Lucky – Garret Pomichter
*** 3/5 STARS
War hero Will Marks otherwise known as Lucky returns from the battlefield and trenches of World War II to LA. Eager to reprise his role within the LAPD he soon becomes frustrated with the mollycoddling, having been assigned desk duty until he is “ready”. His superiors not quite grasping that by surviving the trenches, he can easily cope with the mean streets of LA.
He finds both a friend and kindred spirit with ex cop Jack, a man who retired early from the force and now works as a private investigator. Jack, along with his glamorous side kick Trixie, is only too happy to lend a sympathetic ear to Lucky. The more the force stifles him with paltry paper duty the more he is pushed towards the company of Jack and Trixie. The story from there on in, I will leave you to discover for yourself.
A review of this book causes me much deliberation and frustration, especially on how I should rate it. Certainly the book has issues but these are generally quite minor and, for the most part, could be easily fixed by a half decent editor. The story itself was very enjoyable and there are some very good pieces of writing therein, having said that there are parts that would benefit from being rewritten. The book is a relatively short read and I feel would greatly benefit with more character development. Concentrating almost exclusively on the detective story line and Lucky’s interactions with Jack and Trixie or his time spent at the police precinct, very little time if any is spent on the actual character himself, his emotions, home or family. More insight into Lucky’s character would greatly enhance the story line and ensure that the readers would connect more with the character.
Having said all that, I really did enjoy the book. At times it was all to easy to envision a Bugsy Malone style character in a film noir which was a refreshing change from other books recently released. As the book stands I will rate it as a 3 star. However, with a second draft and a decent editor, it could easily be so much higher. I do see potential in this author he may well be one to keep an eye on.
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