SMALL TOWN

Here is one of those fairly rare cases in which an author's voice marvelously fits the story and characters of his own book. Not all authors can read well--slowly and lucidly--but Block does. He has a flat middle-American voice even though virtually everything he writes is set in New York City. He slightly alters his tone, and the characters stand out as individuals, instantly recognizable once introduced. The story here is a simple framework of a man driven mad by the events of 9/11 who becomes a clever serial killer and mass murderer. On this framework Block hangs a myriad of sex scenes, spending more time on those than on the plot. Typically Block. D.R.W. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: JUN/JUL 03]