Official Review: The Deaduction Agency by Terry Tumbler
Posted: 10 Jun 2015, 23:55
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Deaduction Agency" by Terry Tumbler.]
3 out of 4 stars
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There have been only a few times that I’ve admitted to being absolutely speechless; in the case of The Deaduction Agency, however, I’m honestly stumped as to what to say. This pseudo-mystery by author Terry Tumbler never once offers itself to being anything conventional. Nevertheless, the entirety of this book is immensely greater than the sum of its parts. The comedy is not overly humorous, the suspense is rather anticlimactic, and the romance is anything but sexy; yet, this novel somehow kept me tirelessly reading and left me extremely satisfied at its conclusion.
The story centers itself on a quartet of psychics who have recently opened an investigative service known as The Deaduction Agency. Each of the four “partners” (Richard, Honey, Rose, and Chuck) has amassed his or her own reputation singularly, and they feel that they will be far more successful putting their heads together as a collective. At The Deaduction Agency’s Grand Opening, the group receives an opportunity to partner with a mysterious but powerful “secret” agency; this joint venture will provide the Agency with a slew of high-profile criminal cases and make them the stars of a brand new reality show. The rest of the novel chronicles the team’s exploits as they gain success, wealth, and notoriety.
The premise of The Deaduction Agency is a slam-dunk for hardcore and casual mystery fans alike, but the way the narrative is presented separates the novel as wholly unique. The story reads somewhat like a reality show. Each character has interaction time with the group; time alone; and time for personal sidebars, which are played out in conversations with Joe, the group’s liaison to the secret agency known only as The Bureau. Furthermore, the cases are rushed through with only major highlights provided, as if each mystery is being crammed into a thirty-minute episode. As the overall story progresses, the relationships between the “cast members” wax and wane; but again the narrative is presented as mere snippets, with time scarcely spent on any single conflict or theme. However, it is precisely this presentation that adds to my fascination with The Deaduction Agency, as the characters are dreadfully boring people (albeit with not-so-boring abilities or circumstances)! It is eerily reminiscent of the TV show Seinfeld, which provided moments of social commentary and musings on the human condition, but ultimately was “a show about nothing.” Mr. Tumbler could be writing for the attention deficient, or this may just be his “style,” but it was oddly satisfying not being emotionally involved with the characters of the book; staying at arms’ length from anyone in the novel allowed me to enjoy the story from a broader perspective.
I did take issue with a few items in this book. First of all, the story is set in the United States, but the narration and dialogue make heavy use of British jargon. I use a “cell phone,” not a “mobile;” my car has a “trunk,” not a “boot;” and “sod” is a piece of landscape, not an overused vulgarity. Secondly, there are several misspelled words and a fairly large amount of missing prepositions. I’m unsure if these prepositional omissions are writing errors or more British colloquialism; either way, they are extremely annoying distractions. Finally, The Deaduction Agency has an unsure timeline, which makes it difficult to envision the full setting. The story contains advanced machinery, driverless cars, and holographic videos, plus several other goodies that could be a natural consequence of working for a modern day super-secret agency, a la James Bond; however, there is that mention of the dearly departed Alice Cooper… I simply got irritated with the fact that the main characters had no idea which side of the pond they were on, and with the fact that I had no idea where to place the story in the time-space continuum.
After careful consideration, I’ve decided that if I rated any particular aspect of this book, including grammar; style; plot; and character development; I would probably rate it not more than 2 Stars. However, as I said before, The Deaduction Agency is greater than the sum of its parts. This book grabs an otherwise complex story, rife with multifaceted characters and mature situations, and strips it into a simplistic tale worthy of light-hearted reality television melodrama. I’m honestly surprised by how much fun I had reading this novel. That being said, I rate this book 3 out of 4 Stars, and I proudly state that I am officially a Terry Tumbler fan. Mr. Tumbler has several older novels available, and I look forward to reading more of his work. The Deaduction Agency is listed as a Crime/Mystery novel, but I highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for something different with a little quirk and a ton of personality.
******
The Deaduction Agency
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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3 out of 4 stars
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There have been only a few times that I’ve admitted to being absolutely speechless; in the case of The Deaduction Agency, however, I’m honestly stumped as to what to say. This pseudo-mystery by author Terry Tumbler never once offers itself to being anything conventional. Nevertheless, the entirety of this book is immensely greater than the sum of its parts. The comedy is not overly humorous, the suspense is rather anticlimactic, and the romance is anything but sexy; yet, this novel somehow kept me tirelessly reading and left me extremely satisfied at its conclusion.
The story centers itself on a quartet of psychics who have recently opened an investigative service known as The Deaduction Agency. Each of the four “partners” (Richard, Honey, Rose, and Chuck) has amassed his or her own reputation singularly, and they feel that they will be far more successful putting their heads together as a collective. At The Deaduction Agency’s Grand Opening, the group receives an opportunity to partner with a mysterious but powerful “secret” agency; this joint venture will provide the Agency with a slew of high-profile criminal cases and make them the stars of a brand new reality show. The rest of the novel chronicles the team’s exploits as they gain success, wealth, and notoriety.
The premise of The Deaduction Agency is a slam-dunk for hardcore and casual mystery fans alike, but the way the narrative is presented separates the novel as wholly unique. The story reads somewhat like a reality show. Each character has interaction time with the group; time alone; and time for personal sidebars, which are played out in conversations with Joe, the group’s liaison to the secret agency known only as The Bureau. Furthermore, the cases are rushed through with only major highlights provided, as if each mystery is being crammed into a thirty-minute episode. As the overall story progresses, the relationships between the “cast members” wax and wane; but again the narrative is presented as mere snippets, with time scarcely spent on any single conflict or theme. However, it is precisely this presentation that adds to my fascination with The Deaduction Agency, as the characters are dreadfully boring people (albeit with not-so-boring abilities or circumstances)! It is eerily reminiscent of the TV show Seinfeld, which provided moments of social commentary and musings on the human condition, but ultimately was “a show about nothing.” Mr. Tumbler could be writing for the attention deficient, or this may just be his “style,” but it was oddly satisfying not being emotionally involved with the characters of the book; staying at arms’ length from anyone in the novel allowed me to enjoy the story from a broader perspective.
I did take issue with a few items in this book. First of all, the story is set in the United States, but the narration and dialogue make heavy use of British jargon. I use a “cell phone,” not a “mobile;” my car has a “trunk,” not a “boot;” and “sod” is a piece of landscape, not an overused vulgarity. Secondly, there are several misspelled words and a fairly large amount of missing prepositions. I’m unsure if these prepositional omissions are writing errors or more British colloquialism; either way, they are extremely annoying distractions. Finally, The Deaduction Agency has an unsure timeline, which makes it difficult to envision the full setting. The story contains advanced machinery, driverless cars, and holographic videos, plus several other goodies that could be a natural consequence of working for a modern day super-secret agency, a la James Bond; however, there is that mention of the dearly departed Alice Cooper… I simply got irritated with the fact that the main characters had no idea which side of the pond they were on, and with the fact that I had no idea where to place the story in the time-space continuum.
After careful consideration, I’ve decided that if I rated any particular aspect of this book, including grammar; style; plot; and character development; I would probably rate it not more than 2 Stars. However, as I said before, The Deaduction Agency is greater than the sum of its parts. This book grabs an otherwise complex story, rife with multifaceted characters and mature situations, and strips it into a simplistic tale worthy of light-hearted reality television melodrama. I’m honestly surprised by how much fun I had reading this novel. That being said, I rate this book 3 out of 4 Stars, and I proudly state that I am officially a Terry Tumbler fan. Mr. Tumbler has several older novels available, and I look forward to reading more of his work. The Deaduction Agency is listed as a Crime/Mystery novel, but I highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for something different with a little quirk and a ton of personality.
******
The Deaduction Agency
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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