From Bloated to Bare Bones

I finally finished Six Suspects (after fast-forwarding through much of it).  I must say it's one of the worst books I've ever read.  I was slogging through the second half, intent upon reaching the end where I would at last discover who killed the politician's son, learning along the way that every one of the six suspects had gone to the party with the intent of killing the man.  So which one did it? When I finally found out (way past what I thought was the ending of the book), I felt cheated and not a little bit angry.

It turns out the actual culprit wasn't even one of the six suspects, but someone else entirely, someone not only the one you'd least suspect, but someone not even mentioned as being involved!  This unexpected killer comes in at the last minute to solve the riddle and end the book, much as the deus ex machina would arrive at the last minute to end a classical play.

When I finished the book I was left to wonder why this novel was published. Is it an example of some avant-garde trend that involves completely throwing out all the rules of good story writing? Or is it simply a marketing move?  The author of the book that became a very popular movie (Slum Dog Millionaire) writes a second book that must be exploited for its marketability before people find out how bad it is? 

When I read Janet Maslin's review in The New York Times, I was wondering where she was finding the fun in this book.  She does say that the Tribal (one of the six suspects) is Swarup's "most lovable creation" (June 24, 2009), and I agree with her on that. In fact, I was very upset when the author killed him off before the end of the book for no apparent reason. But that was just one more reason to hate this book. 

After that 470-page mistake, I thought I'd try an author I know to be a good storyteller: Stephen King. I chose his latest collection of long stories, Full Dark, No Stars.  There are four stories in it, all sharing a theme: the darkness that dwells within one's soul.  The first two were very good, both about ordinary people who find themselves capable of murder.  Neither has supernatural elements, a good thing, I think.  I've found over the years of reading Stephen King that his best stories are often those that don't include the supernatural in any overt way.

The best part is that when I read the stories, I get so involved I forget where I am.  In fact, a couple of times this past week I've almost missed my stop.  After more than a week of enduring Mr. Swarup and his bloated narrative, it's great to get back to an author who knows how to write a story.

See you next post.