Review: A DEAD GOD
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 12 13, 2011
The genre is a bit difficult to pin down - not sure if you'd call it a western due to the turn of the century setting, or a historical mystery, or perhaps steam punk.The setting is beautifully woven into the narrative, and I infer early 1900 era by several vivid descriptions: "the new, yet already obsolete gas lights, "the once muddy ground was expertly paved with cobblestone", police instead of lawmen, "waves of progress". The unfolding mystery is as expertly drawn as the setting.Thomas "Tom" O'Brien, our MC, is a simple man who owns a small business in town with his partner Nathaniel. One night the O'Malley brothers - the local loan sharks - arrive at Tom's house with Nate and his wife in towe. They force Nate to confess he has borrowed money against the business, and as a object lesson to Thomas, the brothers kill Nate and kidnap Tom's lady love, Mary, to assure he returns with the repayment money by dawn."Recall what I asked you to do should something horrible happen?" Mary reminds out reluctant hero just before she is carted off.And thus starts Thomas' adventure. As the story progresses, he meets a mystery man Charles- a colored man with facial scars that tell their own tale - who uses strange gadgets to guide Thomas through the paths he must undertake to barter the release of his lady love.With each paragraph, a bit more of the mystery is filled in, until finally Thomas must come to his own decisions about the past the Mary and Charles has shared, the true reasoning for the murder and kidnapping, and what he will choose to believe about his own future.I wouldn't consider this novelette action packed, nor would I call it a sweet tale of innocence lost. But to say the mixture isn't a perfect blend of both action/naivete might be an understatement. No matter the usual genre you read in, if you like short stories that draw you into a world and leave you breathless for the next scene, then you'll definitely love A Dead God's Wrath. It is just different enough to satisfy any reader's interest.A note on the artwork: Rusty includes a number of his sketches of the characters and the setting as a bonus at the end of this novelette. He is also the artist for the cover of A Dead God's Wrath. If you stop by his blog to visit, please encourage him to continue to develop his artwork, and to include it in his writings........dhole