Pond
Claire-Louise Bennett, 2015 (U.S., 2016)
Penguin Publishing
208 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780399575891
Summary
Immediately upon its publication in Ireland, Claire-Louise Bennett’s debut began to attract attention well beyond the expectations of the tiny Irish press that published it.
A deceptively slender volume, it captures with utterly mesmerizing virtuosity the interior reality of its unnamed protagonist, a young woman living a singular and mostly solitary existence on the outskirts of a small coastal village.
Sidestepping the usual conventions of narrative, it focuses on the details of her daily experience—from the best way to eat porridge or bananas to an encounter with cows, rendered sometimes in story-length, story-like stretches of narrative, sometimes in fragments no longer than a page—but always suffused with the hypersaturated, almost synesthetic intensity of the physical world that we remember from childhood.
The effect is of character refracted and ventriloquized by environment, catching as it bounces her longings, frustrations, and disappointments—the ending of an affair, or the ambivalent beginning with a new lover. As the narrator’s persona emerges in all its eccentricity, sometimes painfully and often hilariously, we cannot help but see mirrored there our own fraught desires and limitations, and our own fugitive desire, despite everything, to be known.
Shimmering and unusual, Pond demands to be devoured in a single sitting that will linger long after the last page. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—N/A
• Where—Wiltshire, England, UK
• Education—B.A., University of Roehampton
• Currently—lives in Galway, Ireland
Claire-Louise Bennett grew up in Wiltshire in the southwest of England. After studying literature and drama at the University of Roehampton in London, she settled in Galway, Ireland.
Her short fiction and essays have been published in The Stinging Fly, Penny Dreadful, The Moth, Colony, Irish Times, White Review and gorse. She was awarded the inaugural White Review Short Story Prize in 2013 and has received bursaries from the Arts Council and Galway City Council. This is her first collection of stories. (From Stinging Fly Press.)
Book Reviews
Pond is a slim novel, told in chapters of varying lengths that resemble short stories. There's little in the way of conventional plot. But Ms. Bennett has a voice that leans over the bar and plucks a button off your shirt. It delivers the sensations of Edna O'Brien's rural Irish world by way of Harold Pinter's clipped dictums…Pond is filled with short intellectual junkets into many topics. At other times it drifts, sensually, into chapters that resemble prose poems. You swim through this novel as you do through a lake in midsummer, pushing through both warm eddies and the occasional surprisingly chilly draft from below…As a writer, Ms. Bennett seems to know exactly what to take seriously. She puts us inside a complicated, teeming mind, and she doesn't dabble in forced epiphanies…Ms. Bennett's sensibility here feels like the tip of a deep iceberg, and I'll be in line to read whatever she publishes next. Her witty misanthropy is here to ward off mental scurvy.
Dwight Garner - New York Times
Pond, a sharp, funny and eccentric debut from Claire-Louise Bennett, is one of those books so odd and vivid that they make your own life feel strangely remote…the book's preoccupation with a kind of studied ridding oneself of the superego/organized social self that comes with being an adult works on you, slowly, making you question why so many of our everyday experiences go undescribed…. More than anything this book reminded me of the kind of old-fashioned British children's books I read growing up—books steeped in contrarianism and magic, delicious scones and inviting ponds, otherworldly yet bracingly real. Somehow, Bennett has written a fantasy novel for grown-ups that is a kind of extended case for living an existence that threatens to slip out of time…. Pond makes the case for Bennett as an innovative writer of real talent. In the United States, we love the maximalist work, the sprawling Great American Novel. But Pond reminds us that small things have great depths. Unlike the pond the narrator lives beside within its pages, Bennett's Pond is anything but shallow.
Mehgan O'Rourke - New York Times Book Review
[A] smart, funny, elliptical debut…. Reminiscent of Joyce and Beckett in its unmistakably Irish blend of earthy wit and existential unease. Yet Bennett does much more than emulate literary forebears. Pond expressed her unique sensibility in deceptively simply, delightfully unsettled prose. We’ll be hearing more from this formidably gifted young writer.
Boston Globe
[Pond] contains no story, no action and...one describable character and is defined as much by these absences as by the material that remains. What’s left on the page are the gleanings of a “mind in motion,” to borrow Ms. Bennett’s phrase—reflections on everyday objects, philosophical digressions, daydreams and stirred-up memories and associations.... The book is reminiscent of a country diary, with entries that dwell on the narrator’s breakfast routine or her vegetable garden.... Hers is a mind in attentive communion with itself, building baroque and beautiful cloud castles of thought to distract from the storms of the real.
Wall Street Journal
An elegant and intoxicating debut novel…rich with strange, sensuous and exhilarating moods and textures…we are captivated by the narrator’s sharply illuminated interior reality and her lyrical depictions of the nature about her. Boldly defying convention, Pond is an exceptional debut with beautiful hidden depths.
Minneapolis Star-Tribune
A fascinating and utterly immersive reading experience that speaks volumes about the author’s creative process and delivers insights in droves...compulsively readable and wacky…. [Bennett has] diffused our often confusing and chaotic world into something more manageable, yet all the while making itty-bitty molehills into mountains
San Francisco Chronicle
(Starred review.) [F]ascinating.... Never do we glean [the narrator's] name, or occupation, or appearance. She is a physical blank slate, there for the reader's imagination to round out. Bennett has achieved something strange, unique, and undeniably wonderful.
Publishers Weekly
(Starred review.) Innovative and elegant...In her celebration of minutiae, Bennett recreates the experience of a believable, uniquely captivating persona. Pond deserves to be discovered and dived into, so thoroughly does Bennett submerge readers into her meticulously dazzling world.
Booklist
Short as it is, this is a demanding read: with its sharp, winding sentences, it's not a book that washes over you but a book that you work for. But the attention pays off: quietly striking, Bennett's debut lingers long after the last page. Strange and lyrical with an acute sense of humor.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available; in the meantime, consider these LitLovers talking points to help start a discussion for Pond...then take off on your own:
1. As reader, how well do you feel you know the narrator of Pond. She is never named, nor does any other voice describe her to us except for the final chapter. What do we learn about her? Choose any, or all, of the book's 20 chapters and talk about what each tells us about her.
2. What is the narrator doing in her cottage by the sea? She talks about her lack of ambition and says that "real events don't make much difference to me." Is she hiding? Escaping? If so, from what? Is she seeking solace in solitude (.except that she interacts with others and his wi-fi)?
3. Think about the first story's little girl who climbs over a wall into a garden and falls asleep, suggesting an Alice in Wonderland quality to the stories. What are the instances in which the narrator finds enchantment in the smallest or most basic and ordinary things.
4. The stories are infused with a sense of loss, personal and professional. How does she frame those experiences, "the essential brutality of love," and what we come to learn about the various episodes in her life and how they affect her?
5. The narrator tells us that childhood is when one should...
develop the facility to really notice things so that, over time, and with enough practice, one ...can experience the enriching joy of moving about in deep and direct accordance with things." What does she mean to live in "deep accordance with things?
Is it possible to engage in the practice of "noticing things" in adulthood, or in adulthood do schuedels, duties, and egos take over our lives?
6. What is the narrator's relationship with men and sex. Consider, for instance, her attitude toward rape in the story titled, "Morning 1908."
7. Where do you find humor in the book? What about "Oh, Tomato Puree" or "Stir-Fry"?
8. In "Control Knobs" the narator wonders what it would feel like to be the last woman alive. Referring to a such character in a novel, the narrator claims she would like "to be undone in just the way she is being undone." What does she mean?
9. What are some of the comparisons you see with Thoreau's Walden Pond, which Bennett might be nodding to in her book's title?
(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)
Dark Matter
Blake Crouch, 2016
Crown/Archetype
352 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781101904220
Summary
A brilliantly plotted, relentlessly surprising science-fiction thriller from the author of the bestselling Wayward Pines trilogy.
“Are you happy with your life?”
Those are the last words Jason Dessen hears before the masked abductor knocks him unconscious.
Before he awakens to find himself strapped to a gurney, surrounded by strangers in hazmat suits.
Before a man Jason’s never met smiles down at him and says, “Welcome back, my friend.”
In this world he’s woken up to, Jason’s life is not the one he knows. His wife is not his wife. His son was never born. And Jason is not an ordinary college physics professor, but a celebrated genius who has achieved something remarkable. Something impossible.
Is it this world or the other that’s the dream? And even if the home he remembers is real, how can Jason possibly make it back to the family he loves? The answers lie in a journey more wondrous and horrifying than anything he could’ve imagined—one that will force him to confront the darkest parts of himself even as he battles a terrifying, seemingly unbeatable foe.
Dark Matter is a brilliantly plotted tale that is at once sweeping and intimate, mind-bendingly strange and profoundly human—a relentlessly surprising science-fiction thriller about choices, paths not taken, and how far we’ll go to claim the lives we dream of. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—1978
• Where—Statesville, North Carolina, USA
• Education—B.A., Univerfsity of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
• Currently—lives in Durango, Colorado
Blake Crouch is an American author, known for his 2012-14 Wayward Pines Trilogy, which was adapted into the 2015 television series Wayward Pines. In 2016, he published Dark Matter and in 2019, Recursion, both science fiction thrillers, both achieving wide acclaim.
Early life and career
Crouch was born near the piedmont town of Statesville, North Carolina in 1978. He attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and graduated in 2000 with degrees in English and Creative Writing. He published his first two novels, Desert Places and Locked Doors, in 2004 and 2005.
In addition to his novels, his short stories have appeared in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, Thriller 2 and other anthologies.
Crouch lives in Durango, Colorado. (From Wikipedia. Retrieved 7/29/2016.)
Book Reviews
What is "identity?" In the words of physics professor Jason Dessen, "If you strip away all the trappings of personality and lifestyle, what are the core components that make me me?" Conventional wisdom asserts that the choices we make shape our destiny and, perhaps, our identity. The surreal, "multi-verse" context of Blake Crouch’s Dark Matter presents a far more complex concept of identity: one not just comprised of multiple destinies but multiple selves across quantum states, each living in "alternate realities at the same point in space and time." READ MORE.
John Michael De Marco, author, Book Club Widower - LitLovers
In the technical sense of the term, Blake Crouch's Dark Matter is definitely a book…But rather like the mysterious cubelike chamber invented by the physicist Jason Dessen in Crouch's novel—well, let's say by at least one version of Jason and perhaps by several; indeed, perhaps by an infinite or incalculable number of Jasons—Dark Matter is a portal into other dimensions of reality…as you read it on paper it inhabits a state of quantum transubstantiation, or "superposition," to use Jason Dessen's lingo. It's a novel right now, one that barely qualifies as beach reading because you'll gulp it down in one afternoon, or more likely one night. But the next time you look, it will have metamorphosed into some other form.
Andrew O'Hehir - New York Times Book Review
A dazzling book for summer [with] a mind-bending premise, a head-spinning plot that’s dialogue-driven and adrenaline-fueled, and a gut-wrenching climax that gave me goose bumps.
Minneapolis Star-Tribune
A mind-blowing sci-fi/suspense/love-story mash-up.
Entertainment Weekly
Excellent characterization and well-crafted tension do much to redeem the outlandish plot of this SF thriller from Crouch.... Crouch makes little attempt to justify the underlying science fiction MacGuffin, but a rousing and heartfelt ending will leave readers cheering.
Publishers Weekly
[A]n irresistible read. Despite a few small missteps...it is not hard to see why this title was preempted by Sony in a big bid for the movie rights. Verdict: While stories of the multiverse are not new, Crouch brings a welcome intensity to the trope. —MM
Library Journal
Crouch keeps the pace swift and the twists exciting. Readers who liked his Wayward Pines trilogy will probably devour this speculative thriller in one sitting [as will] those who enjoy roller-coaster reads in the vein of Harlan Coben.
Booklist
[E]ncounters sometimes strain credibility.... Suspenseful, frightening, and sometimes poignant—provided the reader has a generously willing suspension of disbelief.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
(We'll add the publisher's questions if and when they're made available; in the meantime, use these LitLovers talking points to help start a discussion for Dark Matter...than take off on your own:
1. In what way is Jason like the Box, the mysterious cube-ish chamber?
2. What does "superposition" mean? Can you explain it?
3. Talk about the various universes Jason inhabits. Which do you find most disturbing or frightening? Consider this question, which has been posed by ethical philosophers regarding multiple universes: if a murder takes place in one universe, would we find it as horrifying if there were other universes in which the murder doesn't take place? What about the Holocaust in World War II or, say, slavery before the U.S. Civil War?
4. This book explores the nature of identity. Who is the real Jason? Is there a real Jason—could a case be made that he is not the Jason with a wife and son who narrates the story? Out of all the versions of Jason, what makes him...him?
5. What would your alternate universes look like? What dreams, in your own life, did you choose not to pursue which, if events in Dark Matter happened to you, would return as alternate universes? Ever wish that were possible? How different a person might you be had you chosen one of those different paths?
6. During his search for "home" what does Jason come to learn about himself, flaws and all? What does he come to value?
7. Have you read or watched other works of speculative fiction about the nature of identity? Consider Ursula K. Le Guin, Neil Gaiman, or Peter F. Hamilton. What about the movie Sliding Doors or The Man in the High Castle, either the 2015 film series or the book by Philip K. Dick? How does Blake Crouch's Dark Matter compare with any of them—how does it stack up?
8. What about the science? For those with little scientific knowledge: were the book's scientific passages a detraction, something you had to plow your way through, or maybe just skim over? For those strong in the sciences: was the writing too boiled down, merely "popscience"? Or was it a fairly legitimate description of today's scientific theories?
9. What is the theoretical underpinning of multiple universes? Do you believe they exist?
(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)
Chalk's Outline
J.J. Hensley, 2014
Bad Day Books
284 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781628278019
Summary
Three years ago, popular college professor Cyprus Keller (Resolve) planned a murder.
Two years ago, former Pittsburgh Homicide Detective Jackson Channing (Measure Twice) pulled himself together and got sober.
Today, Robert Chalk has a rifle, a plan, and a target.
When Cyprus Keller and his wife Kaitlyn relocated to rural Virginia, they did all they could to put the past behind them. However, the situation becomes uncomfortable when Jackson Channing appears in Keller's living room and begins questioning Keller about the past. The situation becomes unbearable when bullets start flying through the front window.
In a flash, it becomes apparent that Jackson Channing is not the only person who has an interest in Keller. If Channing wants to unravel Keller's past, he is going to have to make sure the professor has a future. To keep Keller safe and uncover the mystery of who wants him dead, Channing takes Keller and his wife to Pittsburgh, where it all started.
As a deadly chess game plays out in the city streets, Channing discovers Keller is a complicated man of secrets who is anything but a typical murder suspect. The two men team up in an effort to stop a dangerous assassin who intends on killing Keller, no matter the cost.
As Robert Chalk works his way through the plan he has outlined, he becomes consumed with the ultimate goal. No matter how many lives he has to take along the way, Cyprus Keller must die. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—ca. 1974-75
• Where—Huntington, West Virginia, USA
• Education—B.A., Pennsylvania State University; M.S., Columbia Southern University
• Awards—Suspense Magazine Best Debut; Authors on the Air, Top 10 of the Year
• Currently—lives near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
J.J. Hensley spent three years as a police officer in Virginia before becoming a special agent with the U.S. Secret Service in the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush administrations. He draws upon those experiences to write novels full of suspense and insight.
Hensley, who is originally from Huntington, WV, graduated from Penn State University with a B.S. in Administration of Justice and has a M.S. in Criminal Justice Administration from Columbia Southern University. The author lives with his family near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Hensley’s novel Resolve was named one of the Best Books of 2013 by Suspense Magazine and as a finalist for Best First Novel by the International Thriller Writers organization. His second book, Measure Twice, was released in 2014, and his third, Chalk's Outline, came out in 2016.
In addition to his three novels, Hensley writes short stories—"Vehemence" was published in 2014, and "Four Days Forever" appeared in the 2015 anthology, Legacy.
Hensley is a member of the International Thriller Writers and Sisters in Crime. (Adapted from the author's website.)
Visit the author's website.
Follow J.J. Hensley on Facebook.
Discussion Questions
We'll add specific questions if and when they're made available by the publisher. In the meantime, use our generic mystery questions.
GENERIC DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Mystery / Crime / Suspense Thrillers
1. Talk about the characters, both good and bad. Describe their personalities and motivations. Are they fully developed and emotionally complex? Or are they flat, one-dimensional heroes and villains?
2. What do you know...and when do you know it? At what point in the book do you begin to piece together what happened?
3. Good crime writers embed hidden clues in plain sight, slipping them in casually, almost in passing. Did you pick them out, or were you...clueless? Once you've finished the book, go back to locate the clues hidden in plain sight. How skillful was the author in burying them?
4. Good crime writers also tease us with red-herrings—false clues—to purposely lead readers astray? Does your author try to throw you off track? If so, were you tripped up?
5. Talk about the twists & turns—those surprising plot developments that throw everything you think you've figured out into disarray.
- Do they enhance the story, add complexity, and build suspense?
- Are they plausible or implausible?
- Do they feel forced and gratuitous—inserted merely to extend the story?
6. Does the author ratchet up the suspense? Did you find yourself anxious—quickly turning pages to learn what happened? A what point does the suspense start to build? Where does it climax...then perhaps start rising again?
7. A good ending is essential in any mystery or crime thriller: it should ease up on tension, answer questions, and tidy up loose ends. Does the ending accomplish those goals?
- Is the conclusion probable or believable?
- Is it organic, growing out of clues previously laid out by the author (see Question 3)?
- Or does the ending come out of the blue, feeling forced or tacked-on?
- Perhaps it's too predictable.
- Can you envision a different or better ending?
8. Are there certain passages in the book—ideas, descriptions, or dialogue—that you found interesting or revealing...or that somehow struck you? What lines, if any, made you stop and think?
9. Overall, does the book satisfy? Does it live up to the standards of a good crime story or suspense thriller? Why or why not?
(Generic Mystery Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)
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Measure Twice
J.J. Hensley, 2014
Bad Day Books
250 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781628279597
Summary
Pittsburgh Homicide Detective Jackson Channing is struggling to break free from an addiction. His alcoholism may have cost him his marriage and now threatens to sweep away his sanity.
When the body of a city official is discovered in a public location, the entire city of Pittsburgh bears witness to a form of evil that is difficult to comprehend. Channing learns the killer is patient, methodical, and precise. In order to stop the killing, Channing will have to pull his life together and come to terms with a secret that is tearing him apart.
Measure Twice is told through 12 chapters, each representing one of the 12 steps of addiction recovery. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—ca. 1974-75
• Where—Huntington, West Virginia, USA
• Education—B.A., Pennsylvania State University; M.S., Columbia Southern University
• Awards—Suspense Magazine Best Debut; Authors on the Air, Top 10 of the Year
• Currently—lives near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
J.J. Hensley spent three years as a police officer in Virginia before becoming a special agent with the U.S. Secret Service in the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush administrations. He draws upon those experiences to write novels full of suspense and insight.
Hensley, who is originally from Huntington, WV, graduated from Penn State University with a B.S. in Administration of Justice and has a M.S. in Criminal Justice Administration from Columbia Southern University. The author lives with his family near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Hensley’s novel Resolve was named one of the Best Books of 2013 by Suspense Magazine and as a finalist for Best First Novel by the International Thriller Writers organization. His second book, Measure Twice, was released in 2014, and his third, Chalk's Outline, came out in 2016.
In addition to his three novels, Hensley writes short stories—"Vehemence" was published in 2014, and "Four Days Forever" appeared in the 2015 anthology, Legacy.
Hensley is a member of the International Thriller Writers and Sisters in Crime. (Adapted from the author's website.)
Visit the author's website.
Follow J.J. Hensley on Facebook.
Book Reviews
It’s about time somebody gave Hannibal Lecter a run for his money. Lester Mayton, the serial killer who sets new standards of murderous inventiveness in J.J. Hensley’s new novel Measure Twice is up to the task. Hensley walks a reader right up the edge of unbearable dread, then leavens it with flashes of witty insights into the way local bureaucracies and political infighting can hamper something even as critical as the need to stop a killer before he strikes again.
Gwen Florio, award-winning author of Montana and Dakota
J.J. Hensley keeps you turning the pages from the very start. A finely crafted story of redemption, Measure Twice will keep your adrenaline pumping
Tim Green, bestselling author of The Forth Perimeter and Exact Revenge
Discussion Questions
We'll add specific questions if and when they're made available by the publisher. In the meantime, use our generic mystery questions.
GENERIC DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Mystery / Crime / Suspense Thrillers
1. Talk about the characters, both good and bad. Describe their personalities and motivations. Are they fully developed and emotionally complex? Or are they flat, one-dimensional heroes and villains?
2. What do you know...and when do you know it? At what point in the book do you begin to piece together what happened?
3. Good crime writers embed hidden clues in plain sight, slipping them in casually, almost in passing. Did you pick them out, or were you...clueless? Once you've finished the book, go back to locate the clues hidden in plain sight. How skillful was the author in burying them?
4. Good crime writers also tease us with red-herrings—false clues—to purposely lead readers astray? Does your author try to throw you off track? If so, were you tripped up?
5. Talk about the twists & turns—those surprising plot developments that throw everything you think you've figured out into disarray.
- Do they enhance the story, add complexity, and build suspense?
- Are they plausible or implausible?
- Do they feel forced and gratuitous—inserted merely to extend the story?
6. Does the author ratchet up the suspense? Did you find yourself anxious—quickly turning pages to learn what happened? A what point does the suspense start to build? Where does it climax...then perhaps start rising again?
7. A good ending is essential in any mystery or crime thriller: it should ease up on tension, answer questions, and tidy up loose ends. Does the ending accomplish those goals?
- Is the conclusion probable or believable?
- Is it organic, growing out of clues previously laid out by the author (see Question 3)?
- Or does the ending come out of the blue, feeling forced or tacked-on?
- Perhaps it's too predictable.
- Can you envision a different or better ending?
8. Are there certain passages in the book—ideas, descriptions, or dialogue—that you found interesting or revealing...or that somehow struck you? What lines, if any, made you stop and think?
9. Overall, does the book satisfy? Does it live up to the standards of a good crime story or suspense thriller? Why or why not?
(Generic Mystery Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)
top of page (summary)
Resolve
J.J. Hensley, 2013
The Permanent Press
250 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781579624828
Summary
In the Pittsburgh Marathon, 18,000 people from all over the world will participate. Over 9,500 will run the half marathon, 4,000 will run in relays while others plan to run brief stretches. 4,500 people will attempt to cover the full 26.2 miles.
Over 200 of the participants will quit, realizing it just wasn't their day. More than 100 will get injured and require medical treatment—and one man is going to be murdered.
When Dr. Cyprus Keller lines up to start the race, he knows who is going to die for one simple reason. He's going to kill them.
As a professor of Criminology at Three Rivers University, and a former police officer, Dr. Cyprus Keller is an expert in criminal behavior and victimology. However, when one of his female students is murdered and his graduate assistant attempts to kill him, Keller finds himself frantically swinging back and forth between being a suspect and a victim.
When the police assign a motive to the crimes that Keller knows cannot be true, he begins to ask questions that somebody out there does not want answered. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—ca. 1974-75
• Where—Huntington, West Virginia, USA
• Education—B.A., Pennsylvania State University; M.S., Columbia Southern University
• Awards—Suspense Magazine Best Debut; Authors on the Air, Top 10 of the Year
• Currently—lives near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
J.J. Hensley spent three years as a police officer in Virginia before becoming a special agent with the U.S. Secret Service in the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush administrations. He draws upon those experiences to write novels full of suspense and insight.
Hensley, who is originally from Huntington, WV, graduated from Penn State University with a B.S. in Administration of Justice and has a M.S. in Criminal Justice Administration from Columbia Southern University. The author lives with his family near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Hensley’s novel Resolve was named one of the Best Books of 2013 by Suspense Magazine and as a finalist for Best First Novel by the International Thriller Writers organization. His second book, Measure Twice, was released in 2014, and his third, Chalk's Outline, came out in 2016.
In addition to his three novels, Hensley writes short stories—"Vehemence" was published in 2014, and "Four Days Forever" appeared in the 2015 anthology, Legacy.
Hensley is a member of the International Thriller Writers and Sisters in Crime. (Adapted from the author's website.)
Visit the author's website.
Follow J.J. Hensley on Facebook.
Book Reviews
Hensley has drawn upon his law enforcement experience and his love of long-distance running to create a fast-paced novel about murder at the Pittsburgh Marathon. The descriptions of running rituals and what happens once sneakers are laced feels real enough to get the heart of even the most committed couch potatoes racing.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
This artfully constructed mystery makes effective use of the third-rate-college setting and of Pittsburgh, as revealed by the course of the marathon, marked by each of the 26 chapters plus a brief final one headed “.2.”
Publishers Weekly
J.J. Hensley's debut novel is a lean, fast-paced, suspenseful murder mystery—told with style, intelligence, and wit. It pulled me in immediately and kept me guessing from start to finish.
John Verdon - bestselling author of Let The Devil Sleep
Resolve marks the emergence of J.J. Hensley as a crime writer to watch, an author whose real world scars give him an insight into fiction's mean streets.
James Grady - author of Six Days of the Condor and Mad Dogs
Five Stars...this is a near-perfect debut that gripped me from the crowds milling at the starting line, to the exhausting sprint across the finish line.
Rachel Cotterill Book Reviews
It takes serious resolve to run a marathon, to solve a crime, or to kill someone, and this Pittsburgh race provides a perfect framework for the murder to come. But what makes a former police officer turned criminology professor turn so far from the rule of law? The route twists and turns through wide streets of clean modernity down into poverty and shame, while the plot twists through Keller’s memories, giving both race and mystery a taut immediacy. Perfectly paced like the runner’s tread, cleverly revealed, tautly plotted and convincingly woven, Resolve brings vivid excitement and complex drama to marathon running, murder and investigation. Authentic, compelling, gripping and impossible to put down, this pleasingly different mystery novel is highly recommended.
Sheila Deeth, Gather.com
Discussion Questions
We'll add specific questions if and when they're made available by the publisher. In the meantime, use our generic mystery questions.
GENERIC DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Mystery / Crime / Suspense Thrillers
1. Talk about the characters, both good and bad. Describe their personalities and motivations. Are they fully developed and emotionally complex? Or are they flat, one-dimensional heroes and villains?
2. What do you know...and when do you know it? At what point in the book do you begin to piece together what happened?
3. Good crime writers embed hidden clues in plain sight, slipping them in casually, almost in passing. Did you pick them out, or were you...clueless? Once you've finished the book, go back to locate the clues hidden in plain sight. How skillful was the author in burying them?
4. Good crime writers also tease us with red-herrings—false clues—to purposely lead readers astray? Does your author try to throw you off track? If so, were you tripped up?
5. Talk about the twists & turns—those surprising plot developments that throw everything you think you've figured out into disarray.
- Do they enhance the story, add complexity, and build suspense?
- Are they plausible or implausible?
- Do they feel forced and gratuitous—inserted merely to extend the story?
6. Does the author ratchet up the suspense? Did you find yourself anxious—quickly turning pages to learn what happened? A what point does the suspense start to build? Where does it climax...then perhaps start rising again?
7. A good ending is essential in any mystery or crime thriller: it should ease up on tension, answer questions, and tidy up loose ends. Does the ending accomplish those goals?
- Is the conclusion probable or believable?
- Is it organic, growing out of clues previously laid out by the author (see Question 3)?
- Or does the ending come out of the blue, feeling forced or tacked-on?
- Perhaps it's too predictable.
- Can you envision a different or better ending?
8. Are there certain passages in the book—ideas, descriptions, or dialogue—that you found interesting or revealing...or that somehow struck you? What lines, if any, made you stop and think?
9. Overall, does the book satisfy? Does it live up to the standards of a good crime story or suspense thriller? Why or why not?
(Generic Mystery Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)
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