Separating You

Yes, that's right, a self-help book by a serial killer to you, his potential disciple. I'm sure nothing can go wrong.

Dr. Jason Carson takes us step by step telling us how to be more like him. Well at first he does. He often goes on ego-driven and way, way out there tirades on how he is God and you are a stupid weak person for believing him. Which is fine, you the (fictional) reader certainly would be.

He divides the world into two types of people, Heroes, and Victims. Naturally, he is a Hero for the things he does. Taking what he wants and savoring living. As he gives his lessons and manipulates the reader we see into a seriously messed up mind.

As this is satire (probably) it's very tongue in cheek at times, but switches back and forth from dark comedy to something quite disturbed at a moment's notice. He describes many violent acts against people and some very gruesome stuff about animals. It's not just the violence, he has many weird issues he goes on and on about.

He's obsessed with body parts, relishes the smell of rotting corpses, and glorifies charismatic con artists who use and abuse people to get what they want. He tells us stories from his life where he takes extreme lengths to get his kill such as losing a lot of weight to slip into the back of someone's vehicle.

There are sections where we take a little timeout and get a SURVEY where scenarios are presented to us and we are tested with three multiple-choice options based on what was said, one of course always being very bizarre and the “Hero” thing to do.

As it goes on he gives us a complete look into everything that made him how he is, even if he won't admit he was created that way by things that had happened to him and not born, or perhaps he just can't even comprehend that. Many of the typical tropes are in there but it's all cleverly shown to you.

The only problem this really has is that is it is limited by the very concept of it. It was not hard to guess what the outcome of his self-help would be and his ramblings get a little repetitive. But otherwise, it was very well written and done and the dark humor is enjoyable granted you can stomach the incredibly disturbing subject matter.