Book Review - Running Scared by Ken Douglas
Category Book Review Ken Douglas Running Scared
Another Ken Douglas novel showed up a couple of weeks ago... Running Scared. He writes a really good crime/mystery novel, and I'm grateful to the person who turned me on to his writing. In Running Scared, he places a couple of women in the Caribbean who are being set up for a major crime which they didn't commit (nor do they know why).
Joey's day starts off pretty badly when she wakes up on a sailboat, covered with blood, next to a guy she doesn't remember. She can't ask him either, as his throat has been cut. She doesn't fancy her chances with the authorities since she can't explain what happened. She figures that dumping the body overboard and feigning ignorance might be her best bet. But it becomes apparent that whoever killed the guy in the first place is tracking her also, and she's not sure what she can do about it. Meanwhile, her husband Mick is pursuing a life and agenda that involves marrying a young Brazilian girl, Nina, he got pregnant. When the two women discover and meet each other on board Mick's boat, fireworks should fly. But after comparing notes and stories, they both realize that Mick is true scum, and is probably involved in something highly illegal... maybe even murder. Their best bet is to team up, try to make it to the States, and meet with Mick's parents to get to the bottom of everything. The problem is that a pair of killers seem to be on their trail, often arriving within hours or minutes of where they are at any given time. It is taking every last bit of energy they have (and then some) to stay alive long enough to find answers...
Douglas does a great job of building his characters and giving them life in the pages of the novel. Nina Brava's character is especially engaging, as you watch her shift between her young enthusiasm and her abusive past. You don't find out the real driving force behind all the killings and crimes until pretty late in the novel. I would have preferred learn a little more a little earlier, as it would have likely cranked up my reading speed as I raced to find out how it would end. But even so, it's not something that affected my enjoyment by much.
This is another one of those "leave yourself some reading time" books, as you'll end up spending more time than you probably had allocated. :)
Another Ken Douglas novel showed up a couple of weeks ago... Running Scared. He writes a really good crime/mystery novel, and I'm grateful to the person who turned me on to his writing. In Running Scared, he places a couple of women in the Caribbean who are being set up for a major crime which they didn't commit (nor do they know why).
Joey's day starts off pretty badly when she wakes up on a sailboat, covered with blood, next to a guy she doesn't remember. She can't ask him either, as his throat has been cut. She doesn't fancy her chances with the authorities since she can't explain what happened. She figures that dumping the body overboard and feigning ignorance might be her best bet. But it becomes apparent that whoever killed the guy in the first place is tracking her also, and she's not sure what she can do about it. Meanwhile, her husband Mick is pursuing a life and agenda that involves marrying a young Brazilian girl, Nina, he got pregnant. When the two women discover and meet each other on board Mick's boat, fireworks should fly. But after comparing notes and stories, they both realize that Mick is true scum, and is probably involved in something highly illegal... maybe even murder. Their best bet is to team up, try to make it to the States, and meet with Mick's parents to get to the bottom of everything. The problem is that a pair of killers seem to be on their trail, often arriving within hours or minutes of where they are at any given time. It is taking every last bit of energy they have (and then some) to stay alive long enough to find answers...
Douglas does a great job of building his characters and giving them life in the pages of the novel. Nina Brava's character is especially engaging, as you watch her shift between her young enthusiasm and her abusive past. You don't find out the real driving force behind all the killings and crimes until pretty late in the novel. I would have preferred learn a little more a little earlier, as it would have likely cranked up my reading speed as I raced to find out how it would end. But even so, it's not something that affected my enjoyment by much.
This is another one of those "leave yourself some reading time" books, as you'll end up spending more time than you probably had allocated. :)
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