When a small plane laden with smuggled diamonds crashes in the Blue Mountains of Jamaica, a gang of criminals are sent to recover the jewels. Foolishly they entrust the key to the plane’s safe to a young girl and give her instructions to carry it through customs at Miami airport in exchange for a free flight to Jamaica. But the girl loses her bag, and then she disappears. Once the smugglers have caught up with her, the girl’s distraught parents reach out to the only man who can save her: Kenneth Johnson—The Fixer.
With its rather generic plot, including a number of decisions made by key characters that seem barely plausible, Gary R. Hamilton’s THE FIXER struggles to really grip the reader. That said, there is just about enough intrigue and double-bluffing to keep the pages turning. Things aren’t helped by the fact that a lot of the writing is somewhat labored. The following example takes place just before the smugglers’ plane hits a radio tower: “The engines scream as the plane tries to ascend at the rate the pilot demands of it, complaining as it climbs every foot.” Or this excerpt, taken from what should be a full throttle action sequence: “he moves quickly and aims a vicious kick at Busha’s head, but Busha manages to tilt his head at an angle, so he only gets a glancing blow on the side of the head.” Added to this are problems with many of the dialogue sequences, which run for far too long with characters often talking at each other rather than to each other.
Though in general the novel is rather too long-winded to really satisfy those who are seeking high-impact action and thrills, there are still some interesting diversions in the text. These include a section on the history of the Caribbean, its supposed “discovery,” and the horrors of the slave trade—which is delivered under the guise of a character delivering a university lecture. With such a rich culture as his setting, it’s a pity that Hamilton didn’t integrate more of Jamaica’s history directly into his story.
Gary R. Hamilton’s THE FIXER is a mainstream genre thriller targeted at fans of the likes of James Patterson. Though it sometimes struggles to really ramp up the action, there are enough moments of tension and drama to engage the reader.
~Kent Lane for IndieReader