The Butcher by Jennifer Hiller

Published by Gallery Books on July 15, 2014

In 1985, Rufus Wedge, believed to be the Beacon Hill Butcher, is gunned down by four police officers, including Captain Edward Shank of the Seattle Police. In the present day, Shank is moving to a retirement home at the age of 80. In a standard serial killer novel, we would learn at the end that Shank is the real serial killer and that he executed an innocent man to cover his tracks. In a twist on the standard plot, Jennifer Hillier tells us up front that Shank is the killer.

Shank's grandson Matt, owns a successful restaurant in Seattle and is about to get his own reality TV show. When Matt moves into Shank's house, he discovers evidence of his grandfather's hobby. Coincidentally -- and it's a huge coincidence -- Matt's girlfriend Sam is writing a book about the Butcher. She has come to believe that the Butcher killed her mother notwithstanding the fact that (1) her mother was killed two years after Wedge died, and (2) the Butcher always cut off his victim's left hand while her mother's hand was still attached. Why Sam is convinced that Wedge was not the Butcher is never adequately explained. Another coincidence, even more difficult to believe, unites Sam with a friend of Sam's mother who also believes that Sam's mother was killed by the Butcher.

All of this happens early in the novel, leaving the reader to wonder how the plot will unfold. I appreciated the unusual track the story follows. While the improbable plot fails to build suspense, it always held my interest -- at least when it didn't get sidetracked by melodramatic romance, which happened too frequently for my taste. In addition, key story elements feel contrived and Hillier didn't sell me on the characters, none of whom gave me the impression of being real people.

The oversexed octogenarian serial killer is a lively presence, but he's more a caricature than a fully drawn character. Still, he at least has a crotchety attitude that makes him sort of an endearing killer. Samantha, who spends most of her time fretting and feeling sorry for herself, has zero personality. Matt might be the most realistic character but he's a jerk. Jerks can make great characters but Matt is a dull jerk. An unbelievably sensitive ex-Seahawks quarterback who happens to be both Samantha's platonic best friend and Matt's former college roommate is too flawless to be convincing. In fact, my impression is that Hillier intended Matt to be the prototype of the "bad boyfriend" and the quarterback to the prototype of the "perfect man." Lacking the complexity of real people, prototypes rarely make interesting characters.

If you take out the bad characters and the romantic subplot and the contrivances (including the eye-rolling ending), the little that is left makes for at least part of a decent story. The swift pace makes The Butcher a quick-to-read time killer, but too much of it struck me as silly to earn a recommendation.

NOT RECOMMENDED

This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki

Published by First Second on May 6, 2014

A graphic novel as good as This One Summer is hard to find. The story revolves around a single summer in the life of a girl who is on the cusp of adolescence. Everything is formative at that age. Events big and small all add up to shape a future that the child is only beginning to imagine. This is a story about the perils of family, the difficulty of growing up, and the process of learning to cope with life's complexity.

Rose and her parents go to their summer cottage on the beach where Rose hangs out with her friend Windy. They talk about boys (of course) and sex (of course), two topics about which they know little. They swim and watch scary movies and bond. They're surrounded by adult drama that they often don't quite understand. Rose's mother is unhappy and is doing her best to make her unhappiness known to the world, creating tension in Rose's summer, particularly after her father returns to the city. Rose takes a keen interest in a scruffy 18-year-old boy from the corner store although she doesn't know how to deal with her curiosity about him. Fortunately, she hasn't entered the raging hormone teenage years. The boy has, of course, and his raging hormones have gotten him into a messy situation.

I love Rose's attitude. Here's her take on Sex and the City: "Like, so they're 40 and they're having sex. Who cares?" Rose is always trying to puzzle out the meaning of adult behavior, even the behaviors of those who are only a few years older. Mariko Tamiko captures that uncertainty perfectly.

I also love the way Jillian Tamaki's art nearly always conveys a sense of action, even if it's just a bird in flight or a blowing leaf. As they should be in a graphic novel, many panels are free of words. The art (all sketched in blue) creates just the right atmosphere for the story.

The story is low-key, told at a relaxed summer pace, and is utterly convincing. It's also surprisingly captivating and brutally honest without ever becoming melodramatic. It captures a stage of life better than most text-based literary novels can manage. Fans of serious graphic novels -- and any fan of good story-telling -- should consider spending time with This One Summer.

RECOMMENDED

Any Other Name by Craig Johnson

Published by Viking on May 13, 2014

Like the first ten Walt Longmire novels, Any Other Name (the eleventh entry in the series) is a pleasure to read. The laid-back sheriff, his Cheyenne friend (Henry Standing Bear), his crusty former boss (Lucian Connally), his Undersheriff/lover (Victoria Moretti), his daughter (Cady) and his dog (Dog) all contribute to the fun. Actually, his daughter takes an off-stage role. She's in Philadelphia, about to give birth, and is insisting that Longmire solve the crime in time to catch a flight so he can be present when her baby is born. If you've followed the series, you know Longmire had best obey his daughter's commands.

Gerald Holman, a sheriff's detective in an adjacent county, apparently committed suicide in a locked room. Phyllis Holman thinks the true cause of her husband's death is being covered up. Longmire agrees to investigate Holman's death. He's soon poking his nose into unwelcome places. Shootouts ensue. Repeatedly.

Holman had been working on three cold cases, all of which involved young women who disappeared. The last woman to disappear was a stripper who worked for Tommi Sandburg, the sister of the county's sheriff. Tommi is a hoot, the kind of eccentric character Craig Johnson does so well. Tracking one of the missing women leads Longmire to an unfortunate but amusing encounter with a herd of buffalo and to a whacky sequence of events that has Longmire chasing a train in a blizzard. In the hands of most other authors, I would be rolling my eyes, but Johnson kept my eyes focused on the text. He makes me believe, makes me want to believe, no matter how unlikely the story becomes. That's the mark of a talented writer.

If Any Other Name has a weakness, it is the unoriginal explanation for the disappearance of the women, although the story does finish with a surprise. Still, I'm not sure the plot matters. Reading a Walt Longmire novel is like visiting with old friends. Walt is a good natured guy and the story's good natured violence sets the stage for the characters to exchange droll jokes. Walt is a model of dignity and kindness, a model that people in law enforcement, and everyone else, should emulate.

RECOMMENDED

Days of Rage by Brad Taylor

Published by Dutton on July 15, 2014

Just when I thought Brad Taylor was running out of gas, telling a story that was too similar to other Taskforce novels, he decided to shake up the series. I won't say what happens, but it triggers the dark rage that Pike Logan thought his team member and lover Jennifer had tamed. The last half of the novel is intense.

Two storylines weave together. One involves Russia's FSB, which wants to send a Nigerian terrorist to execute a plan that is intended to damage the United States. The plan is farfetched but I guess I can accept that the FSB might believe it would work.  When the FSB creates problems for the Taskforce, Pike Logan and his usual team members travel to Bulgaria to learn what the Nigerian is planning.

The other storyline involves Russian intelligence secrets that Mossad is trying to buy. A flash drive holding those secrets contains information that might be embarrassing to the United States government. Pike's team is redirected to recover the flash drive before Mossad can get it. As usual, Pike has his own agenda.

Pike pursuing an unauthorized mission of his own is beginning to feel like a formula but, so far, it is a successful formula. And as noted above, Taylor shakes up the formula with a surprising plot twist that forces Pike to realize how much he depends on Jennifer for a sense of balance while forcing Jennifer to realize how living a violent life is changing her in ways she fears.

As always, Taylor has a realistic and nuanced view of his heroes and villains. Taylor understands that the Taskforce would be called the "secret police" in other nations. Days of Rage illustrates our "confusing new world" in which allies and enemies are often difficult to distinguish. The tension between the interests of Mossad and those of the United States, as well as a debate about whether endless cycles of killing actually keep people safe, provide some of the novel's most interesting moments. Taylor's point of view is a refreshing break from the simplistic worldviews offered by too many thriller writers. I also appreciate the moral center that Jennifer brings to the story. Of course, the high tech gadgetry, fistfights, and chases are fun too.

RECOMMENDED

The Untold by Courtney Collins

First published in Australia in 2012; published by Amy Einhorn Books/Putnam on May 29, 2014

A mother named Jessie slices the throat of her prematurely born baby in what she regards as an act of mercy. From his grave, the baby narrates The Untold. The baby is surprisingly aware of events that occur before and after his death. He knows, for instance, that his mother bludgeoned his father to death on the eve of his birth, and that Fitz, his father, deserved it. He knows that his mother met Fitz after being released from a Sydney prison into Fitz' custody. He knows why his mother was sent to prison and he knows the unpleasant story of her childhood and of her difficult married life.

Jessie is the most important of three key characters. The second is a horse-and-cattle thief named Jack Brown, an Aborigine who, like Jessie, must serve Fitz to avoid imprisonment. After Jessie flees from the scene of her crime, Brown helps Andrew Barlow, a police sergeant who has taken an isolated rural posting to overcome his drug addiction, search for her. The story occasionally flashes back to 1903 and later years during Jessie's childhood (still narrated by her yet-to-be-conceived baby). The third key character and several others appear along the way, including circus performers and a gang of boys who rustle cattle. Jessie's past connects to her present in surprising ways.

The intersecting lives of Jessie and Jack set the stage for much of the novel's drama. Death is a pervasive theme, as is hope. The people who live in the valley in which The Untold is set live hard, violent lives. Life is even harder for women. They mitigate their suffering by helping each other. Jessie's life is extraordinarily hard but her spirit endures, buoyed by the fleeting connections she makes with the people she meets as she struggles to retain her freedom. "She imagines herself to be one of those creatures whose nature is not to run from death, but to run alongside it."

Sympathetic characters and a strong story contribute to an engrossing reading experience despite the novel's slow start. Courtney Collins' evocative prose captures the rugged landscape and the desolate hearts of the land's inhabitants. Each key character changes as a result of their coming together, not always for the better but in ways that seem inevitable. The ending satisfies. The only false note is the dead baby's narration. As literary devices go, this one was a poor and puzzling choice. Fortunately the baby's intrusive commentary does not appear often, making the flaw easy to overlook.

RECOMMENDED