Review: Great Plot! Unforgettable Heroes! All Heart!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 07 9, 2013
ReviewThe concept for Brothers and Bones jumped out at me because of it's every man appeal. Who couldn't like a story about an orphaned brother who desperately wants to find the other after he's been missing for thirteen long years? The story has heart and it never stops. I fell in love with the main character, a lawyer named Charlie Beckham who searches for his brother, Jake, and not just because of the sad luck story, but the raw unbending passion in Charlie. He wouldn't give up. Sure, he makes some poor choices throughout the book, but that made him flawed, and nothing beats a hero with a little grit on him.By the end, Charlie started to look like Bonz, the homeless man who became an unlikely helper in helping him find his brother. I loved Bonz, a bit more of an onion than Charlie. Bonz's layers kept peeling off as the plot unfolded. Bonz never gave up, having a great set of reasons for doing so, even though the stakes kept getting higher for Charlie and him.The pacing of the book was exquisite, starting out with the right amount of mystery to lure you into the main plot of finding Jake and then, slowly building up until it became a fast paced ride down the biggest granddaddy of all roller coasters. Even then, when the pacing elevated there were valleys of rest, smaller ones, yes, but places where the reader and main character relaxed.  I recently read a terrific book titled, "Techniques of the Selling Writer," where it discusses how to keep the action rising and how to create peaks and valleys.In the end, Brothers and Bones worked for me. The plot tied together from beginning to end, no loose strings and the characterization of the main characters Bonz and Charlie is excellent.