Customer Reviews

The Incumbent (The Madison Glenn Series #1)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I have read everything Alton Gansky has written, and he is one of my very favorite authors. His remarkable imagination has led to some truly outstanding novels. This book was different from his others. The protagonist is a woman--"Maddy," the mayor of a small town. The first problem I had was in the way this main character was portrayed. Gansky seems to think that the only thing women do is cry and hug one another. There were so many tears and embraces that it finally turned me off big time. I would not be able to stand being around such an emotional person. But of course I kept reading, because the plot had really gripped me. I waded through all the tears to find out what would happen next. The mystery of who was abducting Maddy's campaign workers, and why, was built up nicely. Obviously someone wanted to destroy Maddy's political future to keep her from running for a higher office. At least, that is what seemed obvious by the story line. I started to really get into the book and couldn't wait to see how the story would resolve itself. Then, all of a sudden at the end, the story took such a ridiculous and unbelievable turn that I was left very disappointed. Folks, I hate to write negative things in a review; ESPECIALLY when it's a book by one of my very favorite authors. But This book simply does not stack up to the writer's ability. I hope Gansky turns back to writing the Stanton books, or ANY of his previous characters instead of this one. I give it 3 stars because of how well written it is up until the absurd ending. If you are a Gansky fan who would never miss one of his books, go ahead. But if you haven't read his books before, don't start with this one--the others are all much better!

In THE INCUMBENT, as in some of his previous novels (THE PRODIGY, DARK MOON), author Alton Gansky shows that he knows how to set up a story with maximum suspense while incorporating strong Christian themes, to the continuing delight of his faith fiction readers.

In the small southern California coastal town of Santa Rita, Mayor Madison "Maddy" Glenn watches as those who worked on her campaign begin disappearing one by one --- with only a few drops of blood left behind in symmetrical patterns and carefully arranged to point toward her as the reason for the kidnappings. But why has the perpetrator gone after her friends, and not the mayor herself? As the attractive (and single) detective Judson West tells her, "My guess is, they want something from you." Soon, she is riddled by guilt: "I was feeling like the reincarnation of Typhoid Mary," muses Maddy. As the story unfolds, any association with the mayor seems to be an invitation to murder, assault, or abduction.

Unable to know whom to trust, the attractive widow takes in Celeste Truccoli, the 19-year-old daughter of one of her friends who has disappeared. When it soon becomes apparent that anyone she loves is in danger, Maddy's mother and father also move in, and Gansky paints them both as engaging, loveable parents. Back at the office, Randi Portman, Maddy's able personal assistant, keeps things running smoothly while pushing the Mayor to up the ante and run for Congresswoman at the next election. When Celeste's estranged father jets in for reasons never fully explained and begins having Maddy and Celeste followed, chaos ensues. Dr. Jerry Thomas, a middle-aged divorcee who has known Maddy for years, adds another dollop of possible romantic intrigue to the tale.

Gansky does a good job writing in first person as a woman, and is adept at laying many false rabbit trails for the reader to follow. He also writes some nice descriptions of the beautiful southern California landscape where the story unfolds (although he has a fondness for the word "azure"). He occasionally overdescribes (flames in a fireplace "dance like leprechauns on St. Paddy's day" and tears "broke through like Huns attacking a village"). He sometimes falls back on the overused novelist's device of describing his characters appearance as they see themselves reflected in a window or a mirror. Gansky also occasionally "tells" rather than "shows" ("The pier is a place of constant activity..."). He also makes many of his sentences the same length, rather than varying the length for the enjoyment of the reader. Readers may also find themselves confused when the plot ending revolves around a fire ant bite that seemingly happens on a boat at sea (or happens at a location where there is a security camera close by).

Yet all of these are blips in what is a genuinely enjoyable suspense novel. Gansky knows how to keep his readers guessing, and the device of the blood drops he uses to frame his story around will have a chilling effect on the reader. Although some conversion scenes feel a little heavy-handed rather than flowing seamlessly into the story, the redemptive conclusion of the novel has some nice twists and surprises. This fast-paced tale of intrigue in a small southern California coastal town is an enjoyable one for faith fiction fans.

--- Reviewed by Cindy Crosby (phrelanzer@aol.com)

Why is decent, normal sounding dialogue so hard to recreate? I'm not even done with the book but after all the typos and bad dialogue, I can't wait to get to the library and find something else. "you'll loose all your money," for example, and "you'll like her. She's smart and pretty." yes, when discussing my friends with other friends that haven't met, I always tell them how attractive the other is upfront. Not intriguing, or very good but it's free so try it for yourself!

So, this was a kindle freebie I've had for awhile. It started out interesting - then 70% into it - blindsided by christian speak. This came out of left field. How it wraps - well, hmm. Oh well, it was free.

I enjoyed this book up until the end, I thought the motive and perpetrators were unbelievable. The story could have ended in several other ways that would have been more believable - a frustrated wannabe suitor, a political rival, a disgruntled campaign worker, etc.

Some of the main character's actions were quite unbelievable as well. When the girl's father proved himself to be violent, why in the world would she participate in a meeting with him, especially without security in the room? Her reasoning was that she wanted to protect the girl, but someone else could have done that much better. The chase on the highway was also unbelievable for similar reasons.

The side story with the girl and her father is also unsatisfying, the reader is never told why the father is so interested in his daughter after so many years of no contact and why he would be so violent in all of his actions. You would think that someone who flew off the handle so easily would have had an extensive record of assaults at the very least.

The Christian aspects were not overt, they seemed to be stuck in the book as an afterthought. There are only two places with any mention of spirituality, one when she finds out that her husband was born again and at the end. They really just distracted from the story and didn't provide any insight into the characters.

As a side note, this is the second story I've read recently where a security guard is taken out because his route around the building he's protecting is predictable. I would think even the most basic security agency would know better. At least this was just a security company, in the other book it was Navy Seals!

Overall, not bad for a book I got for free.

I don't have a lot to say about this book other than avoid it. I am so sick of books about women written by men, but this was truly one of the worst. It was so bad that for amusement, my wife and I continue to toss each other excruciatingly bad cliches I got from the book. Our favorite is when someone "loses their battle with tears". Glad I didn't pay for it.

I don't know when this author fell in love with metaphors, but the book is lousy with them. Rain is liken to raisins? It seems like every other sentence has a metaphor tacked on, like we don't know what basic things look like.

He is also in love with useless big words. At one point, a character is described having "anthracite black hair." Are you kidding me? Do we not know what black is? Or even coal black?

While on the subject of hair, completely obsessed with how much gray people have.

And we are provided with the measurements of almost every room a character walks into.

And for a book that is supposed to convey a message of faith, it felt totally tacked on. There is no evolution of Maddy finding her faith. She just gets told her husband was born again the day he died and then she decides to be born again. There is nothing leading up to it, no real reference to her faith before that. No searching. No struggle. Her decision has no meaning because it has no context.

I got this book for free and I feel ripped off. I finished the thing only because I couldn't believe how bad the writing is that I kept reading to see how low the book could go.

The conclusion of the mystery was given next to no foreshadowing. It didn't make much sense, really.

I normally don't write reviews, but this book was just so awful.

I am loving this book. Not yet done but highly recommend it to people who love a mystery and a not too complex story line.

I got "The Incumbent" as a free download for Kindle. I read it and found it fairly entertaining. Initially, I was impressed with some of the graceful writing, but later found it to be uneven. A lot of the writing is workmanlike, but then on occasion really good metaphors or passages grab your attention. This is a Christian book with a very light touch. The Christian aspect of it is not overworked like in some others, but arrives more naturally. That's a really good aspect of it. In fact, it could just be a regular book with a Christian underpinning. The main way that you can tell it's a Christian book is the total absence of any sex or passionate interplay. I don't think there's even a kiss here. Also, the seedy side of the world is not seen here at all. It's a fairly sanitized backdrop, lacking the lust, despair, and homelessness beside opulence, that we see in much of the real world. So - it's better than okay. It's not great but the kidnapping plot does draw you along to find out what happens. Although some elements of the different antagonists are implausible, and the ultimate resolution is a little bit unlikely, stranger things have happened.

The main reason why I cannot upgrade the ranking to 4 stars: despite occasional flashes of really good writing, a lot of "The Incumbent" is fairly pedestrian, and the pacing is slow. Large sections of writing seem to go nowhere. The book is just very slow-paced. I actually began to speed-read it, just reading the first sentence of paragraphs, for long stretches. I wasn't missing anything, see? When I got to something good, then I would read the whole bit. If this book were half as long, it would be twice as good. Still, you do like the protagonist and it's a pretty good yarn.

I've read some astonishingly good books on Kindle that nobody's heard about. "A Nail Through The Heart" is a compelling tale of light and darkness in Bangkok. "The Wounded Man" is a Chandleresque noir. "Scent of Shadows" is a surprisingly deep urban fantasy. If you like this book pretty well, you may love those books. I did.

REVIEWS OF UNUSUAL SIZE

---Re--- When Mayor Madison "Maddy" Glenn's confidants, advisors and friends start disappearing mysteriously, with only cryptic clues remaining, and signs that the abductor knows more than they should, Maddy must make a choice. Hide in fear or carry on like she has always done things, confronting the abductions and even a killer bravely and headfirst.


---Outstanding--- This was an interesting idea, and I thought the small town in California where it was set to be very appealingly described. Most of the characters were well rounded and had some personality.


---Unacceptable--- Unfortunately, the story never grabbed me. It was a slog to continue reading as page after page was filled with emotional drama, the story focusing on her tears and internal turmoils and minor aches and pains with her job, rather than the kidnappers and the investigation, which was a genuinely good idea and could have been an engrossing story. There was also a major side story featuring the daughter of a victim and her estranged father that did nothing for the story but give it a broadly defined man to hate and some drama that should have come from the main story instead.


---Summary--- What tries to come across as a kidnapping thriller behind the cover of a legal thriller ended up being something more akin to a chick-lit book with a kidnapping. It could make a pretty dramatic movie of the week on Lifetime, with her constant bickering and fisticuffs with the estranged father and self-absorbed sniffling. The Incumbent feels like a novel written by a county clerk that wanted to write a police thriller but didn't know enough about police investigations or thrills to actually include any in the book.

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