Wild Thing: A Novel

Some smart talk about stuff you might find interesting. Footnotes even. Appendix and sources. All this for a work of fiction about monsters. More than the reader expected. A talented writer, underappreciated. Maybe because he's too smart for the readers who think this is a monster story.

Dr. Peter Brown, ne Pietro Brnwa [pronounced "Browna"], has become a doctor thanks to the Witness Protection Program in which he was placed several years before the story opens. [His nickname, "Bearclaw," has its own backstory, at which one could never even begin to guess.] Pietro bears rather unusual tattoos, at least in combination: a snake staff on one shoulder, a Star of David on the other. I hasten to add that these are the words with which I opened my review of "Beat the Reaper," the first, wonderful novel by Josh Bazell which introduced this most unique protagonist; there is little reference to his background in this, the second entry in the series, other than the fact that he was a hired killer who had murdered an impressive number of victims before and is still trying by any means to elude the attempts of his former employers to kill him. As the book opens, his present means of accomplishing this finds him working as a doctor on a cruise ship [not nearly as impressive or desirable a job as it might at first seem].

When he is offered a substantial sum of money by a `reclusive billionaire' to accompany, and safeguard, a gorgeous paleontologist on a trip into the Minnesota woods [and waters] to prove, or disprove, an urban legend, he quickly accepts. Whether or not the whole thing is a hoax - - well, there are several theories put forth, that being only one of them. Basically signing on for a twelve-day canoe trip, the various invited members of the group are seeking to find out if there is actually, as rumored, a Minnesota version of the Loch Ness monster, paying very handsomely for the privilege. This is a whacky, and very funny, tale and, be warned, if profanity disturbs you, this is not the book for you.

Nominally the plot is about the protagonist's attempt to somehow buy his way out of a mafia vendetta. The book is replete with footnotes, informative and often hilarious. The author concludes with a section titled "Sources," about forty pages long, which perhaps gives a hint of what has preceded it, and is alone worth the price of the book, material referencing, e.g., critical events from the Reagan and Carter years, and outgrowths thereof, as well as those of the current President of the US; Dick Cheney's "hunting" incident; discussions of contemporaneous medical/health care issues, including meds prescribed for PTSD and other mental health disorders; corruption among politicians in all levels of government; decisions from the recent past by the US Supreme Court; environmental issues; many of these possibly polarizing but brilliantly set forth, which also describes the book as a whole. One thing is for certain: Very funny and profane as it might be, this is a book that is difficult to describe, but one that will make you laugh, and make you think, and it is recommended.

This disappointing second entry in the series reads like a non-fiction book masquarading as fiction. We have outside sources, appendices, a bibliography--even footnotes! The plot is strongly reminiscient of the movie "Lake Placid" in spots, and of a bad acid trip in others. Plus, Pietro took a couple of leaps in deduction without bringing me along for the ride, always a pet peeve of mine. Not nearly as charming as the first book, and I will be crossing Bazell off my list.

I was entertained by Josh Bazell's debut novel, Beat the Reaper, so I expected to enjoy his second novel, Wild Thing. Instead, I found more to dislike than enjoy in this novel. Plot, characters and structure tended to be distracting rather than anything else. While I laughed at times, the humor was many notches below the debut novel. Read a sample before you consider reading the entire novel.

Rating: Two-star (I didn't like it)

Mix "Beat the Reaper" with a Scooby-Doo episode (or all of them, fort that matter) and a dash of MSNBC and you get this. If you're a conservative that can't stand any political stance in fiction, you're not going to like it. If you can brush aside Bazell's politics (as I could) or if you are more liberal in your politics and like a good mystery/action yarn, by all means, dive in. The appendix and footnotes are more political and annoying than anything in the actual book, although the Palin bashing got old pretty quick. Still a good quick read from a guy who has a hard time finishing much anything....

This is plainly an awful book. Some funny writing, a few interesting characters, but it's all over the place. I'm glad I read this one first because it'll save me the trouble of reading his first book. Once you get past the Republican hate -- not that I mind, it's just not integral to the story -- just gratuitous hate -- it's still not good. And then the gratuitous and boring last sections on climate change and the environment and how capitalists are ruining everything presented as a paper from one of the main characters is too cheesy a technique to bear. This guy should just sit down and write a screed somewhere.

Josh Bazell's writing is witty, clever, and stylistic. I enjoyed the book and would recommend it to others; particularly anyone who relishes erudite wordsmiths like James Thurber, Woody Allen, or Steve Martin. The plot and characters owe a lot more to the science fiction genre (think Theodore Sturgeon or Lester Del Rey) than to mystery/adventure. But it's so much fun jumping from quip to bon mot to dark humor aside that you can ignore the lack of content. (The footnotes are terrific fun.)

My wish would be that Mr. Bazell not combine fiction and social commentary. After all, WF Buckley was able to be quite entertaining and successful in both fields without mixing them. I would read Mr. Bazell's political columns for his style and might enjoy his novels more if he took a shot at doing them separately.

Crime novel Beat the Reaper by Josh Beazell was one of the most bat-crap crazy novels I've ever read. I just finished the sequel, Wild Thing. While still being kind of a crime novel, Wild Thing is about a search for a lake monster in Minnesota. Yeah. Dr. Peter Brown, called Lionel Azimuth here after going into the Witness Protection program, is hired by a reclusive billionaire (referred to throughout the novel as "Rec Bill") to go on a private expedition to find the White Lake lake monster. It was almost as nutty as the first novel, with one constantly annoying addition: the endless trashing of conservatives and Republicans. I don't care that Beazell is a frothing-at-the-mouth condescending jerk towards anyone who doesn't believe exactly what he does. But keep it on the web page and essays in Mother Jones magazine and the NYT, would you? If characters aren't going on about global warming or the financial crisis (all caused by Republicans, natch) Sarah Palin pops up as a character, being just as vapid and moronic as MSNBC would have you believe. To complete his partisanship, there is an appendix at the end of the book that presents dubious "facts" (and by "facts" I mean exaggerations and outright lies) about how Republicans are responsible for all of the world's ills. I made it through about a paragraph before giving up. I suppose that Beazell doesn't realize--or probably doesn't believe--that Republicans can read too. Too bad, the novel is fun and has a great dark sense of humor. Humor is hard to find in Liberal writing--and like most Liberals, Beazell has no sense of humor when it comes to pushing his fringe, elitist beliefs down his reader's throats. Because of that, not recommended.

Entertaining like the first book, but this seems as much a book to blather on about his political views as anything else. This will only appeal to those of the same bent. So if you are a far left liberal, you're in for a good time. If you're not, you probably should find another book to read.

I loved this sequel for being something new and not at all a rehash of the first novel the way some sequels can be. Basically a completely different genre than Beat the Reaper (shootout action thriller vs creature feature), but still with the same sarcastic, witty humor and the Pietro Brwna we loved from the first book. Can't wait to see what shenanigans he gets into next.

Entertaining like the first book, but this seems as much a book to blather on about his political views as anything else. This will only appeal to those of the same bent. So if you are a far left liberal, you're in for a good time. If you're not, you probably should find another book to read.

I loved this sequel for being something new and not at all a rehash of the first novel the way some sequels can be. Basically a completely different genre than Beat the Reaper (shootout action thriller vs creature feature), but still with the same sarcastic, witty humor and the Pietro Brwna we loved from the first book. Can't wait to see what shenanigans he gets into next.

Bazell's first book (Beat the Reaper) was fabulous if you like that genre (noir, I think it's billed under). Lots of shootin' and cussin' and dyin' and general mayhem plus a really cool protagonist with a sharp tongue.

Was psyched when the 2nd one came out and I while there were a few good parts had I not already been a fan I probably would have ditched it mid-way through. Being a fan, though, I toughed it out finished it last night thinking it definitely wasn't his best work.

Someone else commented on the Scooby Doo references.. I actually like that part where he gets into the sexual preferences of Fred, Daphne and Wilma. He stayed away from Scoobie. Turns out the ending was very much like the ending of nearly every Scooby Doo episode.. the way it had to be but not terribly satisfying.

I enjoyed "Beat the Reaper," and eagerly awaited this follow up. Unlike some reviewers, I was not disappointed. I loved the appearance of some very strange characters, both "real" and imagined. I actually enjoyed the "Scooby Doo" ending, and thought maybe Bazell was even paying homage to that part of our collective unconscious? An entertaining read - like Carl Hiaasen on steroids. Can't wait for more!

As many other reviewers have said, I loved "Beat the Reaper" and bought this book without reading any of the reviews. (I even kept reading it after looking at the negative comments on the store.) Given the author's first book, I really tried to finish this one, but it just didn't make sense to me. In the first place, why would anyone hire a doctor and former hit man to go hunting for a lake monster? In the second place, the characters were not believable, and the plot meandered around so much that I got bored waiting for something to happen. In the end, I didn't care whether the lake monster was real or not.

The footnotes were a clever idea, but I found them distracting given that it was hard to stay focused on the plot. The back of the book is filled with additional footnotes, but I never bothered to read them.

A few reviewers commented that they felt the book was a vehicle for a left-wing diatribe about the environment. Part of this criticism was based on the author's inclusion (SPOILER ALERT) of Sarah Palin as a character. Well, I'm a liberal and I felt that putting Sarah Palin in the book made no sense regardless of the author's hidden agenda. While I don't mind historical novels that insert real people from the past, I would have reacted negatively to putting any living political figure in a thriller even if it was someone I respected.

I don't know what the reviewers who disliked this book were expecting. I found it laugh-out-loud fun. And that's what it's supposed to be --- fun. This isn't literature, but it's not supposed to be. Bazell, does, though, have a genius talent for the perfect turn of phrase and a wild sense of the absurd. Don't over-think it, people. Just enjoy the ride.

If you take the main character from a previous book and keep a little of his backstory and his name ( kind of) but radically change the character, setting, theme, and tone of the book is it a sequel? I think not.

This book is missing most of what I liked about " Beat the Reaper" , the premise is silly, the characters are not developed , and the plot exists just so the author can show off his research and insert his opinions in a very non-organic way. An appearance by Sarah Palin very nearly made me put the book down forever... so why did I enjoy the book? And give it 4 stars?

As easy as it is to pinpoint the flaws in this book , it's harder to explain why I still enjoyed it.

I guess I'm just a sucker for any novel with footnotes.

(And I was hoping for truly gruesome scene like the one at the end of "Beat the Reaper" . If you read it, you'll know the one I mean)

Recently went back and re-read Beat The Reaper. Still love the book. I've been looking to see if Bazell will write another book after the fiasco of Wild Thing. I started on Wild Thing, then gave up re-reading it; knew what was going to happen and it just took me back to the distaste of the second half. I would like to see something akin to Reaper again from the author.

I read the first two reviews and pretty much have to say, "ditto". Beat The Reaper was a breath of fresh air when it came out in 2009. I kept googling to see when Josh Bazell would be bringing another gem to my greedy hands. Saw the advance notice of Wild Thing's publication and eagerly awaited it. Oh, boy. Where to start on the critique?... First, I was glad to have his character Pietro Brnwa back and was pretty well in the groove for the first 100 pages. Okay, not too exciting, but it was going to build, right? Then gaps started to appear in the narration and it seemed as if the author's editor had gone to sleep reading it and had forgotten to mention to Mr. Brazell that he was missing sections. Second, he missed some massive chances to build on his characters and quite a few of them ended up as mere shadows of what they could have been. Third, when he introduced a major plot line, it was so thin that you could read a book, any other book, right through it. That plot line, which I won't reveal (even though it's in the previous critiques), was so over the top stupid that at first I thought he was using the name of a major politician to make a point and cast veiling jabs at her. Nope, he decided to REALLY get political and was using her as a blunt object to beat you over the head. Okay, maybe Mr. Bazell has an ax to grind. So, what? All he did was alienate massive amounts of his followers who were looking for a good read, not a political statement. It's a work of fiction, not the OpEd page.

So, it went downhill from there. From stupid to absurd then to boring. I was almost happy when the book ended 50 or 60 pages early. (Anti-climatically, I might add...) Oh, yeah; forgot to mention that the last 20% of the book was political bull that I first started reading, then skimming, then skipping. Dreary, populist carping that served no purpose whatsoever. At least when Michael Creighton did an afterword in his books he was informative and used facts; Josh Bazell used half-truths, discredited sources, and junk dredged from Internet blogs of guys that never leave their parent's basement. Big disappointment.

Update a year down the road:

Like many others that loved Reaper, I'd love to see another Bazell book, so I check back periodically to see if he's producing anything. In going over reviews for Wild Thing, I don't think I was overly harsh; in fact, I stand by everything from the previous post. However, even allowing for varied tastes in the world, I cannot understand how the book garnered even a few good reviews over the year. If you read Beat the Reaper, bypass this one and hold out for the next; hopefully it will shine like the first book.

This book didn't even come close to the entertainment level of Beat the Reaper. The book felt rushed and disjointed. I don't read dust jackets so I just started the book trusting the author...it's not even clear that it's the same main character or a sequel until you're well into the book. The final betrayal by the author was his soapbox rants at the end. Then the whole book made sense...he just wanted to preach so he spit out a story that wasn't complete to have a platform. I was a fan.

What in the world happened? I was so looking forward to this book after reading "Beat The Reaper". Boy, was I disappointed. The plot was okay but never really panned out to anything. There was very little violence, killing, revenge, torture - all that good stuff that Pietro Brnwa would be so fit for. There was no ending to the book??? Even when he's about to lay out some vengeance the author just stops the story and we hear nothing about how it ends. (Except for 36 pages of "sources" at the end which are for the most part boring). This book was a big disappointment - I'm sorry I spent the time reading it. For a good vicious story try Brent Ghelfi's first two novels - "Volk's Game" and "Volk's Shadow" (His next two are not as good). As for Mr. Bazell - stick to the medical practice, you're not going to make it as an author.

Two things:

1) Why does the store not allow zero stars for a rating? If there ever was a book that deserved such a rating, this is it.
2) How does something this bad get published? Are there no standards to selecting and publishing a book other than, "Well, his first book was successful, so this should sell."

Beyond that, this book does not deserve any more of my time or energy. CAVEAT EMPTOR.

ever since I read "Beat The Reaper", Josh Bazell's first novvel, which hooked me from its first paragraph, I couldn't wait for the sequel. When I found out last year that Wild Thing would be coming out in February, 2012, I couldn't wait to buy it. Unfortunately, Wild Thing is proof of the adage: "Be careful what you wish for." I hated the novel. It is perhaps the worst suspense novel I've ever read - and I've read a lot of them. Yes, Mr. Bazell can still write in the same irreverent style as in Beat the Reaper. And there were even a few mwmorable lines of dialog. But the plot is rediculous. The hitman-gurned-doctor hero of Beat The Repaer is summoned from his job as a cruise ship doctor to take a job for a "reclusive billionaire" to accompany a female palentologist to a lake in Monnesota to see if the lake really does contain a vicious prehistoric creature. Is the creature real? Or is it a hoax? There are a couple of murders along the way, and, although our hero's provlems with the Italian and Russian mobs are hinted at throughout the book, they don't play a key role in the plot. To describe why I hated this book would be to give away key plot elements -- which is the problem with any review. suffice it to say that I hated this book so much I will not read another Josh Bazell novel unless a trusted friend recommends it to me, and even then I'll think twice. Don't waste your time with this book.

It has been three years since Josh Bazell's debut novel, and the two-hundred-proof everclear of that book has transformed into one-fifty-one rum. Almost as potent and with some strange new flavors, it doesn't mix as well, but stands up on its own. Also, this time the cover makes sense.

A shout-out to Michael Crichton and a love letter to "Scooby Doo" (as the characters themselves take note), this book plays fair and knows exactly what it's doing. The mystery is good, its resolution both surprising and upstanding. Brnwa stays gloriously true to himself, while eminently acquitting himself in a new genre and setting. The footnotes, like Mozart, make you smart, and the prose is tight and bouncy as a trampoline, springing you off the page in unexpected directions.

Unlike "Beat the Reaper," which simultaneously tells two stories, "Wild Thing" sticks to a straightforward, linear plot. To thicken the stew, Bazell stirs in a slew of fascinating characters and digressions, all of whom are awesomely cool. But that's also sometimes a problem because some of them get short shrift. I could have stuck around more with the embittered meth cooker and her lost boys. The Las Vegas magician does a disappearing act--with good logical reason, but it would have been neat to see more of him. I even wanted to spend more time with Two Persons, from a thousand years ago. I know it's best to leave them wanting more, but these felicitous inventions could have enriched the few thin sections of the book where the chief protagonists ferry from one place to another and sulk. (These stretches are mercifully primarily glossed over: this one's not about the journey but the destination. Still, why not use all the tools at your disposal, why mix such a vivid color on your palette if you're just going to daub it here and there?)

Enough complaining. Bravo. The book is different enough from the first to feel fresh, while providing enough familiar pleasures to serve as proof of concept. Brnwa can have as many adventures, solve as many mysteries, and bag as many brave and interesting women as he wants, and I will follow. Sure, "Wild Thing" is Bazells second-best book. But it won't be for long.

Beat The Reaper was amusing. This one is inane. I won't buy another of his books. I stopped reading at the attack on Sarah Palin. Not that I am a fan of hers but hasn't that been done about a million times now?

What a disappointment! Maybe organized crime decided the previous book cut too close to home and inserted a saboteur into the Bazell oeuvre; that's the only possible explanation for this mess of a book. After a truly spectacular first novel ("Beat the Reaper"), we get this sequel that is by turns smug, strident, demeaning of real individuals (such as Sarah Palin) as well as to whole groups of people (such as women, and the working-class poor, the unemployed, Christians, and Republicans). Here are some of the glaring hypocrisies shown by the author of "Wild Thing" whoever he or she may be (note: there are some spoilers below but frankly the plot is such a rotten mess it is doubtful that anything could really "spoil" the reading of this book more than the original writing already has):

1) On women: the book professes feminist pretensions, but every women in the book is unattractive, damaged, or reacting to men. The "heroine" (Violet) is repeatedly described as looking like a "superhero" (wonder woman) and we get to "hear" the hero's vulgar thoughts about her; more to the point, she is portrayed as emotionally explosive and shallow, strident, naive, cowed by authority, and frankly stupid and easy to manipulate by the hero and her boyfriend alike; while much is made about her professional credentials, by the end of the book we are led to believe that to maintain a relationship she has accepted being "kept" in a high-paying, dead-end job where her professional skills are misused by a very rich man who is interested in her sexually (she made out with him once). Her range of emotion - happiness, anger, fear, arousal, etc. -- is primarily signaled by her use of the F-bomb, repeatedly, as nauseum. She is portrayed as abusing alcohol - getting drunk every night. So this is our "strong" feminist heroine. I will not belabor the portrait in the book of Sarah Palin other than to say the any author who truly respects women and who claims to understand the historical burdens of diminishment we have suffered would never pen such a mean-spirited, demeaning charicature of a national-level female politician; the plot element of this fictional Palin's "use" of a teenaged female relative to gain entree with the hero was egregious and an ugly allusion to the rumors about Palin's female children. Other female characters in "Wild Thing" were a drug-dealing, murderous (of teenage males) mother, and another crazy mother who is irrationally fixated on a man she believes killed her child and husband but still has "conversations" with him on the phone, and a rigid, frigid, "Christian" homemaker (even this last term becomes the but of a snarky joke by the author). All women in "Wild Thing", in fact, are either "frigid," explosive, or sexually promiscuous (and eager to advertise the fact to men they find attractive in the most foul-mouthed, vulgar manner possible). Whatever Bazell might be telling himself about his attitude towards women, this author is not somebody I would say either understands or respects the range of female experiences.

2) On religion: the author's hero is Jewish, and "Beat the Reaper" contained some very moving passages about the hero's coming to terms with the Shoah and its place in his identity and his view of the world and the people around him. The author, however, chooses in this book to spew contempt at Christians; they are presented as rigid, boorish, stupid, unable to grasp the importance of science and unable to have a nuanced understanding of the interplay of faith and material facts; a pastor character is portrayed as soliciting prostitutes and getting caught at it by the Feds. A word to the author: if you are going to declare open season on religion, can you at least make it all religions and not your charicature of one faith? Better yet, have some conversations with some average people of faith - of any sort - and have the grace to listen and learn.

3) On violence: the best part of "Wild Thing" is the epilogue, when our hero, a former mafia hit man, returns to form and sets up a mafia hit team for execution, by him, using his super-hit-man skill; all this in order to "signal" to the mafia an new phaze of his dance with teams of mafia assassins contracted to kill him. Fair enough plot line, and finally an interesting development. But you can't have it both ways, Mr. Bazell (or whoever wrote this second book): you cannot demonstrate real aversion for violent force when used by government - police, soldiers, etc. -- but then portray your "hero" as morally acceptable when he takes justice into his own hands. Unless, of course, you choose to believe that vigilante justice or mafia-style violence as a tool for personal gain is morally legitimate, while use of power by government is in and of itself a form of public corruption, no different from mafia-style or vigilante violence.

4) On poverty: I assume this book was meant to show how hard the economic downturn has been on the working class. But the condescension and again, the contempt shown for the working class - their morals, their intelligence, their (lack) of resilience, etc. -- belies the effort to show them to be average people struggling with hard times. This is indavertent, but the smug tone of an elite educated author for the lesser mortals in the working world is there, and off-putting to say the least. A "man of the people" you are not, Mr. Bazell. You dislike them to much.

5) On politics: Others have commented on the silly attacks on Republicans; these are not worthy of an author with the intelligence and capacity for perceptiveness previously displayed by Mr. Bazell. All I can say is that "Beat the Reaper" was a wonderful satire about hospital culture, the public corruption of our health care system, and of the allure of the dark side of violence and its effects on American society; there was a clear political viewpoint, but it was nuanced, and took a back seat to the wonderful plot and complex characters. In "Beat the Reaper" these opinions were filtered through a deeply humanistic, if cynical, worldview, exactly what one would expect from a physician; the narrative voice of that book was trustworthy. "Wild Thing" is also a satire, or a parody really - but an inadvertent one - of East Coast liberal pretensions, circa 2012. The physician's great gift of seeing people as they are, and valuing them nonetheless, has been overshadowed by a very big ego and a juvenile and narcissistic fantasy that one's personal beliefs are the only legitimate and final truths in what matters in political life.

I hope Mr. Bazell listens to his critics, and comes back with a third book that respects his gifts, the truly wonderful fictional hero he has created, and more importantly respects the full range of his readers, men, women, people of faith, republicans, democrats, etc...and not just those who think like him.

Unlike it's predecessor in almost every way, Wild Thing is an entertaining merry-go-round of information expertly blended into a plot, filled with a blur of vivid imagery that will keep you guessing.

Ex-hitman turned hippocratic oath holder Lionel Azimuth, aka Peter Brown, aka Pietro Brnwa has been living with a series of unfortunate events hanging over him, like a cloud of crap constantly raining down on his existence. So when a job offer by a billionaire comes around to go on an expedition with a sexy paleontologist, it can only mean more trouble for Lionel.

As the plot thickens, Dr. Azimuth's sea creature safari quickly becomes a thrilling murder mystery chocked full of unsavory characters and edge-of-your-seat intrigue. Amidst all the chaos it seems someone's on to the good doctor, and it's only a matter of time before the mob comes calling. Lionel's luck sucks, but he beat the reaper once. Can he do it again?

Josh Bazell throws his readers a curve ball. The disorienting world of a well known character plopped into this strange almost paranormal situation feels like a complete departure from Beat the Reaper, and gives Wild Thing an air of being a fish out of water. But what starts out as a surreal hodge-podge of various blockbuster movie ideas is just the misdirection gravy Bazell builds his story under. The cloaking thread along with the deposition-like memoire style storytelling creates a collage of sequenced memories, tasks, trivia, and situations which are used to construct the plot lines, while masking the outcome.

This novel is an insane politically charged page turner. That may turn off quite a few readers. You definitely know where the author stands on several issues by the end of the book. Wild Thing was well written despite being heavily ladened with info dumps, which could have become boring or preachy. Paired with the exquisite narration of Robert Petkoff who's voice and portrayal of all the various characters brought out the life of even the most seemingly mundane monologues. Petkoff was perfection with his attitude and inflections, voicing Bazell's smart, funny, and gritty world wonderfully. He's my new favorite narrator. I read the first book but after hearing the second, I will only be enjoying this series through audiobook from now on. I can't recommend the sound version enough. It's truely what an audiobook experience should be.

With his exciting way of storytelling, Bazell doesn't fall into the usual traps and devices overused by many authors. His writing style is cleverly crafted, witty, and just as equally informative as it is entertaining, marking Wild Thing and Bazell a stand out among their contemporaries.

I loved Josh Bazell's first novel, BEAT THE REAPER, so was very excited when I saw that his second novel came out earlier this month. Like his first novel, I pretty much devoured WILD THING in a single sitting. Like his first novel, Bazell's second has hilarious footnotes. (And some very serious ones, too.) Like his first novel, it's got mobsters, violence and inventive profanity, and about a thousand quotable one-liners. Unlike his first novel, it's also got a lake monster - well, at least what some people in the novel claim is a lake monster. And it's got the most memorable cameo of a public figure that I've ever come across. So WILD THING truly is a wild and highly entertaining ride, and you'll learn some fascinating things you never knew you were interested in along the way (on, for example, catastrophic paleontology). But like all good comedy the novel is kind of serious as well: a cautionary tale about the dangers of willful ignorance, it mocks our seemingly endless capacity to believe whatever it is we want to believe, even if it means having to ignore evidence to the contrary. So, smarten up and read WILD THING!

I love books. Books, knives & flashlights. I find it hard to pass up any of them. Ask my wife, I have all three scattered around the house. I am usually reading at least 3 books or more at any time. I have one on my old Kindle that I listen to on the way to and from work each day. I have at least one in the bathroom for education and entertainment breaks. I have one or more on my laptop, on my Kindle Fire, on Cloud reader etc. Heck, I even have them on my phone. I very seldom comment on the books I read. I do keep track of the authors I like and I have a spreadsheet that I maintain on when their new books are due out that I am going to want to purchase. When I find a new author that I like I add his name to my track list.

One new author I found and enjoyed was Josh Bazell. He wrote a book called "Beat the Reaper" about a hitman who goes into witness protection, becomes a doctor, and ends up with a patient from his old life. Quirky, funny and extremely enjoyable. So when I found out he had a second book coming out I rushed to buy it. It wasn't as good as the first but that is understandable. It wasn't bad or at least not terrible. The plot was over the top and outrageous but I could live with that. Unfortunately the quirky humor had been replaced with an extreme left wing liberal rant delivered with the typical progressive arrogance. The Gore won the election but the Supreme wouldn't allow a recount, Bush ruined the world with the help of the oil companies, if you don't believe in global warming or if you are a Christian or Republican you are stupid and/or evil or in the case of Sarah Palin, both.

So here is the thing. I feel like I was ripped. I paid good money to be entertained. I didn't pay anything for a self righteous lecture that I don't agree with. Frankly, I don't care about how you feel politically. Just like the Dixie Chicks, I pay them to sing, not for their political commentary. Same thing with Hollywood. Now if you want to give me your book for free you can lecture me in it. If you put on the cover, "Not as entertaining as my last book but lots of progressive lecturing!" and I buy it, fine. You didn't. You sold me entertainment and delivered crap. I don't mind that the book wasn't any good. I minded that it was sold as something it wasn't.

Congratulations. You got me. I got down to the last few pages hoping there was something there like the little boy who knew there had to be a pony in there somewhere. No pony. You will never again sell me another book. For the first time in my life I was inspired to leave a negative review on a book. So you did motivate me, just not the way you hoped.

I adored Bazell's debut novel, Beat The Reaper. The fresh, distinctive voice of the main character, an ex-hitman in the witness protection program studying to be a doctor, was a flat-out revelation. Like Carl Hiaasen and the Coen Bros., Bazell has a talent for taking wacky situations and bizarre characters and weaving them into a truly unique story. Practically the minute this book was available on Audible, I downloaded it. I could not wait to re-enter Bazell's world.

Pietro Brnwa, aka Peter Brown, aka Lionel Azimuth, is still on the run from mobsters who want to kill him. He is plucked from a rotten job as a cruise ship doctor by a "reclusive billionaire" who wants him to join an expedition to a remote lake in Minnesota to investigate the possible existence of a serpent-like monster. Yes, you read that right--a "lake monster" in the vein of the Loch Ness monster, that may be a leftover from the dinosaur age. He is accompanied by a possibly alcoholic (and, of course, attractive) paleontologist named Violet Hurst.

I'm going to stop right there as far as outlining the plot, because to reveal too much would spoil it. While in some ways it's a more conventional mystery plot than the first book, don't worry--there's still plenty of great banter, hilarious observations by Pietro/Peter/Lionel, plot twists and out-there characters. I actually love that Bazell didn't try to replicate the first book (endlessly being chased by mobsters will get stale after a while) and expect that future books will take further different twists in Brnwa/Brown/Azimuth/Whatever's journey.

Bazell does present some very strong political views, very pro-science, which is not surprisingly turning off some readers. If that will bother you, skip it. Everyone else, prepare for some wild and fun reading.

I just hope Bazell doesn't make us wait another three years for the next book!

The writing style is enjoyable, it is unfortunate that this is nothing more than a "message novel;" Republicans are evil Christians are dumb and global warming is going to kill us all soon. The whole thing is just a terrible waste of considerable writing talent.

Despite my best intentions, I didn't get around to reading Beat the Reaper until a couple of weeks before the sequel was released. What a refreshing read! Within pages, I became a die-hard Bazell fan.

The follow-up, Wild Thing, is not quite as strong as the debut in some ways, but is stronger in others. Pietro is going by a new name and working a new job when Dr. Marmoset gives him a lead on an unusual short-term assignment for a character identified only as Rec Bill, short for "Reclusive Billionaire". And, in the way of reclusive billionaires, this is one doozy of an assignment. It takes Pietro into the wilds of Minnesota in the company of an attractive paleontologist.

I don't want to describe the plot in detail because it was all so over the top that I'd hate to spoil even a bit of it. I will mention one thing. About half-way through, a real life person enters the story as a major secondary character. And the depiction of that individual is so incendiary and hysterical that I'm wondering if Dr. Bazell will be sued or simply killed. As far as I'm concerned, this sub-plot is worth the price of admission, but I can guarantee that not all readers will agree with me. It's also worth noting that if you find sentiments like, "Don't vote Republican, for f---`s sake" to be objectionable, consider yourself forewarned that the novel gets political. Oh, and you probably know by now that Pietro's language is not so wholesome.

It is clear that Dr. Bazell is a true polymath, and he appears to be plenty brilliant. The endnotes of the novel comprise a full 15% of the book's length. The author is prepared to document his research and sources for even the most inconsequential elements of the text. And, yes, it's interesting.

So, what's weaker? Honestly, I'm having a hard time putting my finger on it. Beat the Reaper was pretty over the top, but this one is considerably more so. Bring your willing suspension of disbelief. Also, the structure of this novel is more straightforward and linear, and consequently slightly less interesting.

What's the same? The fact that this tale is completely character-driven, and Pietro Brwna continues to fascinate. His voice is unique, and I'm fairly certain I'll be willing to follow his exploits for the foreseeable future. There are several other interesting characters introduced in this novel, including the one referenced above, but it's hard to compete with Pietro's dynamism.

What's better? Well, this novel has more overt humor than the last book did. Not everyone will consider it better, but it worked for me. And the book has an unusual and complex plot that will keep readers guessing what the heck is going on, and what's going to happen next. As for me, I think it's obvious that I plan to stick around to see what's going to happen next.

Beat The Reaper is a GREAT book -- I've recommended it to many people. Wild Thing, I will recommend to no one. The story is ridiculous, and there is nothing -- save the epilogue -- that has anything to do with Beat the Reaper. Brwna is a completely different character here. Remember what he did to his leg at the end of Reaper? Well, it doesn't matter, because it has not effected him one bit. Don't buy this book, don't read this book.

What kind of idiot intentionally sets out to insult 50% of his readership? Maybe the next book, which I won't be buying, will be so demeaning of women and so utterly male chauvinistic that he'll drive away half of the half of the readership he has left. Then, let's see, he can write a book trashing the white male liberal readers he has left in a kind of final literary hari kari, thus putting a final end to what was once a promising future as a writer.

First half of the book, I loved. Great sequel, fun, creative, unique, clever read. Everything I liked about the first "Brnwa" book was present, and the long wait for the follow-up was worth it. Then something happened. The tone changed, and the book became an anti republican "how to" book. A dumb Sarah Palin as a character? Seriously? I kept looking to see if I picked up the wrong book, maybe this one was written by Al Gore and not Josh Bazell.

Josh, I will not be pre-ordering the next one, I will need to check and see first how much of the book you will devote to how stupid republicans are, before I spend my money.

Who knows? You may be right? You certainly devoted a ton of research, and a ton of pages to proving how screwed up our government is, but save it for a political book will you? I may even buy it, but this seemed a really deceptive way to do it, when I was just looking to be entertained. I'll turn on MSNBC when I need by liberal fix.