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A review by 8bitbrainstem
99 Ways to Die by Ed Lin
2.0
Very quick read. Jumped right into the whole “my father has been kidnapped” tagline right out of the gate; however, this was quickly overshadowed by the obscene amount of backstory you need to even understand the context of this statement. And that is basically the style for this 273 page word prison. There was obviously a lot going on, but I didn’t feel the grip that comes with a true edge-of-your-sear thriller. Maybe my confusion stems from the fact that this novel is labeled as the third book in this series. Lots of backstory that is just never addressed like how the main character has mob connections that only ever pop up when he’s being a self-deprecating douche? Or how he could possibly get roped into this absurdity because a former classmate the author so lovingly describes as a “friendly bully” has his phone number? Or how the quiet type former criminal working at the food stand can solve this kidnapping and identify the perps with absolutely no effort? And to top it off there is about a 60 page veer into some other ridiculous abduction. It’s honestly a tangled mess of “who’s on whose side at the moment t” and after about half of the book you lose the main premise of the boom beneath the overgrown hedge of food porn and overt racism. Again, very quick read but not a very good one.