Josh Bazell Takes Out A Wild Thing

When protagonist Dr. Peter Brown (AKA Pietro Brwna AKA Bearclaw) first appeared in Beat The Reaper, my immediate thought was Josh Bazell had invented a character who could deliver a formidable ride regardless of the circumstances. Brwna is as well made as he is big, and Bazell created an entertaining an unapologetic voice for him. 

Some things don't change in Wild Thing: A Novel. Some things do. It won't take too long for anyone reading it to feel some mild disappointment as they realize the author actually is hellbent on proving Brwna can survive any story. Sadly, almost half of Bazell's readers said he didn't. And I don't mean fictionally.   

The novel is one part good and one part distraction; not nearly as good as the debut. 

The good is good. About ten years later, Brwna has adopted a new alias to hide from the mob that wants him dead. His new name is Lionel Azimuth and he is working as a doctor aboard a cruise ship. The idea of Azimuth getting caught up in an off-continent caper seemed promising. 

But it doesn't take long before he jumps ship, right after he receives a "Tel-E-Gram" from an old friend. Professor Marmoset, the man who helped him get into the Federal Witness Protection Program, needs a favor. One of the wealthiest men in America wants to hire Azimuth to join an expedition to a back woods lake near Ford, Minnesota. There might be a lake monster up there. And it's killing people.

True to form, Azimuth calls bull and says he isn't interested. He is interested, however, in a random figure he made up to discourage his employer--$85,000 plus expenses up to that amount.

It doesn't work. The disbelieving Azimuth is hired on the spot. It's a canoe trip.

Accompanying Azimuth on the expedition is a mental mirror image of him. Violet Hurst doesn't have the brawn, but she carries the attitude. She's as smart as Azimuth is practical, and has lust for hard talk and liquor. It doesn't hurt that she uses sex appeal to her advantage too. 

The two of them make an interesting pair, even if Bazell introduces the girl with a rant about global warming and planetary extinction that ultimately has little to do with the story and everything to do with author infusion. It's more fun to focus on their rough and tumble tug-of-war flirtations than that.

Along with them is an interesting assortment of characters from the sublime to sullen, some who even brought bodyguards. As cardboard are most of them are in comparison to Azimuth or Hurst, there is one more in the party who takes the cake and jumps the shark. Cliches intentional. 

Where the novel sometimes takes a turn for the wrong kind of absurd. 

The bad is bad. The story itself plays out like an adult Scooby-Doo skit. Instead of the four teens and a talking dog, it's Azimuth and Hurst. They are the duo who are to supposed to find a real monster or unmask the hoax, but their relationship is always on the surface (unlike those other meddling kids).

If that storyline sounds thin, Bazell does jump some sharks. Just before Azimuth and Hurst are sidetracked by Midwest meth makers (an occupation of last resort in the dozens of dying small towns), they exchange opinions about Scooby-Doo. Hurst does most of the talking. She knows it all. 

There is a surprising amount of talking in fact. Too much of it is packed with political commentary, painstakingly sourced at the end of the book. Most of it only accomplishes one thing — it slows down the adrenaline-fueled read that was worth relishing in the first place. And the kicker almost derails it all. 

Sarah Palin joins the party, but for no real purpose other than to give Bazell the opportunity to punk on Christians and Republicans. I might be more forgiving on this point if after all the flogging he just flat out said "Yeah, I wrote that. So what?" But at the end of the book, Bazell rides the fence saying he made up his depiction of Palin while providing source material to prove he didn't. Wimpish.

My advice, which is the only way to save the story, is to forgive the bravado and go along for the ride. When the ego is taken out of the equation, Wild Thing is served straight up, sexually tense, socially honest, and cleverly twisted. It doesn't even matter if you agree with Azimuth or not. He is an immensely enjoyable dark and funny character to follow. Case in point: My favorite quotable... 

I rarely do drugs anymore, because as I've grown older I've become able to achieve the same states of emotional instability and poor decision-making skills without them...

Wild Thing By Josh Bazell Sinks A 2.6 On The Liquid Hip Richter Scale. 

The novel is worth it, but anyone coming in without the benefit of reading the definitely better novel, Beat The Reaper, will be disappointed. Even then, there is still a chance the follow-up won't satisfy the craving that the first one furnished. Think of it as a sequel that reads more like an afterword, with the storyteller ten years older and a little more plodding as a result. I was glad to read it, but some might not be.

Wild Thing: A Novel by Josh Bazell is available on Amazon. The book is also at Barnes & Noble or can be downloaded from iBooks. The audiobook on iTunes features Robert Petkoff as the narrator. He was the narrator for the first novel too. While I didn't think he had the right voice for the oversized character, people who listened to the first one will probably appreciate his return (even if his voice didn't age).

Beat The Reaper by Josh Bazell Is A Hit

When Variety reported New Regency was acquiring screen rights to Beat the Reaper: A Novel by Josh Bazell and eyeing Leonardo DiCaprio, I couldn't see it. The protagonist, Dr. Peter Brown (Pietro Brwna) AKA "Bearclaw," is a big guy. Hulkish even.

So I looked up DiCaprio's in development list. Beat The Reaper is there, along with 22 other films. I dunno, maybe DiCaprio could play the antagonist. He might make for a fanciful villain, like Adam Locano, whom Peter befriends in college with the hope of one day finding the mobsters who killed his grandparents. He does.

Beat The Reaper Is Two Comical Crime Rides In One.

Beat The Reaper is an adrenaline-fueled fast read that tells two stories at the same time. The real time world of Dr. Peter Brown, a resident physician at Manhattan Catholic Hospital. And, the story of Pietro Brwna before he entered the Federal Witness Protection Program.

The unusual twist of events that turns this spirited, streetwise and foul-mouthed hit man into a physician is anything but common. Author Josh Bazell makes a convincing case for the one-time exception, occasionally reminding readers that the Federal Witness Protection Program elevator's next stop is the basement.

What is less clear is why Brwna stays in New York. But you won't have time to ask.

The book opens as someone just attempted to mug the good doctor. Bad day for the mugger. Between his instincts as a killer and newly acquired knowledge as a medical doctor, Brwna is formidable. He doesn't kill the assailant, but he does send him to Manhattan Catholic just before having sex with a medical sales rep in an elevator and acquiring a sample pack of Moxfane.

All of this happens in the short span of a few pages of the first chapter, which makes for a staccato read. By chapter two, the writing smooths out with a tag team storytelling approach to both intense timelines.

However, the first chapter also sets the tone for the entire book. It's raw, emotional, unpredictable, graphic, comical, and sometimes twisted. The dry wit bites as hard as the character, and Brwna knows how to tell a joke. His observations as a mob hardened doctor in a hospital will make you smile and wince about your next visit at the same time.

"Pietro Brnwa felt perfect to me pretty much as soon as I came up with him," Josh Bazell told Three Guys One Book in a rare interview. "I was looking for a character able to survive, but also understand, dangerous situations involving science and medicine."

As a first novel, Beat The Reaper is impressive. Sure, there are a few moments that will throw you, and one or two scenes are absurd.

The most blatant of which is giving Peter the wherewithal to have a sexual encounter while he and his girlfriend are trapped in a frenzied shark tank. With the dead bodies floating around nearby, it's hard to see the aphrodisiac, primal intensity or not.

It wasn't needed and even the character is defensive about the scene. The only redemption is it does reinforce the depth of the characterization. Brwna has tunnel vision during intense moments, an excellent trait for a hit man and doctor. In those moments, he only focuses on himself and the task at hand. Any other time, he is a surprisingly thoughtful and endearing character.

As for Bazell, I expect to see more. He entered the PhD program in English literature at Duke University before earning his MD from Columbia University. In fact, he was working the night shift as a medical intern when publishers fought over the rights to his novel. He is currently working on his second novel. It's expected to be more straightforward, with Brwna still at the helm.

Beat The Reaper Is Kills With A 7.1 On The Liquid Hip Richter Scale.

In addition to paperback (above link), Beat the Reaper: A Novel by Josh Bazell is available for the Amazon Kindle. Beat The Reaper was also recently added as an audiobook on iTunes.

The audio preview of Robert Petkoff doesn't seem to connect well with our surprisingly fast and cunning hit man, who once glued soles three sizes smaller to the bottom of his own shoes to cover his tracks. Petkoff has a great voice. It just doesn't seem husky enough to carry the first person accounting of Brnwa once you've read it.