Review: Spanish Moss + Further by Eddy Cook
Spanish Moss + Further
by Eddy Cook
Thank you Bronzeville Books for this copy.
Publisher: Bronzeville Books
Publish Date: December 8, 2020
Paperback
220 Pages
In the fast-paced, mystical SPANISH MOSS, a - fifteen-year-old Minnesota boy, Calvin, escapes an abusive father and hitchhikes through the South until, in attempt to flee a sexual predator, he causes a car crash that lands him in a Louisiana swamp. Rescued by a Cajun family, he becomes part of their small clan. On his eighteenth birthday, he repays their kindness by heading to New Orleans to hunt down the never-found killer who murdered their matriarch, becoming enmeshed in a complex mystery that leads Calvin-now known as Vin-through the barrooms, newsrooms, back alleys and police stations of The Big Easy as the drama barrels forward to a breathtaking conclusion.
In FURTHER, which takes place six years after Vin crashed through the guardrail that led him to the Robineux family, Vin has settled into both New Orleans and adulthood, supporting himself by tracking down criminals, particularly pedophiles. As his reputation grows through the underground network, he receives a request that takes him back to his roots: Kids have gone missing in Minnesota and a vigilante tribe attempting to - find them needs his help. As Vin works to break up a ring of predators, he must face the darkness of his own past if he is to help the children- find a future.
My Review:
Phew! This book starts off STRONG. Calvin finds out his mom is also his sister and his father likes them all. Due to his sister/mother's warning, he kills him in self defense at the young age of 15 and runs away. While he was hitch hiking, he gets picked up by yet another sexual predator and manages to escape him too and thus meets the Robinaux clan, who takes him in. It is they who show him kindness and teaches him about life. And he decides the best way to repay their kindness is to hunt down the killer(s) of one of their own.
Cook brings us a lot within these short pages and as such, sometimes things felt very abrupt and before I could process one part, the other one was up and running. The second novella is Further and Calvin is now 21 and supporting himself by tracking down criminals. I actually enjoyed this part better than the first part. Though I did feel as if things were still running a bit abrupt for my particular taste.
Overall this was a decent story - I just don't think it is geared for me as a reader. Pulp noir isn't really in my wheelhouse. I will say my favorite character was Miss Jovetta. ❤
★★★
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