A review by richardrbecker
The Thicket by Joe R. Lansdale
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Reminiscent of True Grit, Joe Lansdale delivers a coming-of-age story set in turn-of-the-century East Texas. Protagonist Jack Parker takes up after a gang of desperadoes after one of them kills his grandfather and kidnaps his kid sister.
He enlists a pose of odd characters to track them, including a gravedigger with an angry hog, a gun-shooting dwarf, a former bounty-hunting sheriff, and a brothel courtesan. Along the way, this charismatic collection of misfits share stories torn from the American West. Many of the stories lend a dark humor and believable banter that will easily draw in any reader as the supporting cast is fantastic, worthy of their own dime novel stories.
The plot might be a simple revenge story, but Lansdale tells it in an addictive, memorable way that is enduring, sometimes touching, despite the brutal circumstances of their quest to save Jack's sister. Lansdale has written a winner in The Thicket, one found very fitting to add to my favorites.
He enlists a pose of odd characters to track them, including a gravedigger with an angry hog, a gun-shooting dwarf, a former bounty-hunting sheriff, and a brothel courtesan. Along the way, this charismatic collection of misfits share stories torn from the American West. Many of the stories lend a dark humor and believable banter that will easily draw in any reader as the supporting cast is fantastic, worthy of their own dime novel stories.
The plot might be a simple revenge story, but Lansdale tells it in an addictive, memorable way that is enduring, sometimes touching, despite the brutal circumstances of their quest to save Jack's sister. Lansdale has written a winner in The Thicket, one found very fitting to add to my favorites.