Book Review | Fender Lizards by Joe R. Lansdale

Fender Lizards is a coming of age novel from Joe R. Lansdale.

The unmistakable accent of the Piney Woods of East Texas rolls from the pages of Fender Lizards, Joe R. Lansdale’s tale of the life and love and work of one Dot Sherman, who delivers on her promise that her story is “the real thing from beginning to end.”

Dot waitresses on roller skates at the Dairy Bob, doesn’t care for smoking at least partly on account of her dad having never returned from a cigarette run, and carries on the family tradition of philosophizing. Life hasn’t done her any favors in her seventeen years so far. But if there was ever a heroine built for turning things upside down and seeing what shakes out, it’s Dot. Determined to find out who she is and why she’s the way she is, an opportunity presents itself when her heretofore-unknown uncle suddenly moves his camper into the front yard.

As in his classic novels The Bottoms and The Magic Wagon, multiple-award-winning Lansdale instills place with character and character with place. Here is an overlooked world and a cast of real folks that prove unforgettable, all rendered in one of American fiction’s most authentic voices.

Fender Lizards is the story of how Dot came to be in the roller derby.

Reading about roller derby is like reading about quidditch in Harry Potter or stopping in the middle of Twilight for a long game of baseball. It's not an exciting time. (Is it taboo to make references to Twilight? Sorry.) Some of you will know what I mean.

I'm from Southeast Texas so Lansdale automatically puts me at home. I can hear and feel East Texas in his writing. This is a big plus for me.

I loved the characters in Fender Lizards. Dot was definitely the heart of the story. Fender Lizards was much more about Dot and her family than it was about her joining the roller derby, but that aspect bored me so I'm harping on it.

Overall, Fender Lizards was a decent read. I didn't love it. I felt like I wanted more to be happening. It was easy to put down, and it took longer than it should have for me to finish it. I didn't dislike it, either, though. It reinforced the fact that I need to be reading a lot more Lansdale outside of my Hap and Leonard binges.

5/10: Decent Read

Book Review: The Five by Robert McCammon

The Five is the latest novel from Robert McCammon.

Book Description

Subterranean Press is proud to present Robert McCammon's first contemporary novel in nearly two decades, a tale of the hunt and unlikely survival, of the life and soul, set against a supernatural backbeat. Robert McCammon, author of the popular Matthew Corbett historical thrillers (Speaks the Nightbird, Mister Slaughter), now gives us something new and completely unexpected: The Five, a contemporary novel as vivid, timely, and compelling as anything he has written to date.

The Five tells the story of an eponymous rock band struggling to survive on the margins of the music business. As they move through the American Southwest on what might be their final tour together, the band members come to the attention of a damaged Iraq war veteran, and their lives are changed forever.

The narrative that follows is a riveting account of violence, terror, and pursuit set against a credible, immensely detailed rock and roll backdrop. It is also a moving meditation on loyalty and friendship, on the nature and importance of families those we are born into and those we create for ourselves and on the redemptive power of the creative spirit. Written with wit, elegance, and passionate conviction, The Five lays claim to new imaginative territory, and reaffirms McCammon's position as one of the finest, most unpredictable storytellers of our time.

I'm kicking off the first official review in The Great McCammon Read with  Robert McCammon's The Five. I've been holding on to The Five since its release in May waiting for the weather to turn cooler, the nights to grow longer, and to get the general "the timing is right" feel. (I clearly have reader issues.)

One thing I love about McCammon is how different each of his works are from one another. It feels like it's always about the story and not about being pidgeonholed into a genre. As usual, I can't pidgeonhole this one. It's contemporary, it's thriller, it's horror. More importantly, it's a really great story.

Despite how unpredictable and intense The Five is, McCammon managed to create this intimate, gradual pacing throughout the entire novel. I was invested in the band, invested in the story, and I felt like I was invested in the fate of the world.

The Five is a story of good versus evil, light versus dark, family, sacrifice, and the power of music.

The end of The Five evoked a lot of emotion in me which was awesome. I don't normally cry in a book (unless a dog dies!), but the end was a wonderful personification of The Five's story and a testament to McCammon's epic storytelling.

I'd recommend McCammon to anyone, but I'm especially recommending The Five to those who have a heart for music.

8/10: Great Read

The Great McCammon Read

Plan on reading The Five? Let me know if you post/have posted a McCammon review somewhere so I can point folks to it. You can find all the details of The Great McCammon Read here. Next month I'll be reading and reviewing Mystery Walk if you'd like to join me!

Review: The Room at the Bottom of the Stairs by Robert McCammon

The Room at the Bottom of the Stairs is a Michael Gallatin* novella from Robert McCammon.  *The werewolf from McCammon's The Wolf's Hour.

The Room at the Bottom of the Stairs was originally published with the recent limited edition of The Wolf's Hour.  If the limited edition is not in your possession - perhaps like me you already own an older edition of The Wolf's Hour - I have great news for you.  Subterranean Press has The Room at the Bottom of the Stairs available on their website for free.

Description

“The Room at the Bottom of the Stairs” tells of an impossible, ultimately tragic love affair set in the embattled city of Berlin during the latter stages of World War II. 

The Room at the Bottom of the Stairs is a stand alone novella.  You don't have to read The Wolf's Hour in order to enjoy The Room at the Bottom of the Stairs.

It is no surprise (to me) that I enjoyed The Room at the Bottom of the Stairs. My only regret is this intense longing for more.  I can only imagine that is Subterranean Press's evil plan in offering this novella for free.

The Room at the Bottom of the Stairs will be re-released as part of The Hunter from the Woods due out in November.  The Hunter from the Woods contains a total of six Michael Gallatin stories.

If you are a fan of McCammon or want a great (free!) Nazi Gestapo romance thriller with a touch of lycanthropy - download The Room at the Bottom of the Stairs here.