Friday, June 10, 2005
Review: Books: The Burning of Rachel Hayes (Doug Allyn)
A verison of this review appears on Amazon.com
The Burning of Rachel Hayes by Doug Allyn (also writes under the name Kenneth Shepherd).
Dr. David Westbrook has just moved to a small town in Michigan. While Westbrook is beginning to remodel the barn that he will turn into an animal clinic, he hears a cry for help. Flinging the paint can away from him (accidently), Westbrook rushes about ten miles over to where he spots a woman digging frantically into the dirt. Her boy has fallen down a hole in the ground (Westbrook is not first sure if it is a sinkhole or a well). While rescuing the boy, Westbrook spots a skeleton. The authorities rush to the scene (Westbrook had called 911 prior to attempting the rescue, the boy was in freezing water and he figured he couldn’t wait for the official rescue squad), and Westbrook makes note of the skeleton. The skeleton is brought up, and then strange occurrences begin.
This is the first book I've read by Allyn, though I've read many of his short stories and consider him to be one of the best short stories writers around. Unfortunately, Allyn's seven novels are hard to find, and I've previously only found the second novel in the Michelle Mitchell series (and that's a character I don't recall ever meeting in short story form; I've been trying to find the first book in that series before I begin it). Allyn is a very good writer, and one who I would tell to give up his day job (he is a member of a music group, which I, probably incorrectly, assume is his "day job" (the author information says a rock band, Devil's Triangle Rock Group - Co-Leader, singer/guitarist; though I thought that he also did Renaissance music)). It is hard to tell by just reading one of his novels, but it would appear that Allyn is very good in any length, and the music might be holding him back (though I know almost nothing about him, except for the music, the years in the USAF, the work as a book reviewer).
This is the first novel in the Dr. David Westbrook series, though there was a collection of stories titled "All Creatures Dark and Dangerous" released in 1999. While I really enjoy Allyn's short stories, the Westbrook character, and his stories, were not the ones that I particularly liked. I picked up the book because I really like Allyn's work (and they seem to go out of print quickly), but left the book lying around for a while, as I couldn't get myself to read a Westbrook novel. I'm very glad that I finally read this book, as it is very well crafted, the characters are fully developed, the plot is solid (it would probably be better to read the book without too much advance information), and for the most part, this is a very well-written book. The genre issue, though, might be a problem. Is this a mystery? A slice of life novel? A ghost story? This is a very good combination of many genre's (including more than just the three mentioned), but might not satisfy someone looking for one particular type of book (as opposed to a combo book). In the end, I would give this book 4.44 stars.
The Burning of Rachel Hayes by Doug Allyn (also writes under the name Kenneth Shepherd).
Dr. David Westbrook has just moved to a small town in Michigan. While Westbrook is beginning to remodel the barn that he will turn into an animal clinic, he hears a cry for help. Flinging the paint can away from him (accidently), Westbrook rushes about ten miles over to where he spots a woman digging frantically into the dirt. Her boy has fallen down a hole in the ground (Westbrook is not first sure if it is a sinkhole or a well). While rescuing the boy, Westbrook spots a skeleton. The authorities rush to the scene (Westbrook had called 911 prior to attempting the rescue, the boy was in freezing water and he figured he couldn’t wait for the official rescue squad), and Westbrook makes note of the skeleton. The skeleton is brought up, and then strange occurrences begin.
This is the first book I've read by Allyn, though I've read many of his short stories and consider him to be one of the best short stories writers around. Unfortunately, Allyn's seven novels are hard to find, and I've previously only found the second novel in the Michelle Mitchell series (and that's a character I don't recall ever meeting in short story form; I've been trying to find the first book in that series before I begin it). Allyn is a very good writer, and one who I would tell to give up his day job (he is a member of a music group, which I, probably incorrectly, assume is his "day job" (the author information says a rock band, Devil's Triangle Rock Group - Co-Leader, singer/guitarist; though I thought that he also did Renaissance music)). It is hard to tell by just reading one of his novels, but it would appear that Allyn is very good in any length, and the music might be holding him back (though I know almost nothing about him, except for the music, the years in the USAF, the work as a book reviewer).
This is the first novel in the Dr. David Westbrook series, though there was a collection of stories titled "All Creatures Dark and Dangerous" released in 1999. While I really enjoy Allyn's short stories, the Westbrook character, and his stories, were not the ones that I particularly liked. I picked up the book because I really like Allyn's work (and they seem to go out of print quickly), but left the book lying around for a while, as I couldn't get myself to read a Westbrook novel. I'm very glad that I finally read this book, as it is very well crafted, the characters are fully developed, the plot is solid (it would probably be better to read the book without too much advance information), and for the most part, this is a very well-written book. The genre issue, though, might be a problem. Is this a mystery? A slice of life novel? A ghost story? This is a very good combination of many genre's (including more than just the three mentioned), but might not satisfy someone looking for one particular type of book (as opposed to a combo book). In the end, I would give this book 4.44 stars.
