Review - Schroeder by Neal Cassidy

There's no shame in wondering about the background of people who do terrible things, and the extensive coverage of the lives of shooters, monsters or serial killers in the news, in literature, and especially in cinema is proof of that. Schroeder certainly isn't the first book to explore the mind of a killer, and yet I feel unusually torn thinking about this tormented character and the one fateful day in his life, his very last day after the last straw broke the camel's back.Starting in the morning hours with a dry listing of Schroeder's morning routine, we're then thrown into a wild killing spree, interrupted only by his bike rides during which he provides descriptions of the city, as well as impressions, memories and thoughts inspired by his surroundings. Riding from point A to point B in a clocked, automatic fashion feels almost like in a computer game running from one task to the next and not being able to make sense initially, it is hard to keep up with the mindless killing. That is until the last pages, the pages from the diary of a child growing up which describe the rough start to life he has been given in his family and school. When the reader finishes the last page and closes the book, it leaves a bitter taste, a slightly humming sorrow and a final realization, a sense for what has happened and why.

Cassidy follows an unusual path of very remarkable, almost dramatic, dimensions to tell a story told many times before and it's likely it needs to be read twice subsequently in order to harvest the full scope of satisfaction and gratification this path offers.

Schroeder as a character is smart, thoughtful, contemplative and his deeds feel out of character from the first page, prompting a sense of contradiction in the reader's mind. Almost too relatable, his comments on society, politics and people utterly sensible, he reminds us of the huge potential he bore as a human being and how his spirit was crushed by humans over and over again.

The book is written in the form of stream of consciousness, which is usually a pet peeve of mine, but I reckon the story wouldn't have worked otherwise and it is appropriate here. Looking back, I actually quite like the arrangement which leaves us in the dark concerning the motives of the lead character and providing epiphany in the final pages. I have a little issue with the last chapter, as the parts written in a child's voice with the built-in grammatical errors felt forced and I'm not sure a child that age would make so many writing mistakes. But I'm not a pedagogue and might be wrong. The final violence scenes are a bit over the top for me, but didn't disrupt my reading. So, all in all, this was a very compelling and original read. Plus, that cover is fire!

I have received a review copy for this book which didn't affect my review in any way. My thanks to Neal Cassidy for reaching out and sending me the ARC.