Review of Final Notice

[Lisa Grimaldi]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Final Notice" by Van Fleisher.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Final Notice by Van Fleisher is an intriguing novel that asks the reader to ponder this question – if you knew you had thirty days or less to live, what would you do? Some people would undoubtedly use their time getting their affairs in order, saying meaningful goodbyes to beloved friends and family members, or perhaps completing items on their bucket lists. Fleisher’s world, however, is not such a benevolent place. Wishing to make a valid point about responsible gun ownership and an increase in gun violence, particularly school shootings, Fleisher chooses to focus on the darker side of human nature.

Vijay Patel owns and operates a high-tech company called VitalTech. He is ready to test his latest product, a monitoring form of “sports watch” called the VT2. This device, easy to understand and operate and inexpensive to manufacture, monitors and trends complex health issues. One part of this technology is the Final Notice, an alert that will let you know within 10, 20 or 30 days how much longer you have to live. The wearer of the watch can choose the time parameter. The Final Notice is a popular feature, giving people time to finish their unfinished business.

Our main protagonists are Vince and Trudi Fuller, a senior citizen couple who have been happily married for many years and have close friends from different cultures. They learn of the recent trend of the Final Notice. Some people, knowing their lives will soon end, will take advantage of lax gun laws and choose violence that they will not live long enough to be held accountable for. While Vince and Trudi are peaceful, loving people, they are both put into circumstances that will test their resolve. How will they respond to their Final Notices?

This is a very thought-provoking novel that is clearly anti-NRA, which may offend some people who enthusiastically support that organization. After all, none of the cases the readers are privy to end well, they either end in single or mass shootings. Further, there are some descriptions of school shootings which can be triggering to some readers. I found this novel to be a valid and compelling argument for the desperate need for gun reform in this country. This novel is deep and complex and compelling.

This novel is extremely well edited. I found no grammatical or syntactic errors. For this reason, its depth of purpose and its excellent writing, I give this novel 4 out of 4 stars.

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Final Notice
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