A Cruel Season for Dying Mass Market Paperback – May 1, 2004

Received in good condition. Great mystery story line

If we could give stars for books like they do for children's toys, for writing I would give Moore a five. This was a quick book for me but a rough one too. This book is not a mystery, but rather what one reviewer calls a 'crime procedural.' I don't read real crime very often, and reading mysteries tends to give the feeling of unreality. I've often questioned why so many people including me enjoy mysteries. It seems rather odd that we enjoy reading about murder, yet in mysteries it is not the murder itself that is important, it's the solution to the murder and whether that solution makes any sense.In a book like this one, that sense of unreality is gone. I am sure that is Moore's desire. He also gives it a unique viewpoint, that of an Asian-American, so he is breaking sterotypes, but not really, since many of those I know in science and math enjoy puzzles, and murder is the ultimate puzzle.SErial murderers prey on the people least protected, often times. Parts of society in whom serial murders often work, such as prostitutes, tend not to generate an outcry against the brutality by the rest of society. Now the AIDS epidemic has made those who are gay more politically active, and they can raise the cry against such crimes more than before, but still not enough. When a child is involved, the changes the whole scenario, and to an extent, that is not fair.In this book, the detective Sakura, has to deal with this heinous crime as well as meet his wife's needs. He has to play politics, when there is no time for playing politics. What Sakura doesn't know is that the murderer is getting too close to home.An interesting plot, using fallen angels, as the reason for the serial murderer to stalk his victims. The twist does not completely make sense to me, though it might to those who have more knowledge of the apocryphal texts.This is a violent and bloody book. What was very interesting is at the end, not everything is solved. In fact the murders have more impact on each individual involved including Sakura, an FBI mentor, a best friend, and his own wife. Not many books deal with the fall-out from such a crime, and this was well-done.Karen Sadler

I agree with Publisher's Weekly that the non-plot aspects of this novel do not further the plot, which is itself not overly original. And although set in New York City and Japan, neither place was evoked convincingly. Nothing felt like New York, not the streets, the traffic or the people. And the author's Japan is that of stereotype and nostalgia, filled with samurai swords and Buddhist meditation practices. Many of the characters too had this quality to them, such as a stereotyped ambitious woman journalist. Did any of this work to enrich the plot? No, not really.

Oh, wow! This is one sly book. What you think about "A Cruel Season For Dying" tells more about you than it does about the novel. If you're one sort of person, you're going to find nothing more than an extremely engaging, psychologically rich serial murder thriller. But if you're the kind who suspects that the universe is a lot weirder than consensus reality would lead one to believe, then you're in for an incredible ride.

What a well-written-keeps-you-glued-to-your-seat-can't-put-it-down-book! Harker Moore kept me up all night long just so I could finish this engrossing mystery! Can't wait to read more of Harker Moore's books! keep em coming!

The victims share in common that they were gay, killed by the same perp using an unknown source, and swan feathers inserted into slits in their backs to apparently simulate angels. NYPD assigns Japanese-American Lieutenant James Sakura leads the investigation to stop the angelic serial killer.Due to the MO, the media turns the case into a high-profile circus placing pressure on NYPD to solve it yesterday, which leads to the Brass doing likewise to Sakura. He obtains help from others including a Yeshiva University professor, who insists clues can be found in the biblical Book of Enoch. As danger to those he love suddenly surfaces, Sakura knows he must capture the culprit before someone he cherishes dies.Though much of the case comes out of Serial Killer Novel 101, sub-genre readers will enjoy this delightful police procedural due to the lead sleuth. Aspects of Sakura's home life and childhood provide an interesting look at his divided cultural loyalties messing up a mind that prefers order to chaos. However, the gaze into the hero's personal life never unites with the who-done-it, which in spite of its textbook methodology remains fun to follow.Harriet Klausner