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Murder Express
Trouble seems to find Jack Elton even when he's in motion. During what he had hoped would be a relaxing honeymoon train excursion with his new bride, he is plunged, once again, into a murder investigation. One of his fellow travelers is found dead in a coach washroom on The Last Spike Special, en route from Vancouver to Calgary. At first it looks like Oscar Dempster took his own life. Even the police officer assigned to the case says he believes that is what happened. But, with the help of another passenger, a medical student, Jack sets out to prove otherwise. The clock is ticking and the miles speed by beneath him as Jack works to find the killer and uncover the motive for murder. The perpetrator must be identified before the train arrives at its final destination. In his quest, Jack will get to know some of his coachmates more intimately than he ever intended, for at least one of them is a deadly assassin.
242 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 24, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
September 16, 2018
This may be the worst book that I've read in my adult life, and its definitely the worst book I've read in the past ten years. The characters were one dimensional archetypes, the plot was predictable and uninteresting, writing was difficult to read, and making it through the very short book was, indeed, a chore.
One of my biggest complaints with the book was that Scott would tell you the exact same thing multiple times in different ways. However, this was not used as a literary device to reinforce anything. Instead, it seemed to be done just to fill space. This quote, which is literally taken from the first paragraph of the first page, really is the best example of what I mean here:
"This was the second, and last, day of the journey that had begun only twenty-four hours earlier."
Stock is able to pack his redundancy all in to a single sentence, but at least he let's you know what you're getting into right of the bat here.
At other points Scott is prone to ridiculous, over the top language which either doesn't fit the situation or hasn't gained legitimacy yet since the stakes of the situation haven't been established. For example:
"Oscar Dempster also swayed back and forth with the rocking of the train. His eyes bulged from their sockets. His tongue protruded from his mouth. Oscar was going to miss a fine breakfast. In fact, he was going to miss the rest of the trip. To tell the truth he was going to miss the rest of what might have been left of his life."
If that wasn't bead enough, the story was so predictable that I was unable to ever become invested in it. When you start the book, there is a prologue that details murder/death of Oscar in the book. Then the first chapter starts and you are introduced to the main character, Jack, and his wife Elaine (here's another example of Scott telling you the same thing multiple times, and just overall creating weird and difficult to read sentences: "Jack Elton and Valerie Cummins were more than in love, they were married. Of course, the one had led to the other, but it had come as a surprise to both of them when Jack proposed and Valerie accepted."). So, so far, we've only been introduced to the victim and our crime fighting team. But, at this point, I could already see the Scott's writing style and how his story is going, and when the next character is introduced, I immediately thought "I bet this next character that Scott introduces is the murder, he's trying to check all the boxes of what "a real story" needs." Lo and behold, the next character we meet is the elderly, brash, pro-capital punishment former Judge William "The Hangman" Marshall (don't call him Bill or Willy). Scott will continue to drive home ad-nauseum over the rest of the book just how much the Judge likes to have people killed when he thinks they've done wrong. Then, believe it or not, it turns out that he killed Oscar.
Scott also needs to employ an proof-reader for future books. Or, if he already has one, he needs to fire this proof-reader. This is a very short book, and it has more typos than most professional books I've read, regardless of length:
"Can you imaging [sic] what it would be like to get caught in that?"
"What could I possible [sic] know that would help you in this case?"
"Others stood, watching the train pass, slowly chewing on bits of straw and grass and unmoved by the metallic snake that was wending [sic] its way through their domain."
The final thing I'd like to mention is that the book's treatment of technology has already not aged well. This is by no means an old book; it was published in 2008. However, Scott treats the existence of cell phones like some mythical technology secret that nobody knows about. Granted, the first iPhone came out in 2007, but smartphones had been around for almost a decade by the time this book was published and cellphones in general had been commonplace for over 15 years. But Scott feels the need to expound on the wonders of this technology:
"A lot of folks have completely abandoned their hardwired phones for wireless ones. A guy in business can be doing his grocery shopping and close a deal or arrange an appointment, by using the cell system exclusively. And he almost never misses an important call."
"Jack hummed as he walked. It was the ringtone from the judge's phone. He marveled at how modern digital technology made it possible to have your cell phone alert you with high quality tunes."
Conclusion: don't read it.
One of my biggest complaints with the book was that Scott would tell you the exact same thing multiple times in different ways. However, this was not used as a literary device to reinforce anything. Instead, it seemed to be done just to fill space. This quote, which is literally taken from the first paragraph of the first page, really is the best example of what I mean here:
"This was the second, and last, day of the journey that had begun only twenty-four hours earlier."
Stock is able to pack his redundancy all in to a single sentence, but at least he let's you know what you're getting into right of the bat here.
At other points Scott is prone to ridiculous, over the top language which either doesn't fit the situation or hasn't gained legitimacy yet since the stakes of the situation haven't been established. For example:
"Oscar Dempster also swayed back and forth with the rocking of the train. His eyes bulged from their sockets. His tongue protruded from his mouth. Oscar was going to miss a fine breakfast. In fact, he was going to miss the rest of the trip. To tell the truth he was going to miss the rest of what might have been left of his life."
If that wasn't bead enough, the story was so predictable that I was unable to ever become invested in it. When you start the book, there is a prologue that details murder/death of Oscar in the book. Then the first chapter starts and you are introduced to the main character, Jack, and his wife Elaine (here's another example of Scott telling you the same thing multiple times, and just overall creating weird and difficult to read sentences: "Jack Elton and Valerie Cummins were more than in love, they were married. Of course, the one had led to the other, but it had come as a surprise to both of them when Jack proposed and Valerie accepted."). So, so far, we've only been introduced to the victim and our crime fighting team. But, at this point, I could already see the Scott's writing style and how his story is going, and when the next character is introduced, I immediately thought "I bet this next character that Scott introduces is the murder, he's trying to check all the boxes of what "a real story" needs." Lo and behold, the next character we meet is the elderly, brash, pro-capital punishment former Judge William "The Hangman" Marshall (don't call him Bill or Willy). Scott will continue to drive home ad-nauseum over the rest of the book just how much the Judge likes to have people killed when he thinks they've done wrong. Then, believe it or not, it turns out that he killed Oscar.
Scott also needs to employ an proof-reader for future books. Or, if he already has one, he needs to fire this proof-reader. This is a very short book, and it has more typos than most professional books I've read, regardless of length:
"Can you imaging [sic] what it would be like to get caught in that?"
"What could I possible [sic] know that would help you in this case?"
"Others stood, watching the train pass, slowly chewing on bits of straw and grass and unmoved by the metallic snake that was wending [sic] its way through their domain."
The final thing I'd like to mention is that the book's treatment of technology has already not aged well. This is by no means an old book; it was published in 2008. However, Scott treats the existence of cell phones like some mythical technology secret that nobody knows about. Granted, the first iPhone came out in 2007, but smartphones had been around for almost a decade by the time this book was published and cellphones in general had been commonplace for over 15 years. But Scott feels the need to expound on the wonders of this technology:
"A lot of folks have completely abandoned their hardwired phones for wireless ones. A guy in business can be doing his grocery shopping and close a deal or arrange an appointment, by using the cell system exclusively. And he almost never misses an important call."
"Jack hummed as he walked. It was the ringtone from the judge's phone. He marveled at how modern digital technology made it possible to have your cell phone alert you with high quality tunes."
Conclusion: don't read it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 31, 2021
Sort of wasted my time on this one. Not a grabber at all! And I usually like a good mystery. Not so much with this one.
January 28, 2016
Picked up this book at the public library when I was looking for a light who-done-it. It grabbed my attention because the basic storyline is about a newlywed couple taking a honeymoon trip by train into the Canadian Rockies -- the very honeymoon trip I took with my wife some 28 years ago. So I was looking forward to a little nostalgia perhaps, but...yikes - bad call! This book is awful. I know that's hardly a constructive criticism, but there wasn't anything that I liked about it. The main characters (the happy couple) are not only poorly developed, they're downright unlikeable - and they're not meant to be. The events that unfold are ludicrously unbelievable, the dialog is insipid, and it is the most obvious who-done-it ever written! And what was that detective's name again? Really? Come on! That's some pretty lame 4th grade humor - with apologies to all self respecting 4th graders out there. So take a pass on this book. And if you do pick it up, DO NOT force yourself to keep reading in hopes that it will get better. Trust me, it doesn't.
May 28, 2014
Boring. Amateur. Awful.
I could've read this book in a day, but it took me much longer due to it's inability to grasp my interest. I'm not normally overly hard on books and authors, but this one was truly awful. If I didn't have a major thing against quitting, I probably wouldn't have finished it. :-/
I could've read this book in a day, but it took me much longer due to it's inability to grasp my interest. I'm not normally overly hard on books and authors, but this one was truly awful. If I didn't have a major thing against quitting, I probably wouldn't have finished it. :-/
April 25, 2013
I read this book as a revision break during my exams and it was perfect for it. It completely distracted me and I looked forward to each evening when I would be able to sit down and read it. It kept me on tenterhooks the whole way through. A murder story with a twist.
April 8, 2014
If the author used the phrase "forward progress" one more time I was going to scream. This was a mediocre story with mediocre characters and a mediocre plot. Not overly impressed. At least it's a quick read.
October 16, 2014
I felt like I was on an oval with this book and the main part of the story just kept coming back around before it finally finish about 15 pages before the end. I don't usually apply the Evelyn Wood method on fiction books but boy did I up my reading speed on this one.
July 21, 2013
enjoyable $1 e-read. have a copy. not sure how many times I can lend it.
Read
August 31, 2013Really enjoyed the book. I did not figure out "who dun-nit" until the very end.
October 7, 2014
Very slow read... Just didn't hook me.
March 30, 2015
Too slow
Too simple for me and characters weak.I couldn't relate to anyone,even main one.I also didn't like the format and found it a very short book.
Too simple for me and characters weak.I couldn't relate to anyone,even main one.I also didn't like the format and found it a very short book.
June 2, 2016
This book reads like it was written by a very talented fourth-grader.
May 22, 2013
Slightly dull, slightly silly, mostly standard mystery. Little to no drama or suspense.
June 12, 2013
2 1/2 - 3 stars
The author needs polish, but the story line is good.
The author needs polish, but the story line is good.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews