If you don’t know Chuck Tingle, he has two distinct bodies of work: The first (it is actually his second) are traditionally published books with big publishers. The second, where he got his start, are self- published books that I don’t think a traditional publisher would touch with a ten-foot pole to their butt. Fabulous Bodies is from the first group that I mentioned.
This one is marketed as Drive meets Beetlejuice; I can see where they are coming from, but it is a bit of a stretch. I’ll give it to Tingle; this is certainly a unique book; I have never read anything quite like it and I am not sure I will again. The synopsis is interesting; it is a great idea that pulled me in.
Personally, I found that Fabulous Bodies had some problems. The biggest of which was that I did not care about the protagonist. I suppose you could say she is completely relevant for the here and now. While she does everything a mother would do for her child, she is completely self-absorbed. Everyone else exists in her world to be a convenience for her and her needs. I did not find this something that helped to develop my compassion or connection with the character. Live, die, whatever…this is not someone I would want to have a beer with.
I’m someone who needs a connection to take that story to the next level. I want to care about my protagonists. I need to cheer them on; I even found the baddie to be a little one-dimensional and uninteresting, that could be a symptom of my connection with the protagonist.
This one could have been a pass for me.
*3 Stars
