Tag: Michael Hughes

The Crimson Shamrock by Michael Hughes

March 28, 2017 / Kyle Wendy Skultety / 0 Comments

A scotch-swilling DUI attorney, a cynical congressional staffer, and a retired bomb- sniffing German Shepherd are just some of the characters Chuck Wesson meets after he takes a travel assignment from his new boss, mysterious Silicon Valley entrepreneur Axel DeWilde. Chuck has been sent on a flight from San Francisco to Boston in order to demonstrate the Crimson Shamrock, a breakthrough portable communication device code-named the RedClove.
However, Chuck begins to suspect that all is not as it seems after a robber tries to steal the device at the airport, and his flight later has to be diverted to the Twin Cities after a threat is made. After his meeting is relocated to the D.C. suburbs and does not go according to plan, Chuck flies back to California to discover who and what are behind his travails.

Many thanks to the author for this review copy!

THE CRIMSON SHAMROCK is a fast paced novella that contains a lot of action. Chuck Wesson gets a job offer that seems too good to be true – all he has to do is carry a protoype to a meeting. Once he decides to complete this simple task, the fun starts. There are plane trips, motels, attempted robbery and mixed messages aplenty. Chuck seems to be ok with most of the confusion, even managing to score a one night stand along the way.

As the amount left to read in the book got less and less, I started wondering how the author was going to wrap things up. I’m not sure if that is a good or a bad thing – when your mind leaves the story and is allowed to wander to the amount of pages left. I’d prefer to be enveloped in the plot and not concern myself with how much is left.

The pace of the story ramped up even more towards the end, when Chuck finally has enough deception and takes control of his destiny. At this point I was super curious to see what the heck was going on!

The novella is an easy enough read, with some freewheeling characters that represent the excess of the wealthy entrepreneur. Chuck seems like a mellow guy who lets thing happen to him, rather than be in control of his life. There were a few scenes of him hanging out with his buddies that perfectly captured the bro-speak and hijinks that take place during a weekend out. Hughes’ gift for creating dialogue is wonderful, and is often the funniest part of his stories.

I would have liked more background on Chuck; it was hard to become invested in the things happening to him. The action kept me reading, but he was a bit too passive and one dimensional for me. It was also hard for me to picture the mysterious device at the center of the plot; but perhaps that was done on purpose, given how it all turned out. The ending was satisfying, with a resolution I didn’t see coming. All in all, not a bad way to spend a few hours reading.

Want your own copy? You can pick it up [easyazon_link identifier=”1612967116″ locale=”US” nw=”y” tag=”gimmethatbook-20″]here[/easyazon_link].

Pumpkin Farmer by Michael Hughes PLUS GIVEAWAY

December 15, 2015 / Kyle Wendy Skultety / 1 Comment

The year is 1979. Malaise, stagflation, turmoil in the Middle East, and a gas crunch; these things are but background noise for what unfolds when a lovesick businessman and a sociopathic drifter cross paths. John Nix, business manager of a Silicon Valley semiconductor startup, picks up Horace Fullworth, a ne’er-do -well heir of a wealthy California family, who has returned to San Francisco after surviving the Jonestown Massacre.
After John discovers his girlfriend cheating, he drives to a bar in the small rustic town of La Honda. He meets Ellie O’Neil, a pretty young woman he offers to drive home. Feeling misled by her, he leaves her on the side of the road, where Horace finds her. John hears that Ellie has gone missing and is overcome with guilt. His struggle with his conscience leads him back to those rugged coastal foothills of the San Francisco Peninsula.

Thanks to the author for giving me this review copy! I’m going to pass it on to one lucky reader: see bottom of post on how to enter.

Horace Fullworth flies back to California after surviving the Jonestown Massacre. He is curiously empty inside, devoid of feeling or conscience. John Nix becomes extremely depressed after walking in on his girlfriend in bed with another man. Their stories are intertwined when a girl named Ellie goes missing.

I thoroughly enjoyed the nostalgic atmosphere of California circa 1979–Harvey Milk, reduced emissions, smoking on airplanes, and Dallas on TV. Hughes does an exemplary job of setting the reader right back to those days, and that was one of my favorite things about the book. The mood is dark and murky, and happiness is just out of reach for the characters.

John spends a lot of time drinking and wishing he was a stronger man, while Horace is enjoying the life of a sociopath, living for himself and trying not to give in to those feelings and urges that lurk below the surface. I grew a bit weary of John’s self pity, and by the time things really started happening, the book was almost half over. This resulted in a rush to the end that felt a bit lopsided to me. The way the story was told needed better timing, but the plot itself was captivating and kept me focused.

John Nix’s life was so depressing that Horace seemed positively cheery in comparison. Hughes does an excellent job of showing how John stagnates while everyone around him goes on with their life, things falling their way effortlessly. Even Horace manages to develop a farm, complete with hired help to plant a pumpkin field.

The character of Ellie is a curious one, not as developed as the two man, and this bothered me a little. The plot twists seem a bit forced once you digest all the information revealed towards the end. Ellie is mostly a mystery, and it was hard for me to root for her to be found. Some things about her are made deliberately obtuse, for the purpose of furthering the mystery, but it just frustrated me. I think if the action was more spread out throughout the entire book it would have worked better.

Other than that, PUMPKIN FARMER was an easy to read book that gets its strength from the atmosphere. Choosing the 70’s as the backdrop makes this story work by inciting nostalgia along with the mystery. Times were more innocent back then, and the juxtaposition of these characters is what makes the dichotomy so powerful. The details are exact and mildly comforting (I remember almost everything Hughes describes) as they pop up amongst the drinking binges and self loathing. Hughes captures the emotions of the times well, adding the background naturally, not forcefully. I especially liked the idea of the emotionless Horace harboring the secret desire to become the titular pumpkin farmer. The lesson goes to show that what people appear to be on the surface, is not always the true measure of their souls. Remember this as you read the book.