So, I skipped the trendy books like "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" on my recent few days away to the beach though it is on my "to read" list and chose a little known novel that has the distinction of being the Wal-Mart read of the month. "The Last Child", a novel by John Hart, made it's way into my shopping cart and ultimately into my beach bag. This is not a traditional novel to bring to the beach but as I'm not a traditional person, I gave it a go and read it on the sand in the sunshine. The novel chronicles young Johnny's search for his missing twin, Alyssa Merrimon, who was snatched in broad daylight one year before. His mother is now emotionally absent, a victim of a bad relationship, booze and drugs. His father seemingly abandoned the family and Johnny's search is not only for his missing sister but for the reinstatement of family. On his bicycle, he pedals through the streets of town, to it's darkest corners as he faces evil and learns that people are not always what they seem to be and circumstances are never black and white. The cop assigned to the case and still haunted by it, watches over Johnny.
"The Last Child", though not great literature, is a good read and it took me all of 24 hours to finish it. It twists. It turns and Hart does a good job of tying all his loose ends but, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of disappointment at the way that the loose ends were tied together and the conclusion was not quite the thrill that I had hoped for. Nevertheless, it's a great light reading, easy to get into, not too deep, and good fare for vacation reading, commuter train reading, sitting in the Dr's office waiting reading and everywhere else.
No comments:
Post a Comment