In a kingdom of merciless tyrants Jebel Rum's family is honored as royalty because his father is the executioner. But Rashed Rum is near retirement. And when he goes there will be a contest to determine his successor. It is a contest that thin puny Jebel has no chance of winning. Humiliated and ashamed Jebel sets out on a quest to the faraway home of a legendary fire god to beg for inhuman powers so that he can become the most lethal of men. He must take with him a slave named Tel Hesani to be sacrificed to the god. It will be a dark and brutal journey filled with lynch mobs suicide cults terrible monsters and worse monstrous men. But to Jebel the risk is worth it. To retrieve his honor . . . To wield unimaginable power . . . To become . . . The thin executioner Inspired by the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn international bestselling master of horror Darren Shan takes readers on a thrilling fast-paced journey into a nightmarish world where compassion and kindness are the greatest crimes of all.