Personal Effects: Dark Art

Last week I bought JC Hutchins’ new book “Personal Effects: Dark Art”.  I have not read it yet and that is KILLING me.  The book leers at me from across the room.  It knows I want to devour it.  It knows I can’t…

You guys all know I’ve been a fan of this guy from the “7^th Son” podcast I’ve been raving about for the last four years.  Now he’s got an actual book you can pick up in your local brick/mortar stores or on-line at his website, or at Amazon, or…  (It doesn’t matter how you do it, just go buy a copy!)

He’s promoting this book with a short audio prequel he’s calling “Personal Effects: Sword of Blood”.  He’s podcasting that story in weekly installments.  I’ve been listening to the prequel story and couldn’t wait to get my grubby little paws on the new book.  I cracked it open and read the first chapter or two and they start mentioning characters and events from the prequel…  So I closed the book and I’m waiting for “PE: Sword of Blood” to finish before I read “PE: Dark Art”.  I don’t like knowing the end of the story as I read it.

Maybe that’s why I hold such an un-realistic standard of movie plots.  Teresa always reads the last chapter first, and then starts her books.  I don’t get the point of investing the time in a movie or book if you know how it all works out.  Maybe it’s because I’m a slow reader and that time investment is more valuable to me than to someone like Teresa who reads through entire full-length novels in less than four hours.

I’m all but bleeding to get into this new book, but I’m exercising the small amount of self control I can muster and holding off until I get the full story, in order…

That should not preclude you from buying your copy though.  Go buy it now!  The book is part story, part puzzle.  The inner pocket of the front cover holds a ton of cool documents in it that are clues that will help you relate to the story.  Photos that the protagonist holds and looks at, drivers license, credit card, birth certificates, death certificates, hand written notes, phone numbers to call, voice messages to check, etc…  It is all VERY cool!  I spent an hour looking over the details on the various extras and I was reeling at the awesome idea of having a tactile interaction with a story.

The author says that you can read the book without the extra effort of following the clues and you’ll still enjoy the story.  But the full immersion is supposed to be really cool.  You’ll get more out of the story if you get involved.  I’m looking forward to reading this as soon as he concludes “Sword of Blood”.  For now, it sits on my shelf next to my growing “published podcasters” collection.  Sigler, Lafferty, Harwood, Ellis and now a Hutchins…  I’m excited!  I just don’t know how long I can hold out.  I might cheat and read “Personal Effects: Dark Art” before he finishes the prequel.  I’ve been waiting for this book for just about a year, I want to read it NOW!