Waggoner, Tim: Cross County
Cross County
Writer: Tim Waggoner
Genre: Mystery/Horror
Pages: 76/325 (ARC)
Disclaimer: received ARC from Wizards of the Coast Discoveries via LibraryThing Early Reviewers
My Rating
Couldn't Finish It: Tim Waggoner is one of the mentors in Seton Hill's Writing Popular Fiction Program, and he seems like a cool guy. When this book was offered as part of LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program, I thought I might as well take this free opportunity to read Waggoner's work.
Unfortunately, nothing about this book grabbed my attention. The first chapter reminded me very much of Mary SanGiovanni's The Hollower (and I mean that in a good way), but the whole premise of what appears to be a copycat of an executed serial murderer in a town where a SINGLE FAMILY is pretty much GOD in terms of power, well, it didn't take long for me to tire of it. It's not to say initial core elements weren't interesting: like Sheriff Joanne Talon's mysterious kidnapping as a child that she doesn't remember but somehow came out of it with a kind of psychic power and how reporter Dale Ramsey fits into all of it. But that's pretty much canceled out by the fact that the Cross family is a very cruel family indeed, and their power extends beyond wealth--they too seem to have some kind of psychic/mind-control, of course, they always put it to good use, right? As of page 76, not so much, and I think I've reached the point in fiction where that specific speculative element alone kind of bores me, and that's a personal thing and no fault of the author.
I don't know. It just didn't catch my interest, and the writing style, while fine and clean, wasn't unique enough to really make me pay attention and keep reading despite my lack of interest in the plot, characters, setting, the works.
That doesn't mean I won't try Waggoner's work in the future. I'd like too, but I think I'll go with one of his more popular, critically acclaimed works rather than on something that's brand-new like this and hasn't had a chance to prove itself.
Next up:
Review: Uglies by Scott Westerfield
Book: Zoe's Tale by John Scalzi
Graphic Novel: V for Vendetta by Alan Moore