Official Review: The One Percenters by John Podgursky
Posted: 15 May 2014, 03:26
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The One Percenters" by John Podgursky.]
Share This Review
Meet Edward Pritchard Caine. Edward Pritchard Caine is an American guy with one peculiarity among his peers- He's a serial killer. He has the rifle and rationale and a woman named Darien to prove it- or, well, he thinks he does. He thinks a lot of things. For one, there's the whole idea of the One- Percenters, a philosophy that would make sense mathematically if he stopped calling the rest of the world ninety- EIGHT percenters. I suppose that's just some evidence of the crookedness of his mind. The philosophy is based on the presumption that he's been appointed by a higher power (He finally settles on Nature) to "balance the numbers" of world protectors and world destroyers. This, to him, means shooting all the pleasure seekers, the miserable with money that he meets, in order to increase the percentage of the miserable with zip, the kinds of people who remind him of Jill, his wife, whom he thinks (Why does he do that?) was a victim of another serial murderer. She's the kind of woman who plants seeds on public property to enhance the beauty of her neighbors' surroundings, marries a man in spite of his looks and antisocial tendencies because she loves him, and has a habit of stealing ash trays. In the end, everything boils down to imagination, a desperate psychical attempt to escape the monotony of middle class reality.
There are certainly flaws in this somewhat unconventional narrative. The first chapter is a difficult read, really. The words are many and various, but they don't keep a comfortable pace. There's too little description to make the kidnapping of Edward's key victim at all interesting, and there's definitely not enough to build suspense. The paragraphs aren't linked well. There's no flow. A reader isn't tempted to continue. Then, over the next few chapters, Podgursky rewards perseverance with a dull picture of Edward's life after his wife's "death," appealing to few of the reader's senses as he traverses several date stories and establishes (Oh!) that Edward has decided to lay the details of his life, or what he believes about his life, before a doctor of sorts. This listener is silent throughout the novel and turns out to be... Clarification please? The rest of the narrative is like a lecture with scenes to accompany rather than a study of a character's mentality and behavior in selected settings. I do emphasize the latter because I believe it would have been better to describe the actual plot a bit more, but I'm just an objective reader who feels as if I've been thrown into psychopathy without rhyme or reason. The protagonist doesn't necessarily develop, nor does he graduate from frustrated widower to killer. He just is a murderer, and none of the pages subsequent to the first ten or so explain why. Finally, there's the matter of the ending. It's really just a quick wrap up. I understood Darien was a product of the protagonist's mind after his second encounter with her, but the ending makes her completely obsolete. I was waiting for her further involvement with the protagonist. There is none. Therefore she seems unnecessary. Also, I believe it would have been more strategic and suspenseful for her recogntion of Edward as one of her own to have been based on more than just a look at him.
The subject matter is sweet and sour, and with a few touch- ups in the descriptive passages it really could be delicious. Everybody loves a story told from a darker perception than the norm. Edward's is a heavy shade of grey. That could work.
I will commend Podgursky for the instant thrill he spins in the opening scene. I think there are times when immediacy is entertaining in a dramatic question. It certainly is here. A reader is forced to wonder, "How did it come to this? Why are we here? Is this girl REALLY tied to a tree?!" I love a compelling introduction, and I got one when I first read this.
I have to admit, this wasn't one of the most compelling stories on a fictional serial killer that I've read, neither is it the most exciting of narratives I've encountered that are told from the point of view of a villain, and that he is, or thinks he is. The little piece by his wife, Jill, included at the end of the story, felt, to me, like something thrown into the piece to "make everything better." It made the conclusion seem out of place, actually. Yes, this novel needs polishing. It, however, does show some promise for Podgursky as an author. He has some ideas. He has some style. He just needs to iron them out. A reader should be comfortable in the words of a writer. I hope to see something I can be comfortable with in his future novels. I officially rate "The One Percenters" two out of four stars.
***
Buy "The One Percenters" on Amazon
Buy "The One Percenters" on Barnes and Noble
Share This Review
There are certainly flaws in this somewhat unconventional narrative. The first chapter is a difficult read, really. The words are many and various, but they don't keep a comfortable pace. There's too little description to make the kidnapping of Edward's key victim at all interesting, and there's definitely not enough to build suspense. The paragraphs aren't linked well. There's no flow. A reader isn't tempted to continue. Then, over the next few chapters, Podgursky rewards perseverance with a dull picture of Edward's life after his wife's "death," appealing to few of the reader's senses as he traverses several date stories and establishes (Oh!) that Edward has decided to lay the details of his life, or what he believes about his life, before a doctor of sorts. This listener is silent throughout the novel and turns out to be... Clarification please? The rest of the narrative is like a lecture with scenes to accompany rather than a study of a character's mentality and behavior in selected settings. I do emphasize the latter because I believe it would have been better to describe the actual plot a bit more, but I'm just an objective reader who feels as if I've been thrown into psychopathy without rhyme or reason. The protagonist doesn't necessarily develop, nor does he graduate from frustrated widower to killer. He just is a murderer, and none of the pages subsequent to the first ten or so explain why. Finally, there's the matter of the ending. It's really just a quick wrap up. I understood Darien was a product of the protagonist's mind after his second encounter with her, but the ending makes her completely obsolete. I was waiting for her further involvement with the protagonist. There is none. Therefore she seems unnecessary. Also, I believe it would have been more strategic and suspenseful for her recogntion of Edward as one of her own to have been based on more than just a look at him.
The subject matter is sweet and sour, and with a few touch- ups in the descriptive passages it really could be delicious. Everybody loves a story told from a darker perception than the norm. Edward's is a heavy shade of grey. That could work.
I will commend Podgursky for the instant thrill he spins in the opening scene. I think there are times when immediacy is entertaining in a dramatic question. It certainly is here. A reader is forced to wonder, "How did it come to this? Why are we here? Is this girl REALLY tied to a tree?!" I love a compelling introduction, and I got one when I first read this.
I have to admit, this wasn't one of the most compelling stories on a fictional serial killer that I've read, neither is it the most exciting of narratives I've encountered that are told from the point of view of a villain, and that he is, or thinks he is. The little piece by his wife, Jill, included at the end of the story, felt, to me, like something thrown into the piece to "make everything better." It made the conclusion seem out of place, actually. Yes, this novel needs polishing. It, however, does show some promise for Podgursky as an author. He has some ideas. He has some style. He just needs to iron them out. A reader should be comfortable in the words of a writer. I hope to see something I can be comfortable with in his future novels. I officially rate "The One Percenters" two out of four stars.
***
Buy "The One Percenters" on Amazon
Buy "The One Percenters" on Barnes and Noble
I think more writers just need to get comfortable with the idea of having to complete more than one draft to achieve the desired end.
