"She was ready for a diet. She wouldn't need one where she was going. She was about to catch a ferry across the river Styx" - Edward Caine

Welcome to the mind of serial killer Edward Caine who believes he has a mission to rid of the gene pool of undesirable elements. Those elements would be your ordinary citizens as opposed to the high flyers, vagrants, or anyone else various groups think we would be better off without. Ed isn't simply killing for killing's sake he has a set agenda to help out Mother Nature, though said agenda seems pretty sporadic and random rather than well conceived or planned. To say that Ed is justifying himself would be an understatement. Of course not everything is as it seems, there are few twists in the tale awaiting the reader, just not the one you might be expecting.

We follow Caine as he discovers a knack for killing, that doesn't involve any expertise for firearms, starts to rack up the body count, and naturally goes on a spree as his options dimension. Every step of the way is narrated by Ed who views himself as having a higher purpose yet never misses a chance to pick off the weaker members of the herd and who openly admits to being a coward. Whether you loath or find the character interesting, this is one excursion into the insane that is going to be a hell of a trip for the constant reader.

On a site far far away I commentated that Rob Zombie's remake of Halloween destroyed the myth of Michael Meyers, replacing it with the most puerile take on the modern serial killer it's ever been my misfortunate to watch. In essence Zombie took the standard tropes that are ascribed to serial killers, plasted it on a supernatural character, in the process proving he had no understanding of either serial killers or the horror movie slasher antagonist. In a better universe, one where the likes of Rob Zombie are never allowed behind the camera, author John Podgursky would have been thrown the reigns to the script for the Halloween remake and would have produced a movie to rival John Carpenter's original. Come at me Bro, I'm ready for your outrage over that statement! With The One Percenters Podgursky demonstrates a surprising strength in capturing the insanity of the serial killer, of bringing across the twisted logic that surrounds the most interesting of criminals, and delivers a novel that will have you glued to the page from first paragraph to last paragraph.

Podgursky dispenses with the pop psychology and drives straight downtown to the mind of a killer who shows no remorse and not surprisingly has a twisted sense of morality to what he does. We go from Caine killing a single person, for no apparent reason other than the chance offered itself in a secluded location, to Caine carrying out a random killing spree with no chance of escape as the Police close in. If you have read anything on serial killers you'll note that throughout the novel things escalate, by the final third Caine wants to be caught, even though he would be at pains to deny it. This has a ring of truth to it that immediately indicates the Author has done his research and is crafting a skilful take on the subject matter, rather than throwing some half baked ideas at the page and hoping they will stick.

What intrigued me most about the novel was Caine's justification for his actions, the one percent concept that while having some horrible connotations still manage a morbid curiosity factor. While the character isn't the intellectual a lot of serial killers are, and if push came to shove he's pretty despicable in most things, there's some twisted logic to his thought processes. Clearly irony isn't high on the agenda or self realisation, but exactly what are you expecting from a delusional sociopath? Is that a tautology perchance? Anyways if not into the psychology stuff then this isn't the novel for you, The One Percenters is all about delving into a fractured mind and then, as Author Podgursky unleashes a couple of twists, being floored by how thin a grasp of reality our central character actual has. It's quite a stunning achievement, I for sure didn't see the twist coming as we sunk into Caine's wallowing in self justification.

So the novel is very much structured from Caine's viewpoint, he is the narrator of what you are reading, and his viewpoint is the only one you are going to be getting. While you could try condemning the book for glorifying a killer, that's not actually the intent here, and if that's what you take from reading the novel then you have pretty much missed the point and perhaps skipped a few chapters. Caine isn't the most interesting person on the planet and his constant journeys into the metaphysical do get tiresome after about the fifth reiteration of why he is special and the job that apparently has been preordained for him. Keep with it however, this is an exploration of a disturb individual, the novel does hold together even with the more lurid justifications Caine delivers. Is the character likable in any fashion? Hell no, he's a self justifying non-entity who nearly always takes the most crass or selfish option open to him. You are not going to be leaving this novel with any good thoughts folks, get ready for a pretty gruelling ride.

John W. Podgursky is a half way decent writer, there's some talent shinning through in this novel, but he's been caught up in his own narrative and lets it wallow from time to time. The pacing isn't happening in this one, there's no ability to build things as the pages flow pass, and the ending is something of a disappointment. The One Percenters starts well but the narrative never has a chance to build to something interesting, which definitely lowers the impact of the twists as they start coming at you. Must admit to being bored at stages as the novel seemed to drag on with whole chapters included that should have hit the editing floor. Caine simply isn't an interesting enough character to drive a book to even this length; Podgursky needed a secondary plot line to keep things humming for his reader.

The One Percenters is one of those novels that I alternatively enjoyed, got bored with, and finished up wadding through to get to the final page. While not unenjoyable it certain didn't leave any lasting impression and for sure I'm pleased to have it behind me. Maybe I simply wasn't the target audience for this one. The Author certainly shows he has done his research and keeps his twists close to the chest, but the central character isn't all that interesting end of day besides giving an insight into the mind of a natural born killer. Not going to recommended this one kids, it's well written and certainly has a different slant on things, but it never really rises above it's central idea to any heights. One of those books you end up reading and then forgetting five minutes after finishing.