The Short Drop (Gibson Vaughn)

The Short Drop by Matthew Fitzsimmons is one of those books that got pretty popular with thousands of reviews on Amazon yet I have no idea how. It's really one of those things that is so mysterious to me but when I saw it on sale for $1.99, I quickly swiped it up. Everyone needs to read a good mystery story from time to time. I don't think I've ever used the word "meh" in any of my reviews. It's unprofessional and well, not really a word at all. But I just can't help but label this book as anything but "meh". I'm sorry author, but I had to do it. The "reveal" was hardly anything worth plowing through this 400 page book for. Characters teetered on the borderline of me not really caring for. Not to mention, a closure with characters that literally, and I mean literally had me blurting out the words "Are you serious?". All this combined to make me drop that three letter bomb on this book.

The author does give us characters that are at least believable in that they aren't dodging bullets every other chapter like the second coming of the matrix. However, these very same characters are very cookie cutter like and stereotypical. Like hmm, where have we met these guys before? Oh that's right, every other book out there. I can almost guarantee that by the time you finish with the book, you'll hardly remember any of them the day after.

The pacing of the story was a bit slow going but I didn't have any trouble following the plot or what was going on. The actual writing was average in that he did just enough to not make me fall asleep or stop reading altogether. Some of the cliff hangers at the end of the chapters made sure I read just a little more than I should. The biggest disappointment with this book was the actual mystery itself. Once that tiny bit of hint was dropped, I kept thinking please don't do what I think you're going to do. Please don't. Ah crap. You did.

The other disappointment came from how things actually ended or unfolded with a couple of the character at the end. It was just mind boggling to me of how the author chose to end it. It was hilarious but in a very bad way. I definitely have to drop the hammer in my spoiler section below.

As you can gathered, my review is pretty negative. There's not much to like and many of the ideas used could have been more original. It just felt like something was holding the author back. If he could have been more daring, I think the story might have interested me a lot more.

************SPOILERS BELOW************

Billy - A littleclosure would have been nice since he loved Suzanne so much. He most likely would have found out about what happened to Lombard in the end but again, a little closure for the story would have been nice.

George - You did him dirty. We follow him for the better part of the book and we have no idea what happens to him in the end. I can only assume that Jenn was able to find and save him.

Tinsley - Let's be friends? Are you serious? Let's be friends? After all that talk about the meaning of time for Tinsley throughout the book, I expected something a lot more clever in the end than "Let's be friends". Come on man.

Lombard - Biggest joke of a closure I have read in a while. After all that, we as the readers don't even get to witness the final exchange between Lombard and his wife when she confronted him. You serious author? Why even devout sections to Lombard if all you're going to do is this in the end and block it out for the readers? It was a waste of time. I would have expected for the big, bad and witty politician to put up a fight and at least deny things. In fact, there wasn't even condemning evidence as Tinsley had the report! All the wife had was some writing in Suzanne's book which could have been misconstrued for something else if he played it smart!

Not much new under the sun. Story felt a bit contrived and certain points of historical context were annoyingly unfleshed out. Some details were presented in a lovely fashion, and then hammered over the head for the rest of the book. Characters that piqued my interest never really got anywhere. But that's to be expected when it's an anticipated ongoing series. Authors never seem to find that mix of how much to give up on the first date. The style was there, but wanted more substance. Hopefully in the next installment.

Very predictable. Poor character development. Horrid grammar, and doesn't know how to use words such as enchoate. Evidently not edited well as much was missed. I read the entire book if for nothing more than to catch all of the grammatical, and word usage, errors. Don't waste your time nor money.

I don't see what people are seeing in this book with all those good reviews. The plot is predictable and the prose is average.

The beginning of the book was somewhat confusing. Considering what was at stake the entire story should have ended within the first few chapters. Less than halfway through the book I had strong suspicions about the true plot, although, I was hoping it would not be such a simple and obvious one. Unfortunately, it was a very obvious and abrupt ending. In the end it left me feeling, "Oh no. Is that it?". The only complex part of the story involved computer hacking. The were several occasions, especially at the very end, that the main character appeared incredibly obtuse. Perhaps it was to develop the character, but I found it annoying. In the end it was simply disappointing.

I was introduced to this author/book by my friend and author Mike Slavin. I usually don’t spend the time to add a review to a book when there are already over 10,000 posted reviews. But hopefully a reader who reads my review will, like me, be introduced to an incredible “new” author. This is a very good thriller with an interesting and flawed hero, Gibson Vaughn. Vaughn is a teen-aged computer hacker turned Marine veteran who is targeted by a high-level politician - a former US Senator turn VPOTUS. Vaughn ends up being dragged into a cold case with a former CIA bubba and an ex-cop. The plot moves very fast, with lots of action. If I didn’t have a full-time job that keeps me very busy, I would have stayed up all night to finish this book in a single sitting. Lots of interesting details about computer systems and surveillance techniques. The book is a page-turner, crime thriller, grabbing you into the story of a 10years cold case about a missing girl. It is amazing when 3-4 characters are ALL well-developed and interesting in their own ways. A really good “who dunit”. Lots of action. Lots of plot twists. If I didn’t have a full-time job that keeps me pretty busy, I would have done an all-nighter and finished this book in 1-2 sittings.

An ok thriller that suggests the author has real potential. Once you pick it up, it's very hard to put down. That said, as the big reveal unfolds, the author should have invested more time in explaining exactly why the major villains acted as they did. Characters who seriously misbehave are more interesting and believable if they have some back story that leads them to the point where they go off the rails. FitzSimmons is off to a good start - my guess is he can and will do better rounding out his characters in future novels.

The Short Drop by Matthew FitzSimmons has to be one of the best debut thrillers I have read in a very long time. Great suspense, a rapid pace and bad people who will send chills up your spine. I found it very difficult to put this story down to go to work!
The book starts on the ten year anniversary of the disappearance of at the time Senator Lombard’s daughter. He has risen to Vice President and is now running for his party’s nomination for President. Growing up, Gibson Vaughn was the son the Senator’s chief advisor and best friend with his daughter, Suzanne, whom he called ‘Bear’. Gibson’s life at the time of Suzanne’s disappearance was a disaster and he still blames himself for not being there for her. When a picture of Suzanne’s backpack appears, it sets into motion all the moving pieces of this plot into several explosive revelations and dead bodies.
The characters in this story are all extremely well developed, good and bad. The ‘short drop’ scene is intense. The plot is tightly woven with several subplots that do not confuse the reader and are all answered by the end. I cannot recommend this book enough!
I want to thank Thomas & Mercer and Net Galley for allowing me to read for free the uncorrected proof of this debut novel in exchange for an honest review. I hope there are many more to come from this author!

OMG .. This is what I call a real gripping thriller .. I am sure I will read every book Mathew Fitzsimmons writes from now on .. This is a smart fast paced page turner .. no matter how much you think you are smart enough to expect the next move, Mathew just takes you by surprise .. you can never expect what comes next .. It was really smart with a well played off set of characters so smartly connected .. well .. I keep saying smart .. yes .. because this is the word that kept popping into my head while reading ..
What I most liked is that Mathew really respected the readers' intelligence with his very smart plot .. everything comes naturally .. no overdoing or imposing of actions .. The narration was also excellent .. I reached the last word breathless like "are there still any more surprises" .. I really LOVED it .. if I could I would give it 6 stars out of 5. Excellent debut .. top favorite
check my review on https://www.facebook.com/MeshasCornerBlog/

OMG .. This is what I call a real gripping thriller .. I am sure I will read every book Mathew Fitzsimmons writes from now on .. This is a smart fast paced page turner .. no matter how much you think you are smart enough to expect the next move, Mathew just takes you by surprise .. you can never expect what comes next .. It was really smart with a well played off set of characters so smartly connected .. well .. I keep saying smart .. yes .. because this is the word that kept popping into my head while reading ..
What I most liked is that Mathew really respected the readers' intelligence with his very smart plot .. everything comes naturally .. no overdoing or imposing of actions .. The narration was also excellent .. I reached the last word breathless like "are there still any more surprises" .. I really LOVED it .. if I could I would give it 6 stars out of 5. Excellent debut .. top favorite
check my review on https://www.facebook.com/MeshasCornerBlog/