The Pros & Cons

I flew through this book in record time. It felt much shorter than its actual length due to the short, choppy chapters and fast-paced writing. It starts off a little slow but quickly picks up pace and strength as the writing flows. It begins as a simple tale: a weirdo seeking justice, and then when he picks the wrong guy to mess with… it goes dark, and fast. I didn’t expect it to get that dark, but it was a welcome surprise!

I’ve read other reviews mentioning the main character’s poor judgement and actions, and I agree… but characters aren’t there to be perfect or knowledgeable or (to put it bluntly) that bright. They’re just people, and people can be misguided, foolish and rash. Which he is. Case in point: it’s one thing to overshare to just about everyone about his “hobby”… but it’s another thing entirely to announce himself to the predators he targets.

I’d hoped he’d remain anonymous and that the “bad guy” would track him down in spite of that… but it was far too easy for him to wind up paying the price for his stupidity. This was my only sticking point… but still, I put it into perspective as I read. This is a twenty-something-year-old guy with serious emotional damage from his past. He’s not going to be the most eloquent, thoughtful or forward-thinking, so he’s not likely to be the most sympathetic character. Readers… deal with it! 😛

Kyle is NOT the typical hero figure, and for half of the book I was wondering if he’d been mistaken about his father, or if his motives were cloudier than his own concept of himself as a vigilante hero. The writer leaves you guessing right up until the end. There are head-spinning twists and turns that leave you breathless, and thankfully the payoff is a satisfactory ending despite the journey that had its gut-wrenching moments.

From the way it was going, I was actually expecting a darker end (and that could have easily worked in this instance) but there was a blossoming emotion of levity after all that heavy darkness — a bit *too* saccharine-sweet maybe, given the emotional thrill of a rollercoaster that preceded it. That’s a really, really tiny gripe though.

Conclusion

This was overall a stellar read, with a refreshing writing style and a plot with enough of a punch to keep the reader intrigued from beginning to end. I’ll recommend to anyone that can stomach a darker tale.

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