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11:59

1 rating: -3.0
Kindle novel by David Williams

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003CV7TIK

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What the heck happened?

  • Oct 23, 2010
Rating:
-3
Here's the review that I wrote for the ABNA contest:

"Marc Craven is a late night radio talk show host. In a completely engaging first chapter which cleverly combines first and third person narration with some exceptionally believable real-life dialogue that is clearly drawn from solid research into the radio industry, we are allowed to be the proverbial fly on the wall. We listen to Marc's thoughts as the clock rapidly ticks off the seconds toward midnight. He's trying to juggle squeezing in a last few callers before he calls it a night with some rather shameless flirting with his producer. His mind is so focused on leaving for the night and the possibility of an "encounter" with his work-mate that the last male caller's references to his wife as "the mother of his children" and "his widow", a very clear and ominous signal to an imminent, planned suicide, blow right by him. Distracted and focused on more pleasant possibilities to come, he simply hangs up and proceeds to shut down the show for the night!

Later in the evening, as he drives home from a singularly unsuccessful seduction attempt that had previously held out the promise of being a sure thing, Marc purchases a consolation bottle of wine and purposefully drowns his frustration in the comforting haze of alcohol. When he witnesses a kidnapping through the swirling mists of the wine, he realizes that, because of his condition and the fact that he is still driving his car, he can't risk calling the police.

At that point the excerpt ends and, of course, there simply hasn't been enough happen to give any potential reader any idea as to what the plot-line of this thriller might be. We have no clue about how or even whether the caller's possible suicide and the kidnapping that Marc witnessed are related in any way. But - and this is the good news - that simply doesn't matter.

David Williams' writing, his characterization, his dialogue, his pacing and his action is so smooth, so professional, so realistic and so mature that there isn't a thriller-lover on the planet who wouldn't continue reading this novel after getting this far. I don't know where it's headed but I'm "all aboard" for the ride and I defnitely want to find out where the conductor's taking us. Highly recommended."

And, if anything, the suspense ratcheted up a notch as the story moved into a dual intertwined tale of Islamic terrorism and Eastern European trafficking of young girls into prostitution.

Then came the ending ... or not! I simply can't believe it but I have absolutely no idea what the ending was all about! It's that simple. Not the remotest clue about the ending of any of the story threads or how they tied together. I don't think that I was on drugs or booze when I read it but I finished an entire novel and I don't have the foggiest notion of what the ending was all about.

That can't be right!

Paul Weiss

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January 14, 2011
So what was the ABNA contest about?
January 15, 2011
ABNA = Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award! It's an annual contest now where new authors submit their manuscripts. The winners of a number of different genres get their novels published. But part of the process is that reviewers like me read the opening few chapters and comment on our feelings based on that abbreviated reading. The opening chapters for 11:59 were GREAT. He didn't win the contest and I think he self published in Kindle format. I really wanted to read the entire novel. Sigh ... that ending!!
January 20, 2011
Ah!! Ok! Now that makes more sense. Thanks so much for explaining it to me! Sheri had some similar questions about the review in the discussion thread for Worst Reads: http://community.cafelibri.com/Forums-Worst_...of_2010-74-442-1-1.html
 
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