Review: Seriously Good
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 28, 2011
I'm no stranger to first novels.Twice, I've served on juries where our task was to recognize the "Best Mystery/Thriller Novel Of The Year".Both times, it involved the reading of books written by well-over 100 debut authors.Few of them were anywhere near as good as Wild Bill.And none were significantly better."Wild Bill" is as lean as a whippet.Dana King, the author, is a guy who has a natural talent for making every word count.Characters in the books of many first-timers are often about as substantial as cardboard. And just as appetizing.That's not the case with King.His voice is original.And he's really good at grasping clichés and turning them inside-out.As a matter of fact, the only bad thing I can say about "Wild Bill" (and I'm trying really hard now) is that, personally, I don't like the way it ends.Not that King ended it badly. He didn't. But the story didn't come out the way I'd hoped it would.Which, in a way, is another good thing to say about it.Because my investment in the characters was great enough for me to care.And, when it comes to first novels, that doesn't happen all that often either.