Genre:
Speculative Fiction/Contemporary Fantasy/Young Adult/Comedy
Description:
“Master of a thousand hobbies, but jinxed from birth with horrendous
luck, Murphy Drummer has developed some eye-popping abilities. When Murphy goes
in search of a luck-free zone where the world might be safe from his puzzling
disorder, charmed Joy Daley stumbles into his whammy-charged path. Churning out
both miracles and mayhem, Murphy whimsically upends the lives of everyone in
Joy's life.
At first, Murphy's victims question who he is; at last, they'll be
questioning who they aren't. A comical love story of wood-tapping proportions.”
Author:
“Benjamin Laskin grew up in Phoenix, Arizona. He has traveled extensively
and lived in a number of countries, including many years in Hamamatsu, Japan,
where he taught English and wrote. Benjamin can now be found sauntering through
the maze of narrow, stony alleyways in the ancient and legend-rich town of
Safed, in Israel's upper Galilee, where he is currently at work on his next
novel.” For more information, please visit Mr. Laskin’s website.
http://www.benjaminlaskin.com/
Appraisal:
I don’t read a lot of Literary or Speculative Fiction, however this
was fun. It included just enough fantasy to keep me interested and the wordplay
was entertaining. Poor Murphy feels like he is cursed and he has separated
himself from society as much as possible for what he perceives as the greater
good for all concerned. He has built his own sanctuary in and around his house.
He fills his time learning new hobbies and writing about them in his syndicated
newspaper articles. He also corresponds with his readers. When his devoted
grandfather, who raised him from infancy, passes away he sees no other choice
than to quit his job and move to an even more secluded environment. Of course
he doesn’t make it very far before disasters start happening around him again.
The sequence of events and characters introduced into the storyline
are unique but not out of the ordinary. They are all much more realistic than
any of Murphy’s neighbors were in his old neighborhood. (They were all a lot of
miserable people looking to place blame on anyone besides themselves for their
misfortunes.) When Joy Daley, a journalist, encounters Murphy, she is intrigued
and puzzled by what she sees happening around him. Joy is unlike anyone Murphy
has ever met and he isn’t quite sure what to make of her. However, he finally
accepts her kindness, and Joy is able to slowly bring a fresh perspective into
Murphy’s life.
I loved Joy and Murphy's journey as much as I relished the
well-developed secondary characters of Brock Parker, Joy’s straight-laced
police detective fiancé, and the misty-eyed tarot card reader Freya who states,
“The Universe works in mysterious ways…” as Brock’s world is turned upside
down. I found this a relatively quick, light read with skillful levity in all
the right places.
Buy now
from: Amazon US Amazon UK
FYI:
A small amount of adult language, hardly worth mentioning. Original
review posted March 25, 2016.
Format/Typo
Issues:
I found this well edited.
Rating:
***** Five Stars
Reviewed
by: ?wazithinkin
Approximate
word count: 55-60,000 words
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