Book Review: In Search of the Nobility, TX Wildman by Elford Alley
Title: In Search of the Nobility, TX Wildman
Author: Elford Alley
Release date: June 7, 2016
I’m not sure if I’m on my own here, but one thing I love is when you go into a book thinking one thing and it ends up going somewhere completely different.
There’s a few books that come to mind immediately, but in this case – none of them went as far in the other directions as Elford Alley’s ‘In Search of the Nobility, Tx Wildman.’
Based off the title and the original cover art this book had when I snagged it, I was expecting this to be a straight-up creature feature about people searching for bigfoot and things going south. So much so, that when I came across this book, I DM’s Hunter Shea to see if he’d read it, as I know he loves bigfoot/sasquatch fiction.
It turns out, this book is a much more introspective piece, and in parts incredibly moving, focusing on two men from very different backgrounds, both of whom want to leave this world with some sort of legacy.
What I liked: The story follows James Cushing, Grade-A dill-hole and host of a “monster hunting” show. Of course everything on it is fake and he hates the show and where he’s at in his life. When the show heads to Texas and they encounter Maverick Casey, a lifelong Bigfoot hunter, Cushing sees a bit of himself in the old man and it’s this connection that pushes the narrative from that moment forward.
Alley does a great job of making the reader loathe and connect with both Casey and Cushing, and as things play out and more layers are peeled back and exposed, Alley doesn’t ease up. No, instead he grinds into both characters, making things go from bad to worse.
The biggest aspect here that I ultimately adored, was that the crux of the book is Casey and his final search for the Wildman and we in fact, never actually go searching for him. It was a bold decision and one that works really well. I struggled over whether to include that bit of info in this review, but decided upon doing it, as it really sets this book apart from other stories in this subgenre.
What I didn’t like: I think the only thing that didn’t really click for me was some of Casey’s issues. I won’t share those here, but I think I would’ve had more of a compassionate lens on him if he reached out to those he loved.
Why you should buy this: Alley does a fantastic job of creating an intriguing character based thriller. As each part moves along, the writing succeeds in pulling the reader along and the narrative grows stronger with the story.
This was really well done and a true unexpected gem.
5/5
