Dave is finally happy after restarting is life after his fiancee was killed in a car accident in which he was driving. He has a new girlfriend, a good job, but three bullet holes suddenly appear in his car and the people at his high school reuinion have no idea who he is. Then strange letters and texts arrive. As the danger mounts, Dave tries to figure out who is trying to ruin his life.

I wanted to like this so bad but there is something about the writing that’s so damn dry. This guy is being (spoilers??) shot at, poisoned, hunted down, framed for crimes he didn’t commit, and he comes off as if all of this is a minor inconvenience to him. He’s just overall too chill about everything going on around him and since he didn’t care, I didn’t either. I was just killing time until the final reveal which I guess makes sense but like I said, I wasn’t that invested. 3 out of 5.

Thanks to NetGalley and ReAnimus Press for a free digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Publication of this title is scheduled for Nov. 1, 2018.

Dave Barlow, an almost 30-year-old financial advisor in Colorado Springs who has an obsession with Bolivia, narrates this story, which starts with two bullet holes in his new car followed by his attendance at his 10-year college reunion where no one recognizes him and he doesn't appear to exist. This set the whole plot in motion and had the potential to be a really good book, but it moved much too quickly into being unbelievable.

As events unfold, it is clear that someone is out to destroy Dave's life - personally and professionally. We get a clue very early in the book regarding who the culprit might be, but even though Dave is telling the story, he doesn't seem to come to the same conclusion as the reader. This book also employs the unfortunately often used plot line that the police are too busy and/or incompetent to solve crimes so the narrator must do it himself because he has more motivation to solve the crime himself. The issue here is that Dave doesn't have any background that would lend itself to him being a superior detective. I'm not saying financial advisors aren't smart, but they're not detectives. And Dave does a lot of law-breaking while he's gathering evidence, which would never hold up, and that doesn't seem to factor in at any point in the book. In addition, Dave withdraws a large sum of money from his bank account at a time in the story where it would be necessary for him to have readily available cash. Without spoiling anything, we're told at one point that he has now lost the money that was left in his car, but the amount he would need to buy all of the things he buys is probably more than would comfortably fit in his wallet. He just seems to have an endless supply of cash, and I couldn't reconcile that.

Another challenge I had with this was the character development, which was pretty much non-existent. The characters were completely unsympathetic and no one had any back story to speak of. The reader has no idea of how the characters got where they are in the present day. We learn a little bit about Dave's history only in that it is necessary for us to understand what's happening to him now (although I'm not sure that constant references to PTSD advanced the story at all), but there is no depth to the characters and I don't feel bad or good about any of them. I didn't care if Dave ever found out who was behind his troubles. I was curious about the motivation behind them, but it certainly didn't drive me to keep turning pages until I finished. I finished when I finished. I really wasn't in any hurry.

The writing style left a lot to be desired. I know this author has been nominated for awards for some of his science fiction work, and I haven't read anything of his before, but the writing style in this feels amateurish and stilted. And there were several instances where it seemed like he was trying to be funny or use innuendo that just fell flat. As I mentioned earlier, the author seems to be obsessed with Bolivia. There are 10 separate references to fleeing to Bolivia, heading to Bolivia, what do you think of Bolivia. Because clearly if you want to escape your current life, Bolivia must be the place to go?

Finally, this could do with a huge editing job because the details around where Dave is driving and what Dave is seeing are all too much. I believe in authors setting a scene, but if you don't live in Colorado Springs, you won't get many of these references and they're too much detail for anyone who doesn't live in Colorado Springs and has no frame of reference. Every time Dave got in the car to drive somewhere, I felt like I was reading Mapquest.
"I swung by my house to get my workout clothes and then drove up Centennial and then across on Vindicator to a strip mall anchored by a Safeway."
"Bruce lived in a neighborhood called Holland Park, on the west side, a few miles north of the parking lot I was in. I got onto I-25 and got off where Fillmore climbed to the west, one of the steepest major roads in the Springs. I made my way north through an idle construction zone, keeping watch for anyone following me. To the north, Centennial Boulevard swung downward in a gentle curve through the Holland Park neighborhood. I passed Hans Brinker and Amstel without seeing any windmills or dikes. Next was Amsterdam Drive and I took a right. One of the houses near the intersection had tulips growing in the front yard."

And then there were the weather reports: "The day was moderate, partly cloudy. White, puffy clouds, not thick, dark, lowering clouds." I really don't need that to set the scene.

All in all, if you're a fan of this author, you might enjoy this book more than I did. Otherwise, I recommend taking a pass.

Dave Barlow was fine until he saw two bullet holes in his car. Another reminder of Allison, his fiancé, who perished in an auto accident a year ago. Dave had been the driver of the automobile. He was now with Cathy, a veterinarian, with whom he has great feelings for.

Cathy and Dave attend his class reunion - no one was familiar- he was not even allowed entrance! Cathy became overly angry and defensive to Dave about this. They parted ways. (The real reunion was LAST weekend).

This is only the beginning of Dave's nightmarish existence. His car and his house are ruined, He was poisoned, shot at, tailed and hit by an oncoming SUV. He ends up living in a motel, and then in his (third) rental car. Finally, he is mainly with the clothes on his back. Holly, who he has befriended, helps Dave out through thick and thin.

Dave suspects Ben, his fiancé's father and/or Kevin, Allison's, brother-in-law of being behind this mess. All Dave had were some pointed pictures and videos of his debacle.

Finally, Dave meets up with the "slim man" and things go haywire from there...


Many thanks to NetGalley and ReAnimus Press for an interesting read.

First review of this book ,usually a lovely privilege, but here more like a caution. Zero familiarity with the author’s work prior to this, but there were all those award nominations like Nebula and the plot sounded intriguing enough. Should have passed. Almost did, because nowhere was the page count for this one mentioned and I absolutely hate committing (to books in this instance) without knowing the duration of the commitment. Actually by my estimate this one is about 350 pages or so, which for something of this quality is much too long. Initially it seems like there might be a potentially interesting thriller material, but it quickly dissolves into an implausible convoluted plot, inane two dimensional characters and strictly pedestrian narrative. Maybe the author’s forte was science fiction and this venture into a different genre didn’t pan out, maybe this is a one off or maybe it just wasn’t meant to be all that good. It’s very personal according to the afterword (and tragically sad at that), but sincerity doesn’t translate into quality. Basic plot involves a 28 year old financial expert who has moved on from the tragic death of his fiancé in a car crash to being in love yet again with a woman whose only reliable description is consistently upbeat and has done so in a span of a mere year (this causes much contention in the book, but let’s face it, it is pretty freaking soon). Suddenly terrible things start to occur in his life one after another and (because the police prove hugely ineffective) he decides to solve this personally and then goes on to do so, despite being repeatedly attacked, shot, etc. and, of course, without any prior crime solving experience. Not that he needs it, because there are women all around him apparently unable to resist his nonexistent charm and they assist him in any way they can. Like you’d see with a more heroic protagonist. This guy just isn’t all that, he isn’t even particularly clever or funny, although he tries for funny. Mostly he’s just cheery, inappropriately so considering his circumstances, almost like someone told him he’ll bounce right out of all this into some sort of a happy place. His backup plan is Bolivia (something that’s mentioned with exasperating frequency), because nothing attracts a well to do American like a country with crazy high poverty rates and relatively low life quality index. Anyway, you can pretty much guess the outcome, including the ludicrously happy ending, because of the sort of book it is. The low hanging fruit kind of book. The one that isn’t clever or challenging in any way and therefore can be categorized as an easy reading sort of pablum. The only thing that seems to be well done here is the descriptions of surroundings, streets, scenery, etc., so it’s actually more of a guided tour than a thriller if one must go by quality alone. Mind you, it is readable, the way stupid tv shows are watchable, but it really just seems like a phoned in affair, so utterly lackluster, any potential squandered, any premise smooshed by mediocre writing, this is essentially the Bolivia of a suspense thriller, nice scenery, low quality of life. Cheap, cheesy, lite and easy, not worth the time and is bound to be forgotten almost immediately afterwards. Thanks Netgalley.