2 Book Lovers Reviews

Strange Weather

​By Joe Hill

​I’m always a bit hesitant before beginning an anthology.  You see, I like big books, that is one of the things that I love most about Joe Hill, he’s not afraid to take me on a seven hundred and fifty page (or more) journey.  He has always kept me captivated through his tomes.  So, in Strange Weather I’ve got four short novels packed into approximately four hundred and fifty pages.  Could Joe Hill captivate me four times over in a fraction of the space he normally uses?  I was anxious to find out.

What I did with Strange Weather was I read one story and then switched to a different full-length novel.  I think that was the best approach for me.  It gave me some great separation from one story to the next.  I guess you could say that I used the stories as a pause or interlude between the other books I was reading.

Joe Hill possesses a rare gift.  He is able to create a familiarity between his characters and the reader.  This gift translated exceptionally to the four stories in Strange Weather.  It worked better in some circumstances than others, but I’m sure that another reader would have a stronger connection with different characters based on their own experience.  Joe Hill has created someone who is recognizable to every reader.

Now, how do I rate a book like Strange Weather?  The stories were well crafted, with great characters.  I had fun reading the stories but…there is nothing there that is going to stick with me long term.  There are no friends that I will think fondly of like:  Vic McQueen, Iggy Perrish, Harper and John or Judas and Georgia.  Nor is there a villain that will haunt me for the rest of my life, like Charles Manx.  Strange Weather was an entertaining way to pass away a few hours.

*4 Stars

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