Charles “Buddy” Pancake,” a bank loan officer who’s married
to the beautiful Melissa (“Lissie”), visits a website wish list poll after
learning about it from his friends during an all-guy drinking session.
His top wishes? To have sex with gorgeous movie star Jinny
Kidwell, get a million dollars, see his loan-account-stealing boss dead, and
have a change of luck.
Right off the bat, author John Locke teases us about Buddy
having sex with Jinny in five days. Right off the bat, you’re wondering where
the heck is Donovan Creed? Isn’t this story supposed to be about him?
Then, it dawns on you. John Locke does this often, jumps
right into the middle of a story and catches you up later, telling you how it
all went down before you got heavily
involved with your reading.
Well, if you thought that (as I did), you would be wrong. As
I was. Creed does make his appearance at the very start, but doesn’t reappear
until about two-thirds way into the story. Buddy, it seems, calls Creed to help
him, for things haven’t been going well in the aftermath of having his wishes
granted.
You’re familiar with the saying that starts, “Be careful
what you wish for …” Buddy (and his friends) sure didn’t consider that early
enough. He starts having to pay back for having his wishes granted, and as we
learn, there’s a bunch of “cross-pollination” he has to deal with as many
wish-grantees’ lots are intermingled.
Creed is his usual self – heartless when it comes to
killing, soft-hearted and caring when the occasion or person calls for it.
Locke refers to many characters with whom we’re already familiar, and we
actually get to meet some of them again. And, when we finally learn who’s
behind the wish list, it comes as a surprise, but not a startling one. It all
makes sense.
Maybe I’m getting spoiled, but I think this particular
Donovan Creed story was a little less deep than the others. Still, it was
entertaining. Not great, but “okay-good.”
Wish List (2010)
John Locke
Telemachus Press, LLC (Kindle ebook, $.99)
ISBN-13: 978-1935670278
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