Review: An unforgettable, white-knuckle reading experience
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 02 18, 2014
Now, this is a book I’d really love to be made into a movie. Lena Jo Mccoy’s ‘Special Run’ is one of those stories you wished you’ve written yourself—and yet I’m only glad that someone as gifted a storyteller as Lena has beat me to writing it.The plot of ‘Special Run’ is unique, even quirky. Katrina Ormstead is the kind of botanist who isn’t afraid of straddling that fine line between what’s legal and not. Experimenting with breeding a special kind of marijuana for medical purposes, she succeeds in creating an astonishing variety that can only be described as “super hash.” But soon after, Katrina is murdered, with her dog Special witnessing the ghastly spectacle. Now Special is dying to “tell” Katrina’s best friend, Wheat Keigwin, what she has seen and who deserves to go to jail—except it’s no easy feat as Wheat has a deep-set fear of dogs, especially a menacing wolf-dog hybrid like Special. What follows is an endearing, unforgettable story that will tug at your heartstrings and will make you look at your pet dogs in a new light—I know I did.As I’ve said, this is a book that deserves a film version. But then again, there is so much more in Lena Jo McCoy’s writing that may be lost in the translation from book to movie—the author has a knack for dialogue, a rare gift of painting even the tightest, suspenseful scenes in a way that makes you forget the barrier between book and human. The author’s writing “shoves” you into the book’s world, letting you inhabit it, feeling the character Wheat Keigwin’s pulse race as she tries to work frantically with her deceased best friend’s dog to find justice. Now this is a story I can believe in.Let me suffice it to say that I love this book to shreds. ‘Special Run’ is one those stories that will haunt you even long after you’ve read it—especially to those like me who love dogs (I own five choco Labs and one Lhasa Apso, by the way).  I will buy Lena Jo McCoy’s next book in a heartbeat. Get a copy of this today—I mean it. You will enjoy it. And if you send this as a gift to friends and loved ones, they will enjoy it too. A well-deserved five-star rating for this one.