This book is extremely well-written, suspenseful and entertaining. I couldn’t stop turning pages. I really enjoyed the read.
It also came to the #SPSFC3 with a content warning that was basically a laundry list of the worst ills plaguing modern society. Rape, torture, sex, foul language, child endangerment — you name it, it’s in here.
This is going to be a book that I score differently for the contest than I would anywhere else. For SPSFC, I will score it high. The writing skill displayed here is very very good. Rising action, plot structure, obstacles for the MC to overcome… the author is obviously good at his craft, and I don’t think the book should suffer just because it happened to come across a squeamish judge.
That said, I wouldn’t really recommend this to my own newsletter subscribers. Generally speaking, people are repeat customers of my books precisely because they want an entertainment option where they don’t have to read explicit sex, profanity, and graphic torture scenes.
I’ll also add, this is how a political book should be done. The book has something to say about an issue in modern-day American politics, but it addresses it without sermonizing, without forcing characters to say something they wouldn’t, just to deliver the author’s favorite message. For a reader who’s not hyper-attuned to these things, it might even be possible not to be aware that there’s a value statement going on here. I’m pretty sure I disagree with the author’s politics, but it’s refreshing to see someone write about issues and values without descending into blatant speechmaking from one of his helpless character’s mouths.
If you have the stomach for a graphic serial killer/terrorist story, buy Thrill Switch here.