturing them on film and inserting the clips into videos - for an unsuspecting public to find. While Kevin Byrne begins furtive investigations of his own, Jessica Balzano goes undercover to work the steaming back alleys of Philadelphia, entering a violent world of underground film, pornography and seedy nightclubs, hidden to all but the initiated. Discovering that none of The Actor's victims are as innocent as they appear to be, the two detectives arrive at a terrifying reality: They are not just chasing a homicide suspect. They are stalking evil itself ...

Synopsis

With the breakneck pacing and intricate plotting of his most recent novel, The Rosary Girls, Richard Montanari established himself as one of the most exciting suspense writers working today. Now he proves himself a virtuoso with The Skin Gods, an explosive new thriller featuring Philadelphia homicide detectives Kevin Byrne and Jessica Balzano.It is the steaming heart of summer in the City of Brotherly Love. Back on the force after taking a bullet during the arrest of a sadistic murderer, Detective Kevin Byrne warily returns to police headquarters. He cannot shake the memory of the Rosary Killer's innocent victims--or his growing sense that the evil has not been vanquished. And when he and his partner, Detective Jessica Balzano, are called in on a bizarre case, Byrne's gravest suspicions are confirmed.A madman, dubbed The Actor by the homicide unit, is meticulously re-creating Hollywood's most famous--and most gruesome--death scenes. The first murder is caught on film, spliced into a rented VHS edition of the Hitchcock black-and-white masterpiece Psycho. But in place of Janet Leigh is a real-life woman, and this time, the blood is red and the knife is real. Soon, more thrilling classics are turned into terrifying snuff films and placed on video store shelves for an unsuspecting public to find. The key to this horrific puzzle could lie with any of The Skin Gods' supporting cast: the A-list Hollywood director, the ruthless executive assistant, the convicted mass murderer--or perhaps someone else who has made a sinister art of gruesome violence.Hot on the psychopath's trail, Balzano and Byrne descend into the mouth of madness and beyond, deep into the depraved underworld of S&M clubs and the porn industry, where the worship of flesh leads to malevolent evil. Before the final credits roll, the investigators will discover that none of The Actor's victims are as innocent as they appear to be, and that the clue the police need to prevent future murders might be found in Detective Byrne's own dark past.From the Hardcover edition.

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Details

Bookseller: Kayleighbug Books (US)
Bookseller's Inventory #: 027596
Title: The Skin Gods: A Novel
Author: Montanari, Richard
Format/Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Book Condition: Used - Good
Quantity Available: 1
Binding: Paperback
ISBN 10: 0345470982
ISBN 13: 9780345470980
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Place of Publication: New York
Date Published: 2007-07-31
Size: 6x4x1
Bookseller catalogs: Mystery & Thrillers;
X weight: 7 oz

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Spine: The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
Mass Market: Mass market paperback books, or MMPBs, are printed for large audiences cheaply. This means that they are smaller, usually 4...