1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Flawed but not without merit, December 28, 1998
By A Customer
This review is from: Thirst (Hardcover)
The so called plot here revolves around shady business deals in the desert perpetrated by an ex-alcoholic who dies suddenly leaving his estranged out-of-work actor son to fly in from England and unravel the mystery from only a curious list of names found in a briefcase. The novel then proceeds to fail its own hackneyed plot device, botching its attempt at conventional detective intrigue. The sense about half way through that the author has no clue where he's going is confirmed by the ludicrous events of the clumsily appended finale. Fortunately for Amidon, the book redeems itself with a precisely evoked desert atmosphere, a sensitive portrayal of human relationships fractured by alcohol abuse and some memorably surreal set pieces, including one involving a drunken widow and a killer cactus! Worth a look for its style if you can bear the absence of direction.
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