MERCY AND THE CAT

by Jason McIntyre

Another McIntyre story, another great read.

Mercy and the Cat aroused my curiosity by just reading its appealing, enigmatic title. It’s the third novella I’ve read by this Canadian author and the result is the same as always: I hit me like a juggernaut. Days after finishing it, it stills resounds in my brain.

We have to distinguish two kinds of styles in Jason McIntyre’s works.  On the one hand, you’ve got his long novels, masterfully written and elaborated, with plots and sub-plots, flashbacks and unexpected turns. On the other hand, you’ve got his novellas, which could be described as perfect little jewels, with the same deep depiction of characters that you can find in his longer works but with less meandering plots.  Nevertheless, and despite being a more straightforward story, McIntyre’s style and prose in Mercy and the Cat (or any other novella) is still as elegant, poetic and exquisite as any of his novels.

Mercy and the Cat contains more mature and disturbing contents than any other story I’ve read by this author. However I took this as a positive feature, because when a writer can surprise you and break all your expectations again, you realize that the time you’re investing in reading his work is actually worthy.

In this story we have a troubled main character, Dave Bolander, and the events in a late summer night.   I won’t write anything else about the plot because it’ll spoil the fun to future readers. I’ll just say that, from the very beginning the reader suspects that something’s wrong with him but it’s really difficult to discern what it is. In addition to this, there’s a strong feeling of menace from the very first page, which increases as the story unfolds.

This is a magnificent thriller full of suspense and mystery that will not disappoint any reader of this genre. If you want to read something different, well written and fresh, go ahead and grab this book!

Shadowfres

by Leigh Nichols

Shadowfires was firstly published by Leigh Nichols (one of many Koontz’s pennames) in 1981.  Before starting publishing all his works under his real name, Koontz spent some years using several pseudonyms depending on the type of thriller he wrote. Once his popularity was acknowledged and solid he went on writing as Dean Koontz and published his previous titles again with some polishing and little changes and updates.

I love horror books and thrillers written between the 70s and 80s.  I have nothing against more recent prose, but all those books in that span are for me… special.  Shadowfires fits with the style of the period and fulfilled all my expectation.

To tell you the truth, when facing a book by this author my expectations are not high. But on the other hand, he’s never disappointed me.  It’s something that never happens with any other writer. What do I mean by this? Well, before turning the very first page I know that in that book there will be a male and female characters who either met and fall in love with each other along the vicissitudes of the story; or they are married and without problems in paradise. Some books may include an extremely intelligent (Labrador) dog in between. On the other hand, you have the bad guy who is… well, really wicked. From page two, the happy couple is chased by the bad guy in a breathless pursuit and for very different reasons. At the end of the story the good guys survive and the bad ones bite the dust or eat the dirt sandwich.

If you’ve got to this paragraph you may think I strongly dislike Koontz.

WRONG!

I love his books because they deliver what I need at certain moments: action and entertainment.  I also love his high quality prose, his wonderful choice of words and his perfectly written sentences.

Shadowfires satisfied all my expectations and had all the ingredients that I described above (no dog ths time, though.) It was that kind of book I needed the moment I chose it. 

This is classic Koontz and I recommend it to anyone interested in reading non-stop thrillers. I would have given this novel 5 out of 5 stars if the ending would have been a bit more elaborated. After more than 400 pages of pursuits, action and cliffhangers the conclusion and fate of the characters come in no more than a couple of pages.

So if you want a rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

The Chimera Vector

by Nathan M. Farrugia

The Chimera Vector is the first installment in the Fifth Column Series by the author Nathan M. Farrugia. It describes the adventures of Sofia and her workmates, a military elite whose DNAs have been altered in order to enhance their senses and skills. They all belong to the Fifth Column, a secret agency with very dubious intentions.

Farrugia delivers the story at a very fast pace, which makes the book enjoyable and an authentic page-turner.  The Chimera Vector is far from being a simple spy, action-packed novel, as it has countless twists and turns, which engages the reader in a complex plot that not only gradually unveils the mysterious ways of The Fifth Column but also the characters’ past lives as well.  The sense of not knowing who is evil and who’s really good is just sublime and pushes the reader to go on with the book.

The book also deals with interesting conspiracy theories about a new world order and psychopaths being at the highest echelons of power in its storyline.

I must admit that, even though I don’t usually read too many books of this genre, I actually enjoyed this one and the way it is written.  I’ll definitely read the next books in the series!

The Devil’s Right Hand

by Jason McIntyre

This novel is the fourth installment in the The Night Walk Men series but it can be read without having gone through the previous ones.

The Devil’s Right Hand has two plot levels that run interlacing with each other along the story. On the one hand you have Benton Garamond’s story, who wades through a long, hard path towards his vendetta against Donovan Lo, for reasons I’ll leave to future readers to find out. On the other hand you have the story of the Night Walk Men, entities of another world whose work is to interact surreptitiously with human beings (in this case Garamond and the rest of characters in this story) and their fate.

The story is delivered by Sperro, one of the Night Walk Men involved in the events, whose voice is addressed to both characters and readers, the latter being most of the time his main audience, sipping sweet or spicy cups of tea brewed by him. Sperro unfolds the events in a gradual way, creating expectation in his listeners/readers, taking his time to depict characters and events in a skillful way, as if giving jigsaw puzzle pieces that come together little by little until the listeners/readers get the whole picture at the end. This is why The Devil’s Right Hand is a good, challenging reading with a rewarding, satisfying ending.

The book is full of suspense, action and mystery, but at the same time deals with some serious topics such as destiny and parental responsibilities. The idea of our fate being in the hands of some beings (The Night Walk Men) whose duty is to follow “the Word” from higher echelons in their hierarchy is just terrifying and fascinating. On the other hand, like I said above, the topic of parents and their influence on their children’s future is an important one here, as it is the reason for all the events to happen, not only in the human dimension but also in the Night Walk Men’s world.

Once again McIntyre offers the readers a catalogue of interesting characters that are depicted in depth and detail. Indeed they are so well developed that readers won’t forget them easily. But apart from the treatment of characters, another aspect in favor of this novel is the degree of the readers’ involvement of the story, as they are constantly addressed by the narrator. It’s as if they were sitting by Sperro, who is telling the story to them orally, as in ancient times.

In conclusion, this book is one of the most original and fascinating works I’ve ever read in a long, long time.  McIntyre manages again a literary jewel with his well-crafted prose and his unique imagination. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes original plots, mystery, suspense and some food for thought at the same time.

You can find the book in digital format at www.amazon.com

The author's website: www.theFarthestReaches.com