Psychological Thrillers discussion
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OCTOBER 2017 BOTM.....Homeowner with a Gun...by Samuel Hawley
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stephanie, MOD
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Oct 04, 2017 02:15PM
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Stupid me, what's ROFL? Roar Of Full Laughter?! Ha ha. I tried.
Fantastic observations you guys. "Every day is Senior Day!" That's a keeper! My thought: Jeff is a blundering nitwit. That's the only reason he would do those things. Imagine what this gangsta house must have looked like. Who would go up there? Knock on the door? Yunno, there must have been a few clues around saying, "Don't come in here, 'less you wanna die, like now!" But oh no, Jeff justs plods right up there, hat in hand
These are early acronyms from the old AOL chatrooms!😲
The BOTM site has been updated with interesting links and a story about a real-life homeowner with a gun! http://botm.blackdogebooks.com/
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Yeah, it was terrible what actually happened!
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Hi everyone! I'm the author of "Homeowner." Thanks for reading it. I'm really delighted! Hit me with any questions you have.
Coincidentally, one of my other books, "The Fight That Started the Movies," is free on Amazon.com Oct. 5-8. It's nonfiction, and totally different from "Homeowner."
Jim wrote: "So as I said earlier: Chapter 23! Best chapter ever written."Thanks Jim! That's a keeper.
It looks like this group is off to the races with this book. I will start reading the book and provide my comments in a few days. I look forward to reading this book and joining the discussion.
Ruth wrote: "Very nicely written."I agree - I haven't read a book in a long time that reads this smoothly and easily - it just flows.
For me just the right amount a description so you get the detail, tone & nuance but without making you feel like 'come on, get on with it' to the point where you start skimming.
Incredible dialogue which I find many authors struggle to make feel realistic.
I was just thinking last night that this is one of the best written books I've read all year - because you forget about the writing and get pulled totally into the story.
King has a way of doing that for me as well.
I'm not finished yet but the story definitely has my attention.
I'll read another book by this author - nice work Samuel!
Hi Samuel. Thanks. I finished the book last night and it was a terrific read! I do have a question about the ending but I don't want to post a spoiler. I will wait and post it in a few days.
Jake wrote: "Ruth wrote: "Very nicely written."I agree - I haven't read a book in a long time that reads this smoothly and easily - it just flows.
For me just the right amount a description so you get the det..."
Jake, what a ringing endorsement and tease for this book. Character development is the reason Michael Connelly is my favorite author. I can't wait to start this book.
Thanks for the compliments, guys! Jimmie, I LOVE Michael Connelly's books. I consider his thrillers pretty well perfect.
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Okay, this part really hit me because it's so accurate: "....."Which is worser, Michigan or Flint?" and his equally dumb companion would try to answer." This level of dumbfoundedness is difficult for normally functioning adults to comprehend. I encountered guys like this in the military. Felt like I had fallen down the rabbit hole.
Jim wrote: "Okay, this part really hit me because it's so accurate: "....."Which is worser, Michigan or Flint?" and his equally dumb companion would try to answer." This level of dumbfoundedness is difficult f..."This really hit me too.
I used to read, explain and write letters for guys dumb as a post, but real stand-up fellows in every other way.
Thanks, Stephanie! No, I've had no personal experience that inspired the story. The idea came from a news item I stumbled on on the internet back around 2012, about an incident that occurred somewhere in New York State where two guys broke into someone’s house (it was a place in a trailer park, if I remember correctly) and the homeowner shot both of them dead. It wasn’t a big story, just a little local-interest item. (This kind of incident happens a lot!) What caught my eye, though, was that a police officer commented that it was believed the intruders targeted the wrong house, got the address mixed up, something like that, and that that kind of thing happens a lot, far more often than people would imagine. So that got me thinking. “Homeowner With a Gun” was the result.
Samuel, I am curious is this your first novel?
My first novel was "Bad Elephant Far Stream," inspired by the true story of the elephant Topsy. I actually wrote it as a nonfiction book, a biography of a circus elephant from the late 19th century, but to do so effectively I had to use so much imagination to convey this elephant's life experience that I ended up calling it historical fiction. After I finished it, I guess I was primed to go full-out with a work of fiction, and so I wrote "Homeowner."
ok. I thought "Bad Elephant Far Stream" was non-fiction. Sorry for the misunderstanding.
Okay, this one's for Ruth. She's not been on today, so she musta recovered from the flu. So I got the Fikery book from the library, along with four others at once. So I'm buried here. Why does the library do that? Suddenly your entire hold list is available at one time. Must be a conspiracy!😨
I'm half way through Homeowner with a Gun. Wow, what a fabulous book. I had to take a quick break from the book to jump on Goodreads and give a resounding two thumbs up for this book. Now, back to my assigned task of reading this great book. I will follow up with my comments when I'm finished reading the book.
Glad you're aboard, Jimmie! I gotta write my review today!😎
Gave it 5 stars and I don't do that often.The writing just blew me away - absolutely incredible!
I keep thinking about that Chap 23. I've got notes all over the place about the smooth writing. And the dialog seemed right on, as well. I have nothing to base that on. I don't hang out with bangers. I talk with lots of strange young people. I have been photographing our local graffiti wall and have met many of the artists. I'm going to string all the photos into a movie. They don't seem to mind some 75 year old dude with huge dog doing that. So we rap, yunno. I also attend funk concerts, too.I would like to know how Samuel hooked into the dialog so well.
"I would like to know how Samuel hooked into the dialog so well."I really didn't do any research or anything regarding dialog in "Homeowner." I guess I just have an ear for it. A line sounds right in my head or it doesn't. I did do some research for the prison stuff, though. I forget where, but I found an audio recording from inside a prison (the processing of new prisoners, walking around with inmates in the yard, etc.) and I got some material from that about the sounds and how people talked..
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I believe, and this is my belief,,,,,that you need to have friends in all aspects of your life. What I mean by this is please have folks from the rich to the poor, and folks who knows how the streets work, so I will not label folks who actually know alot of street life, because a lot can help you out in certain situations. Many folks don't learn from books, but knows how to get out of situations if need be while in trouble in the streets. This book made me pissed off, and yet makes me to really continue to read, I know some of you all feel this way or has when you read a book, and get mad, say dumb stuff, but still eating popcorn, and drink tea while having your face in the book. I am like that. When Jeff went to the house, and the lady offered him in, and the guy sitting there sucking on a broke down Barbie Doll, made me say, DAMN JEFF, WHY DID YOU NOT TELL SOMEONE YOU WERE GOING THERE???DUHHH...Then I said I have to put this book down, because I don't see too many thug guys with Barbies, but folks, it didn't happen that way. I kept reading, and I KNEW 2 other thugs were going to come, slap him to another planet and wake up either under the house or in another room, locked up, Didn't like the Chicken box, its mainly Cat Fish and Cole Slaw...Need Kool-Aid....so that's the dinner,,,I could have added more into this line with the MS-13 gang which is a Hispanic drug/gun gang who is really an active gang going on now, BUT this isn't my book, but this is a GREAT smooth book to read. I am shocked that the cops did not go to the Mobile Home Park to start looking for stolen cars, and folks, let me say this, because I have read a couple of people's messages, and asked about the GPS system...Now I know this GPS on I-Man was ankle, and we in Denver have tamper proof. When I was monitoring, I ended up with the cut off ones from the inmates who cut and run, Hahaha, when I-Man was easing his way out that monitor, I stopped eating my popcorn to see if he was going to get away with it......He threw that monitor in the closet like that was the end of that!..Haha, I said " OH NO HE DIDN'T"...My husband wants to read this book and I am going to tell you why...When I read a good read, I tend to talk to myself,,,so now you all know....have a great reading day....
'Poetic license' allows writers (and readers) not to be encumbered by pesky facts.Works for some politicians as well - just say'n.
There ya go! Longest post ever on this thread! Spending time in PhoneX will do that to ya!😉I still didn't write my review yet. Been cutting wood. But I will get it out today, soon as I pick up bagles. It's Monday and that means deal-price on a baker's dozen at Einstein's Bagels! See ya there!
Jake wrote: "'Poetic license' allows writers (and readers) not to be encumbered by pesky facts."Gotta go with Jake on this! Without poetic license, there'd have been no story, or at least a very short one.
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Angela, its a good book, I understand a lot wasn't believable, but that's what made the book outstanding. There was quite a few things in this book that made me go hum, but I bet you any money folks have tried it. GPS is suppose to be tamper-proof, but so is medicine bottles....
Just turn on the news - some bizarre things going on out there.Stupid people do stupid things all the time - myself included.
Interesting we all read the same book but come away with different impressions.
Maybe I wasn't reading carefully but is it clear Sky Train & his crew are black?
In my head I had them as white skinhead type drug dealers - Skinny Puppy (think that was his name) sitting stoned chewing on the chick who answered the door daughter's Barbie - I saw these as white meth head types.
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....and I won't spoil it but the ending bothered me - a lot.Looking forward to getting some impressions from others on that.
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Sorry, the stoned guy was named Sick Puppy not Skinny Puppy.Skinny Puppy was a punk band from the 80's.
I re-read chapter 23 to see if I missed anything and cause Jim says it's the best chapter ever written.
Yeah, the ending...grrrrr.
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For the record, Sky Train and his gang are not black. They are white, maybe a bit Hispanic (as indicated by the name "Pokko"). I didn't realize that readers might mistake them as black.
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One of the things I thought so cool and so funny in Chap 23 was that our boy Grocery was being openly played and he was so clueless. And the more Grocery went on the deeper he fell in. Then the thing was that Grocery had put it all together completely wrong. So I was slow to pick up on that, which muddled the ending a little for me. But, hey! Endings can be a booger. Right?
