A Book A Week

Although it has officially been fall for a couple of weeks now, it seems that Texas has missed the memo. Sure, we flirted with a few cooler mornings, but the average temperatures have stayed in the high 80's to low 90's.  Needless to say, it has been difficult to get into the spirit of the season. In an attempt to "fall" into the season any way that I can, I turned to another seasonal mainstay, spooky stories.  The Mansion by Ezekiel Boone seemed like just what the doctor ordered.  After all, iced pumpkin spiced lattes can only take you so far!

Years ago, Shawn and Billy did the impossible. Fueled by a combination of youthful zeal and thirst to push the limits of technology, they jointly developed Eagle Logic. The pair secluded themselves in a shack on Shawn's family property. The dilapidated mansion lingered over their meager dwellings as they worked sleepless nights to realize their dream. While they had to settle a bit to conform with the realities of what was technologically feasible, Eagle Logic was still a huge success. Their system quickly became the most profitable in the world.

Years later, Billy is surprised to hear from Shawn. The pair had a falling out over the woman who soon became Billy's wife. Billy chose love, and Shawn chose the company. Shawn is the billionaire CEO of the largest tech company in the world. Billy is a recovering alcoholic with maxed out credit cards and chronic depression. Shawn will never admit to screwing Billy out of a large fortune and stake in the company, but he has to admit that Billy is the only person who can help him take his company to the next level. For Billy, the opportunity is too great to pass up, even if it means confronting the darkness of their shared past.

In The Mansion, Ezekiel Boone brings modernity and technology to a classic haunted house story. I've deliberately refrained from giving away too much plot because the book works better if you go in blind. I almost stopped reading this one at first. Boone takes a very long time to establish his characters and set up the main premise. To be fair, the characters are very well developed, and they have a rich history that adds to the believability of the story. Still, the book really doesn't get going until the second half. Once the Boone places his literary foot on the gas, he doesn't release it until the novel comes to a shocking end.  However flawed it may be, The Mansion is an adequate beginning to the spooky season.

For more information visit the author's website, Amazon, and Goodreads.
(2019, 33)