Point Blank Rudeness

I spoke too soon. I really thought Anthony Horowitz was going to deliver, but instead he hooked me in with the first book. Then he started banging away with his version of morality in the second, Point Blank. And he didn't even give me any chocolate.

I briefly considered Anthony's blog a week or so back that indicated he would only write positive reviews. Yeah, but I'm not that nice. And this isn't a review. It's just a growl of disdain.

Sadly, Horowitz detours from the plot and writes an entire personal belief chapter that only serves as a detriment to the book as a whole. Now, before I get too far, you should know that the book frowns upon a pretty much universal evil: cloning yourself sixteen times and trying to take over the world by undergoing plastic surgery, then inserting yourselves into rich and powerful families. Okay, I'm pretty sure I can handle that kind of morality. But chapter five?

Chapter Five: The Shooting Party has nothing to do with the plot. But, I learned some soul-enlarging, deep and complex things in it, like: 1) Rich people are bad; 2) Rich people's kids are worse; 3) They like to shoot and wound small animals; 4) and teens are not only "too young to play with guns," but they're likely to start taking pot shots at poor kids just for kicks (84). I think it would've been one thing if it had something to do w/ the plot. But, it didn't.

In my sweet & tidy little world, it doesn't matter where your own personal beliefs fall along the spectrum of any of those four: I personally don't need someone to use a cotton-candy book to clumsily foist his ideas on me -- especially when he's heavy-handed and doesn't use breath mints. For crying out loud!

I am sad and dejected. But I'm going to read book three, Skeleton Key, just in case. After all, chapter five in Point Blank might have been a fluke, and, well, I own it. Might as well read it, yeah?