Okay, back in fact.
The salvage yard climax scene starts as Plum and her abductors deal with the locked gate. Petiak orders Dave's partner Rudy to check the obviously locked and razor-wired gate twice. They need bolt cutters, so Petiak asks Plum if she knows where there's a Home Depot. Huh? Ha!
Petiak's obvious angry stupidity and the everyday trip to Home Depot ease the tension. Portraying everybody involved as life's pawns varying in degrees of asinine stupidity brings the reader in with the memories of their own silly behavior in life. We've all done silly things. This also eases the tension. Although we know the series continues, this ending displays the series main arc of a haphazard female bounty hunter risking her life that could end. She could die. Too many readers to satisfy and money to be made by continuing the series. Theoretically, however, she could die, easily felt if the reader--our silent partner--allows him or herself to let go and enjoy.
But wait. Home Depot is out of bolt cutters. More everyday life foibles and frustrations, bringing us in without commitment--we are smarter than these folks, after all. Plum volunteers that she knows where a Lowe's is located, which will buy time for Ranger and all the good guys ready to charge in thanks to her pen gps beacon. Tension eases, especially when Lowe's is out of bolt cutters as well.
Impatient Petiak orders a return to the salvage yard. Plum wants the hostage situation resolved not first to save her life, but because she has to pee. More humor balancing dark drama. They stop in front of the locked gate. Tension up once again, but mitigated by Ranger's proven ability to rescue Plum seemingly from out of nowhere, a recurring story and series romantic arc.
The wild card is Petiak's proven homicidal insanity, unpredictability and love of flamethrowers, which creates steady tension beneath the silliness.
One comment overall. The author has an easy, smooth way with comedy. Her use of simple repetition in the cable company scenes got me laughing pretty hard. "Those fuckers." Ha!
The salvage yard climax scene starts as Plum and her abductors deal with the locked gate. Petiak orders Dave's partner Rudy to check the obviously locked and razor-wired gate twice. They need bolt cutters, so Petiak asks Plum if she knows where there's a Home Depot. Huh? Ha!
Petiak's obvious angry stupidity and the everyday trip to Home Depot ease the tension. Portraying everybody involved as life's pawns varying in degrees of asinine stupidity brings the reader in with the memories of their own silly behavior in life. We've all done silly things. This also eases the tension. Although we know the series continues, this ending displays the series main arc of a haphazard female bounty hunter risking her life that could end. She could die. Too many readers to satisfy and money to be made by continuing the series. Theoretically, however, she could die, easily felt if the reader--our silent partner--allows him or herself to let go and enjoy.
But wait. Home Depot is out of bolt cutters. More everyday life foibles and frustrations, bringing us in without commitment--we are smarter than these folks, after all. Plum volunteers that she knows where a Lowe's is located, which will buy time for Ranger and all the good guys ready to charge in thanks to her pen gps beacon. Tension eases, especially when Lowe's is out of bolt cutters as well.
Impatient Petiak orders a return to the salvage yard. Plum wants the hostage situation resolved not first to save her life, but because she has to pee. More humor balancing dark drama. They stop in front of the locked gate. Tension up once again, but mitigated by Ranger's proven ability to rescue Plum seemingly from out of nowhere, a recurring story and series romantic arc.
The wild card is Petiak's proven homicidal insanity, unpredictability and love of flamethrowers, which creates steady tension beneath the silliness.
One comment overall. The author has an easy, smooth way with comedy. Her use of simple repetition in the cable company scenes got me laughing pretty hard. "Those fuckers." Ha!