Or Else

by Joe Hart

Happy endings are fine, Andy, but not every thriller should have so much closure. Less tied up with bows, more interpretation for the reader.

Uh oh. Is this what I should expect from this book? Are we foreshadowing, perhaps?

We called her the bird lady because at any point in the day, she could be seen at one of her windows, Swarovski binoculars glued to her face, looking like some kind of alien insect, gathering intel on the Loop, while claiming she was only watching the local avian species.

Hahaha there's someone like this in every neighborhood.

We ate in silence. The silence ate at me.

Well that was certainly profound.

Seeds can grow anything; it’s hard to know what will sprout when they’re planted until they bloom.

“Oh yeah? Have I read anything you’ve written?” “How should I know?”

Hahahaha. That's such a good comeback. Also, very true.

All this technology in the world and you still couldn’t unsend a text. Pathetic.

Of course I wouldn’t do anything stupid. I was going to do something very stupid.

Hahahhahahahahhaa.

My heart moonlighted a funny shimmy, then went back to its day job.

Yeah. Sure. Think the crazy thoughts and leave them behind.

The murderer. Obviously. They’d returned to the scene of the crime just like in every movie and book ever written. Why hadn’t I thought of that? I was a fucking mystery/thriller writer. What a goddamned disappointment I was.

The hollow of the tree was still damp from the spring thaw. Moisture seeped through my T-shirt, and something with too many legs skittered quickly across my neck and was gone.

And this is where I would die and the story would end. No WAY I would be able to keep my shit together if "something with too many legs skittered quickly across my neck" !!

In bed, covers up to my chin, a last conscious thought floated through my head. When I woke up, I’d have to make a casserole.

#LateNightThoughts

Valorie gave me a polite half smile, her eyes chardonnay glazed.

The feeling when you think there’s another step at the top of the stairway and there isn’t. Yeah, that.

“I have dementia, Andy. I’m not stupid.”

Tell 'em pops.

I won’t say this isn’t a mess you’re in—it is—but sometimes wrong things come from the right decisions.”

“You didn’t have to do it,” I said. “I know. The best things aren’t done out of need.”

How ironic to not even be a bestselling author and be killed by a lunatic fan. Stephen King, eat your heart out.

Words are funny things. They’re warped mirrors of what we mean, and only once in a while do they reflect the truth.

“Anything else you want?” “Brain transplant.” “Already on the list.” “Good, good.”

I think my favorite character was Andy's dad.

If you loved someone, all kinds of conversations happened without words.

Only in America could you be crushed by the wheel of medical expense before the disease being treated actually killed you.

Truth.

If you’re going through hell, keep going.

“Anyhoo, working on anything new?”

For some reason... I like the Visitor. I really hope I don't regret saying that later on but I don't think I will.