finally done

The Widows of Eden by George Shaffner

Rating: 2 stars (out of 5)

Genre: fiction

Review: To get a real feel for what I thought of this book, please read my reviews of the two books that came before it, In the Land of Second Chances and One Part Angel. With this book, the three form what I hope will be only a trilogy telling the story of what happens when Vernon Moore pays a visit to the hopeless folk of Ebb, Nebraska.

Having established what I thought of those, it should come as no surprise that I was not impressed, to say the least, by this third installment. Here we have more of the same, although at least we are given the beginnings of an explanation of where the mysterious Mr. Moore comes from. I was not thrown a bit by the vaguely supernatural nature of the theory that the people of Ebb come up with, it just seemed forced and laid on top of the story very heavily.

This book follows the pattern set by its predecessors. There is a crisis in Ebb and Vernon Moore rolls into town to save the day. Except, rather than just addressing the problem, he has to do it in the roundabout way of convincing one of the main players to have faith. His arguments this time are a combination of the arguments he made in the first two books.

There is really nothing new here. The characters, none too interesting to begin with, have become parodies of themselves. I can only echo what other reviewers have said: if you liked the first two, you'll probably like this one. If you didn't, or haven't read the first two, don't bother with this one.

FTC Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for this review.