Very average

With a little research it can be found that Brad Smith is very popular in some sections of the reading public. Personally I have never before come across the author or any of his works so this was my first exposure to his writing.

Apparently he likes old movies, thinks strong women are sexy and often writes about retired athletes. His most recent novel contains none of the above and may therefore be the poorer because of it.

The novel is monochrome and monotone. There is absolutely no light or shade and is written on entirely one level. A small group of small time crooks believe that just because the owner of a small farm is a local TV celebrity she will be rich beyond the dreams of avarice. They need money quickly as the proceeds of a drug deal have been gambled away and the dealer is pressing for his money. The plot then focuses on their actions when they effectively kidnap the three people on the farm and the follow up of chase, capture and trial.

Insufficient attention is paid to the development of the main characters. The reader therefore has difficulty in relating to those characters and has few feelings towards them. There is no mystery. The perpetrators are known so it is just a question of how and if they will be brought to justice.

There is nothing wrong with the writing itself which flows well and is logical, although the logic of some of the actions of a couple of individuals could legitimately be challenged. Unfortunately, there is no passion and the reader is not driven to turn the page. The characters are two dimensional and grey; cardboard cut outs rather than fully fleshed-out personalities. The story was neither life affirming nor inspiring; it didn’t inform, nor did it entertain.

Finally my bete noir is the use of the plural form of the verb after “none”. The book was littered with “none were…..” which is inexcusable in today’s world of auto correction. It also jars and spoils any reading experience.

So - 3 stars. Could do better.

mr zorg

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.