G Michael Vasey

This short book has some of the worst dialogue I have ever read in my life. It's almost worth the .99 cents to be able to read it out loud and wonder does anyone actually talk like this? But of course the answer is "no."

In contrast to reviewers' assertions, it is neither fast-paced nor surprising. The plot is as thin as the page count. Unless you were hatched out of an egg last Thursday, it will not challenge any ideas you have about the nature of reality--not if you've seen The Matrix, Being John Malcovich, any episode of Supernatural, or indeed a kazillion other movies or shows. Not that The Last Observer belongs in this company.

In writing a book, there has to be some attention paid to the craft of writing. You must let others who are well-read read your work, and give you feedback. Could that have been done in this case, with clumsy sentences like these?

"The volume was high and the bass notes were thunderous inside the small cabin of the sports car."

"By the time Stan looked up again, his tea was stone cold and his stomach was telling him that it urgently required filling."

"If a tree falls in a forest and no one is there to observe it, does it make a noise? he thought echoing something he had read."

And that's just a quick sample across a couple of pages. There is no art, no craft here. The story is a crude illustration of a simplistic philosophical point. It is not worth your time.… (mais)