Reviews of Brambleman

This author really puts his main character through a lot in this story. Those are really the best type fo reads, you really don't know how they are going to make it out ok.
Charlie is down on his luck being called a failure in life by his wife and kicked out of the house. A man by the name of Trouble-literally, offers him a deal that sounds too good to be true, finish a book that was left unfinished by a professor.
As Charlie delves deeper into the events that occurred in the book, he focuses on a family farm and historical events that have a not so good past including slavery, civil rights and the especially interesting fact that the story seems to hit a little close to home when he finds a connection to his wife's family.
I think this is a book that fans of John Grisham and Michael Connelly would enjoy. The mix of a flawed main character that not only has to work his way through his own problems but also a mystery and putting himself in danger, as well as deeper look into the darker side of America's history.
There is a great mixture of characters and the unraveling of the plot was perfect. It has some uplifting points unveiled through all the darker events that Charlie must find his way through.

Although very different stories I see similarities between this and JG’s first novel ‘The Chain Gang Elementary’. The protagonists in each book are men in failing marriages who work from home and look after their children while earning considerably less money than each of their ‘power hungry’ ’money loving’ wives; who by the way also share a feeling of boredom and intolerance towards their inadequate husbands. Both books have a conscientious lead character who is far from perfect and a plot that has an anti-racist theme, an issue I feel must be close to the authors heart or locality.

This is a very well written novel with a varied vocabulary and structured prose, clearly Mr. Grant has the skill required to construct a sentence and write a good story with a complicated plot and a diverse set of characters. I was intrigued by ‘Trouble and Romy, they were both characters that I had to think and wonder about, and hadn’t expected to find in this book. overall I found Brambleman to be and interesting and informative read.

Copy supplied for review.

Kathleen Talton was getting old, already suffering from Alzheimer's Disease. Her husband, Thurwoood Talton, a retired Georgia State University history professor, died while trying to get his manuscript Flight from Forsyth published. He was hit in the head by a beer bottle throwing youth while marching for for civil rights in Forsyth County. Thurwood died a week later, and Kathleen believed it was caused by the youth who threw the bottle. Kathleen waited many years then decided she needed to have her husband's work completed and published. So she did something she hasn't done in years, she prayed. Not for forgiveness, not for happiness and not many of the things most people pray for. She asked for justice, companionship, vengeance, completion and closure. It was a most interesting prayer!

Charlie Sherman, father of 14 year old Ben and daughter Rebecca (Beck), has been a stay at home dad for a long time. He had opted to stay at home so he could write his book. Prior tho staying home he had been a freelance writer and an editor. His wife Susan, supported his decision because she made more money at her job then he did, and that mattered a lot to her. The problem was, nothing Charlie wrote got published and Susan was sick of him. After a bitter dispute with his wife, his daughter had called the cops because she was afraid. Charlie got his butt kicked out of the house and concluded that Susan had wanted him gone for a long time.

Walking in the rain, extremely upset, Charlie has a George Bailey moment. (George Bailey is a character from classic film It's a Wonderful Life, my all time favorite movie) and gets ready to jump from an overpass. A strange, seemingly random accident below him on the road has him realizing that if he takes his life, he won't see anymore weird stuff. Deciding to think things through a little more, he heads off for some peace, guiet and coffee. Instead he finds Trouble, though who and what he is Charlie's not sure of. And boy does Trouble SMELL!.

When Trouble tells Charlie he has a job for him to do he finds himself agreeing to go and meet Kathleen. She hires him to finish up and publish her husband's manuscript and he can stay at her house in the basement well he does so. Charlie is a little leery but finally agrees and signs a contract. He figures things can't get much weirder, boy is he wrong!

Things aren't just weird anymore, they're Old Testament weird! People were dying; Kathleen's daughter got boils after upsetting her mom, as did a pharmacist; burning buildings and, the kicker for Charlie, the contract he originally signed to complete Kathleen's husband book, the ink had turned to blood and if Charlie tried to get out of it, he paid with his life.

You'd think with all this going on, Charlie would have enough to deal with but no. His wife Susan and the rest of her crazy relatives were all somehow tied in to Charlie's mess with the manuscript. Charlie has to think fast and move faster before something else bad happens. There is way, way more in store for Charlie, his wife Susan, her nutty family, Kathleen and Trouble. What does Trouble really want?And the biggest problem of all is Charlie knows that good and evil are somehow involved in all this, but what side is Charlie actually working for and how will he find out? Will Charlie survive? Will anyone survive?

I found myself reading faster and faster as the story twisted and turned more and more. I really enjoyed the pace and the story in a story aspect that came out of the manuscript that Charlie had to edit. Some of the characters are just that, characters! Good, bad, hicks and politicians, men and women and children all had interesting thoughts and actions. My only real complaint was the length of the novel. While it held my attention all the way through, there were times I thought things could have been said just as well with several less words or pages. All in all though a good albeit long read.

Please note that some people might be offended due to certain events, certain groups including the Klu Klux Klan and certain demeaning and racist remarks depicted in the novel but they are used to show what had actually happened in Forsyth County.

I received this eBook through LibraryThing and was asked for my honest review.

(no rating)
Another excellent story by Mr. Grant. It took me a while to get through it but it was worth it.

The cast of characters were vast. It was two books in one, which is what it is. By the time Charlie starts the second book, you almost forget there was a first. But it all worked itself out in the end, good or bad, for some.

I know this is probably a bad review but this book was an excellent read. I might have finished it sooner if I had an actual eReader instead of my phone lol.