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Lay Your Armor Down
A dark Southern tale of desperate souls who've wound up on the road of poor choices, a messianic child with untold powers, and those out hunting her for their own reward, all drawn together by Michael Farris Smith's trademark mournful, spirit-gnawing prose.
An old woman, riddled with dementia, walks off into the woods in the middle of the night. A light in the wood draws her to a campfire with two strange, dangerous men, one young and one old, who are there plotting a crime of as-yet-indeterminate purpose. The two men have a job to do. They are hunting something precious but have only been told: you’ll know it when you see it. When they arrive at the place, an abandoned church cellar in the burned-out countryside, they find an answer they never could have predicted. Now, the job feels dubious, one that’ll surely bring them to ruin. Yet if they’re to go against orders, no step can be undone, and nothing can be taken back.
In spare, Beckett-like prose, Lay Your Armor Down reduces the epic to its most elemental. It charts the course of several broken people, all outrunning danger’s dark fingers, and all brought together for one last chance at redemption.
An old woman, riddled with dementia, walks off into the woods in the middle of the night. A light in the wood draws her to a campfire with two strange, dangerous men, one young and one old, who are there plotting a crime of as-yet-indeterminate purpose. The two men have a job to do. They are hunting something precious but have only been told: you’ll know it when you see it. When they arrive at the place, an abandoned church cellar in the burned-out countryside, they find an answer they never could have predicted. Now, the job feels dubious, one that’ll surely bring them to ruin. Yet if they’re to go against orders, no step can be undone, and nothing can be taken back.
In spare, Beckett-like prose, Lay Your Armor Down reduces the epic to its most elemental. It charts the course of several broken people, all outrunning danger’s dark fingers, and all brought together for one last chance at redemption.
272 pages, Hardcover
Published May 27, 2025
29 people are currently reading
5199 people want to read
About the author
Michael Farris Smith
25 books890 followersMichael Farris Smith is an award-winning writer whose novels have appeared on Best of the Year lists with Esquire, NPR, Southern Living, Garden & Gun, Oprah Magazine, Book Riot, and numerous other outlets, and have been named Indie Next, Barnes & Noble Discover, and Amazon Best of the Month selections. He has also written the feature-film adaptations of his novels Desperation Road and The Fighter, titled for the screen as Rumble Through the Dark. He lives in Oxford, Mississippi, with his wife and daughters.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 76 reviews
June 8, 2025
Dead bodies found in the cellar of a church. An old senile woman and young girl walk away unscathed.
2 men sent to do a job. Unsure and now unnerved. Protecting this child is the only thing they have no doubt about. Prophecy only now being realized. And redemption a possibility.
A Heart thumping adrenaline pumping story. Intense the entire read.
MFS hasn’t lost his touch with this southern noir.
4.25⭐️
2 men sent to do a job. Unsure and now unnerved. Protecting this child is the only thing they have no doubt about. Prophecy only now being realized. And redemption a possibility.
A Heart thumping adrenaline pumping story. Intense the entire read.
MFS hasn’t lost his touch with this southern noir.
4.25⭐️
January 9, 2025
Loved it!
Micheal Farris Smith is a master at grit-lit!
Two men.. one young one old, are doing a job for some dangerous men.. to hunt down something precious but they have no idea what it is.. they are told they “will know it when you see it”
it is a “someone’ that they come across… a child in the cellar of an old abandoned church they’ve been led to who doesn’t speak..
This child is to be brought in.. she’s being hunted down for her supposed special powers.
Will they give her up to them… ?
There are only a handful of full of characters here and trouble around every corner they go to.
It’s a fast, action packed story.
I have read all of this author’s works.. except NICK.
He is a superb writer!
Thank you to Netgalley and Little Brown for the ARC!
Micheal Farris Smith is a master at grit-lit!
Two men.. one young one old, are doing a job for some dangerous men.. to hunt down something precious but they have no idea what it is.. they are told they “will know it when you see it”
it is a “someone’ that they come across… a child in the cellar of an old abandoned church they’ve been led to who doesn’t speak..
This child is to be brought in.. she’s being hunted down for her supposed special powers.
Will they give her up to them… ?
There are only a handful of full of characters here and trouble around every corner they go to.
It’s a fast, action packed story.
I have read all of this author’s works.. except NICK.
He is a superb writer!
Thank you to Netgalley and Little Brown for the ARC!
May 31, 2025
Lay Your Armor Down by Michael Farris Smith
Expected Publication: May 27, 2025
Genre: Literary Fiction / Southern Gothic
Format: Digital ARC
Haunting, suspenseful, and unnerving!
This novel swallowed me whole from the first page and didn’t let go until the very last word. It is packed full of anticipation and steeped in the unknown. I never felt fully grounded, and that’s exactly what made it so compelling. The sense of disorientation only deepened the emotional impact. I was desperate to make sense of the strange figures moving through the story, all of them burdened, all of them broken in their own ways.
Michael Farris Smith’s writing is mournful and stripped down, full of aching silences and raw humanity. Every sentence feels weighted, deliberate. There’s a kind of stillness to it, like watching a storm gather in the distance and knowing it’s going to hit, but not knowing exactly when or how.
I had so many questions while reading this. Not about what was real or who to believe, but just about what in the world was actually happening. It is a story soaked in mystery, with answers always just out of reach. But that’s what made it so captivating. I loved that we were left in the dark, wandering blind through the shadows of this dark Southern gothic tale. That uncertainty is part of what made it so powerful.
The characters left a lasting impression: a woman swallowed by dementia, wandering into the woods and into danger, two men sent on a mission they don’t understand, following vague instructions with devastating potential, and at the centre of it all, a child who might be something more than human.
The tension is palpable, the setting is bleak and scorched, and the atmosphere gets under your skin. It’s a story that seeps in slowly and lingers long after you close the book.
A Witches Words read that I had the pleasure of buddy reading with Brenda and Debra. Be sure to check out their reviews!
Thank you to Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for the digital ARC. I absolutely recommend Lay Your Armor Down to readers who want their fiction rich in emotion, layered in mystery, and filled with characters clawing their way toward redemption.
Expected Publication: May 27, 2025
Genre: Literary Fiction / Southern Gothic
Format: Digital ARC
Haunting, suspenseful, and unnerving!
This novel swallowed me whole from the first page and didn’t let go until the very last word. It is packed full of anticipation and steeped in the unknown. I never felt fully grounded, and that’s exactly what made it so compelling. The sense of disorientation only deepened the emotional impact. I was desperate to make sense of the strange figures moving through the story, all of them burdened, all of them broken in their own ways.
Michael Farris Smith’s writing is mournful and stripped down, full of aching silences and raw humanity. Every sentence feels weighted, deliberate. There’s a kind of stillness to it, like watching a storm gather in the distance and knowing it’s going to hit, but not knowing exactly when or how.
I had so many questions while reading this. Not about what was real or who to believe, but just about what in the world was actually happening. It is a story soaked in mystery, with answers always just out of reach. But that’s what made it so captivating. I loved that we were left in the dark, wandering blind through the shadows of this dark Southern gothic tale. That uncertainty is part of what made it so powerful.
The characters left a lasting impression: a woman swallowed by dementia, wandering into the woods and into danger, two men sent on a mission they don’t understand, following vague instructions with devastating potential, and at the centre of it all, a child who might be something more than human.
The tension is palpable, the setting is bleak and scorched, and the atmosphere gets under your skin. It’s a story that seeps in slowly and lingers long after you close the book.
A Witches Words read that I had the pleasure of buddy reading with Brenda and Debra. Be sure to check out their reviews!
Thank you to Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for the digital ARC. I absolutely recommend Lay Your Armor Down to readers who want their fiction rich in emotion, layered in mystery, and filled with characters clawing their way toward redemption.
July 12, 2025
I love the author’s prose and his way with words. But beautiful prose is not enough to carry a book. I need more plot that is based in realism
While filled with the atmospere and grit I’ve come to expect from the author, it was too vague and nebulous for me.
Two men are sent on a mission, told only that “you will know it when you see it.”
What follows is a harrowing tale which I found muddled and obscure. Sentences and phrases went in circles and made no sense. There were spiritual overtones but it came across as too woo-woo and nonsensical for me.
By the end I was unclear of what the author was trying to say. I don’t need everything tied up neatly in a bow but I need some clarity. It seemed the author was trying to say something profound but I never figured it out. I don’t know, maybe I’m just too dense to understand.
I enjoyed his earlier release, Desperation Road, and gave it 5 stars, but this one did not work for me. I’m clearly in the minority so do check out other reviews.
While filled with the atmospere and grit I’ve come to expect from the author, it was too vague and nebulous for me.
Two men are sent on a mission, told only that “you will know it when you see it.”
What follows is a harrowing tale which I found muddled and obscure. Sentences and phrases went in circles and made no sense. There were spiritual overtones but it came across as too woo-woo and nonsensical for me.
By the end I was unclear of what the author was trying to say. I don’t need everything tied up neatly in a bow but I need some clarity. It seemed the author was trying to say something profound but I never figured it out. I don’t know, maybe I’m just too dense to understand.
I enjoyed his earlier release, Desperation Road, and gave it 5 stars, but this one did not work for me. I’m clearly in the minority so do check out other reviews.
May 28, 2025
Lay Your Armor Down, the latest book from Michael Farris Smith, once again follows travelers on back roads of Mississippi. This time it’s two men who live on the edge of life, skirting law and trouble as they earn money where they can. Not quite bounty hunters but living on the shady side.
to be continued…
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC of this book.
to be continued…
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC of this book.
June 13, 2025
✰ 2.5 stars ✰
...which very effectively then translated into the nature of the writing, as well - a fitting way to capture what did not work well for me. Without that basis of closure or even the need to explain the mystery surrounding the targeted girl for various reasons from various persons - I was left feeling hollow and viscerally frustrated at the sheer lack of attempting to even explain the cause behind the actions that led us to the part where the story began. 🙎🏻♀️
I'm sure with the right audience, this may have an impact; existing fans familiar with the author's writing style won't question the direction of the narrative. As a first-time reader, though, it is safe to say I would not be inclined to check out more of MFS's works, not even asking me to Lay Your Armor Down against what did not work for me isn't enough to change my rating. 🙅🏻♀️ Despite how the slow, almost melancholic, yet lethargic feel of the writing appealed to me. And how it swiftly offset into a more disturbing and unsettling one, with each of the characters' thoughts and personalities also appealed to me. 😞
“He had no idea what made this little girl so important and so valuable and so dangerous...”
You and me both. 🤷🏻♀️ It really did not have to be so vague, ugh... Try I might, I can't shake my annoyance at the total lack of clarity into certain points. I wanted to have some depth to the bad guys, some means to an end, some direction to which their efforts would not feel all for naught. As much as the core characters' lives touched me in some way, as much as I saw the struggles they'd endured that led to their determination to protect the young girl at all costs, I can't overlook that there was no attempt even to explain the why behind so much... 😮💨
“They both questioned the nature of fate and they both believed they were gripped in its clutches because neither of them could find any other way to explain their being together.”
So, maybe it was intentional - deliberate in being coy in the voice of reason. It ties into what the author was attempting to show; that miracles don't need explanations and that retribution can occur in the strangest and most unpredictable of circumstances. The very fact that they each faced that moment where they could make a change to the persons that they had been, simply for the sake of another - is that not reason enough? 🥺 Yeah, I know, but after all their resolve, the fact that they themselves did not reach a conclusive favorable ending to their struggles felt mote... I just feel so wholly unsatisfied that I can't even talk about how invested I initially was in the story, how gripped I was with the unsettling intentions of each. 😒
“It was a place from which you cannot escape and you are left to lie there in the black silence of your solitude.”
See, what I mean by troubled-twos? I feel like I'm arguing in circles over my poor take-away, but this is what it is. 😤 I do see how the author is showing that miracles exist beyond our rationale. That perhaps the converging of these four respective souls was a call from a higher being, one where their own past transgressions played a part in meeting the way they did. But, my final feelings overshadowed all the quiet nitty gritty into the otherworldly vibes I was enjoying. 😢
My displeasure at the lack of closure provided, that so much was left unexplained and in the air, disregarded how I was even drawn into the spiritual nuances that gave depth to the story. Maybe there is a continuation to it that would provide answers to the unsolved and unresolved questions. For now, I'm just going to fester in frustration over what could have been. 😔
“She had been delivered to the dogma that we are at the mercy of the world and it was a world that offered no explanations...”
...which very effectively then translated into the nature of the writing, as well - a fitting way to capture what did not work well for me. Without that basis of closure or even the need to explain the mystery surrounding the targeted girl for various reasons from various persons - I was left feeling hollow and viscerally frustrated at the sheer lack of attempting to even explain the cause behind the actions that led us to the part where the story began. 🙎🏻♀️
I'm sure with the right audience, this may have an impact; existing fans familiar with the author's writing style won't question the direction of the narrative. As a first-time reader, though, it is safe to say I would not be inclined to check out more of MFS's works, not even asking me to Lay Your Armor Down against what did not work for me isn't enough to change my rating. 🙅🏻♀️ Despite how the slow, almost melancholic, yet lethargic feel of the writing appealed to me. And how it swiftly offset into a more disturbing and unsettling one, with each of the characters' thoughts and personalities also appealed to me. 😞
“He had no idea what made this little girl so important and so valuable and so dangerous...”
You and me both. 🤷🏻♀️ It really did not have to be so vague, ugh... Try I might, I can't shake my annoyance at the total lack of clarity into certain points. I wanted to have some depth to the bad guys, some means to an end, some direction to which their efforts would not feel all for naught. As much as the core characters' lives touched me in some way, as much as I saw the struggles they'd endured that led to their determination to protect the young girl at all costs, I can't overlook that there was no attempt even to explain the why behind so much... 😮💨
“They both questioned the nature of fate and they both believed they were gripped in its clutches because neither of them could find any other way to explain their being together.”
So, maybe it was intentional - deliberate in being coy in the voice of reason. It ties into what the author was attempting to show; that miracles don't need explanations and that retribution can occur in the strangest and most unpredictable of circumstances. The very fact that they each faced that moment where they could make a change to the persons that they had been, simply for the sake of another - is that not reason enough? 🥺 Yeah, I know, but after all their resolve, the fact that they themselves did not reach a conclusive favorable ending to their struggles felt mote... I just feel so wholly unsatisfied that I can't even talk about how invested I initially was in the story, how gripped I was with the unsettling intentions of each. 😒
“It was a place from which you cannot escape and you are left to lie there in the black silence of your solitude.”
See, what I mean by troubled-twos? I feel like I'm arguing in circles over my poor take-away, but this is what it is. 😤 I do see how the author is showing that miracles exist beyond our rationale. That perhaps the converging of these four respective souls was a call from a higher being, one where their own past transgressions played a part in meeting the way they did. But, my final feelings overshadowed all the quiet nitty gritty into the otherworldly vibes I was enjoying. 😢
My displeasure at the lack of closure provided, that so much was left unexplained and in the air, disregarded how I was even drawn into the spiritual nuances that gave depth to the story. Maybe there is a continuation to it that would provide answers to the unsolved and unresolved questions. For now, I'm just going to fester in frustration over what could have been. 😔
May 26, 2025
I’ve loved every book this author has written, and this one was no exception!
June 22, 2025
Michael Farris Smith is a master at writing Southern gothic novels about desperate people. In "Lay Your Armor Down" two downtrodden men, Burdean and Keal, have a job to pick up something valuable at an abandoned church in Mississippi. Their only directions are that "you'll know it when you see it." They find a little girl in the church basement. She won't talk to them, but seems to have special powers.
Who wants this little girl and why do they want her? Keal may work some unsavory jobs, but he's a man with a conscience. Burdeal is more focused on money at first, but he gets a chance at redemption. An old woman with dementia, a magical wolf, and a young woman with maternal instincts also are part of this dark story. The atmosphere is stormy and dangerous. The story is filled with Biblical imagery, frightening dreams, and fights for survival.
Michael Farris Smith's writing reminded me of Cormac McCarthy in this tale. You may not know where this gritty novel is heading, but it's quite a trip getting there.
Who wants this little girl and why do they want her? Keal may work some unsavory jobs, but he's a man with a conscience. Burdeal is more focused on money at first, but he gets a chance at redemption. An old woman with dementia, a magical wolf, and a young woman with maternal instincts also are part of this dark story. The atmosphere is stormy and dangerous. The story is filled with Biblical imagery, frightening dreams, and fights for survival.
Michael Farris Smith's writing reminded me of Cormac McCarthy in this tale. You may not know where this gritty novel is heading, but it's quite a trip getting there.
May 22, 2025
As a big fan of Michael Farris Smith's Desperation Road, I couldn't wait to read his latest work. It starts out strangely, with a demented old woman gathering random bits and pieces of her life into a plastic bag before leaving her house and wandering into the night. When she approaches two men sitting around a campfire, they don't know what to make of her. They've been waiting to finish a job they've been hired to do--pick up something valuable in the cellar of an old church and deliver it to...someone. It will earn them more money than they've ever been offered for a job. They don't have time to deal with a crazy old lady. But it turns out she's just the beginning of their troubles.
The story is very atmospheric, very gritty, very Southern gothic, with a touch of the supernatural, as in: 'The hand of God is soaked in blood.' Smith is a master at getting into his characters' heads. Are they likable? I don't know, maybe some are, but definitely damaged and slightly unhinged.
Many thanks to the author and publisher for providing me with an arc of this new thriller via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.
The story is very atmospheric, very gritty, very Southern gothic, with a touch of the supernatural, as in: 'The hand of God is soaked in blood.' Smith is a master at getting into his characters' heads. Are they likable? I don't know, maybe some are, but definitely damaged and slightly unhinged.
Many thanks to the author and publisher for providing me with an arc of this new thriller via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.
June 19, 2025
Sometimes people surprise you. Bad people do something goo for whatever reason be it a bit of conscience, a bit of recognition that eventually one will meet a higher power, or because someone in need, needs them.
Two men are sent in search of a child. What they find is an area littered with dead bodies and the child and an old woman sitting in the midst of the carnage. The child doesn't speak and the old woman is in the last stages of dementia. What is it about this child that makes her special, that makes her the object of other's need?
As the men and the young woman who finds them, they learn what they have in the possession is precious cargo and bad people are out to get her.
Definitely intensely gritty and throughout the book you are unsure if the men will succeed in their original task or succumb to the need to protect this child.
Two men are sent in search of a child. What they find is an area littered with dead bodies and the child and an old woman sitting in the midst of the carnage. The child doesn't speak and the old woman is in the last stages of dementia. What is it about this child that makes her special, that makes her the object of other's need?
As the men and the young woman who finds them, they learn what they have in the possession is precious cargo and bad people are out to get her.
Definitely intensely gritty and throughout the book you are unsure if the men will succeed in their original task or succumb to the need to protect this child.
June 8, 2025
What feels as first like Cormac reborn evolves into its own thing, a haunting meditation on fate and greed and facing one’s choices down. Darkly comic and relentlessly readable, Armor is Smith’s best novel yet.
July 27, 2025
I respect the hell out of Farris Smith's writing, especially since this is the fourth book of his that I've read. That said, "Lay Your Armor Down" fails to capture what his other books have done for me: excitement. His prose and atmosphere tend to convey a yearning for light, for optimism in a bleak world and this is no different, but I found that there was way too much symbolism and open questions for me to enjoy. The character development is there for the most part, but even though things happen, it ultimately doesn't lead much to anywhere.
For fans of Rivers, this may make you feel like you are placed in a similar environment and time, but there's something missing.
2.5 out of 5.
For fans of Rivers, this may make you feel like you are placed in a similar environment and time, but there's something missing.
2.5 out of 5.
July 26, 2025
MFS has done it again! In 2013 I was thrilled by Rivers, high intensity. Since then I’ve read every novel, this was number seven and it was thrilling and intense!
No one does southern noir better. This Mississippi man is a favorite author.
Kudos to Mike McColl for awesome narration.
No one does southern noir better. This Mississippi man is a favorite author.
Kudos to Mike McColl for awesome narration.
May 12, 2025
Confession: I have never read Michael Farris Smith's work before, but am a fan after this ARC. "Lay Your Armor Down" is grit-lit Southern Gothic noir at its best. Set in a wasteland where men pursue a little girl believed to hold special powers, and a woman who watches over her elderly neighbor gets in their way. Apparently, at this time in my life (and our world), a violent and twisted, dark survival rescue story is just what I needed. Recommended if you want to spend some time in a dystopian world and/or the deep dark South. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Publication date is May 27th.
#LayYourArmorDown
#LayYourArmorDown
May 29, 2025
An irresistible mix of Stephen King and Cormac McCarthy and has to be one of my favorite reads of the year. It’s a slim book that flys by but weighs just as heavy.
July 17, 2025
Alot of build up for nothing, weak ending, weak plot.
January 22, 2026
3.75 but not rounding up.
The missing elements are too important to round up.
The writing style while quite beautiful did not match the characters. Even in 3rd person omniscient, the prose that was good enough to be poetry was unbelievable for this set of thug characters.
The logic was not explained enough. It’s hard when you assign a little unknown girl with messianic qualities but then don’t fill in any backstory. Maybe that was purposeful to create the intrigue but it didn’t quite work for my curious mind.
Back to the prose though. The words went down smooth like a milkshake.
The missing elements are too important to round up.
The writing style while quite beautiful did not match the characters. Even in 3rd person omniscient, the prose that was good enough to be poetry was unbelievable for this set of thug characters.
The logic was not explained enough. It’s hard when you assign a little unknown girl with messianic qualities but then don’t fill in any backstory. Maybe that was purposeful to create the intrigue but it didn’t quite work for my curious mind.
Back to the prose though. The words went down smooth like a milkshake.
August 20, 2025
Different from my usual type of books...perhaps more along the philosophical line of thought? Interesting read regardless.
* Library Book
* Library Book
December 22, 2025
**Re read update***
Lay your armor down as my favorite piece of fiction ever written. I have been thinking about this book for months and months. I reread it recently with my daughter. It is simply exquisite in nearly every way. The foreshadowing, the metaphor, the sparse level of pros with some sort of poetic flare. The dark way that everything is conceived of end yet left to meet with a feeling of hope. I wanted it so badly for the characters to be safe, to be good and make the right choice. Such an incredible sense of yearning.
The symbolism here is so thoughtfully portrayed, with almost no questions answered. It begs to be red in the book club or at least to be discussed with someone.
Ferris Smith is my favorite author who has ever lived. My daughter and I have decided the next time he comes out with a book. We are going to fly to wherever he is to have him signed it and to hear him read. There is nothing like his novels.
****
Farris Smith has been writing for many years, and I’m completely shocked I’ve never come across his material. This is such intricate speculative fiction, and for fans of the genre, another must read. I’ll be reading everything he’s ever written in the coming months.
In terms of his thematic approach, this is a wonderful example of found family emerging through ambiguity. His argument here is that you don’t always need answers, but someone with whom you can ponder the questions. Some authors are tempted to offer information that is withheld from the characters, which is also awesome, but here Farris Smith includes the reader in the ambiguity by so doing you’re forced to experience the confusion along with the characters, it’s almost as if you yourself becomes part of the narrative. For me, the topic is so compelling and so unclear I felt more intimately connected with some of the character than I have with other writing styles. It’s awesome, and obviously the result of the author’s career to this point.
I’ve started reading his early novel Rivers, and while it’s also wonderful (review coming!) I can tell that he later embraces more unsolvable situations. In my opinion, it’s the unknown that makes spec fic so incredibly rewarding (I Who Have Never Known Men being another fantastic example).
Wonderful story. It also ends with one of the most incredibly visual and affecting scenes I’ve experienced - it was so good I forced my wife — who reads nothing heavier than scriptures — to read it as well so we could share the experience 😂
This guy is awesome.
Lay your armor down as my favorite piece of fiction ever written. I have been thinking about this book for months and months. I reread it recently with my daughter. It is simply exquisite in nearly every way. The foreshadowing, the metaphor, the sparse level of pros with some sort of poetic flare. The dark way that everything is conceived of end yet left to meet with a feeling of hope. I wanted it so badly for the characters to be safe, to be good and make the right choice. Such an incredible sense of yearning.
The symbolism here is so thoughtfully portrayed, with almost no questions answered. It begs to be red in the book club or at least to be discussed with someone.
Ferris Smith is my favorite author who has ever lived. My daughter and I have decided the next time he comes out with a book. We are going to fly to wherever he is to have him signed it and to hear him read. There is nothing like his novels.
****
Farris Smith has been writing for many years, and I’m completely shocked I’ve never come across his material. This is such intricate speculative fiction, and for fans of the genre, another must read. I’ll be reading everything he’s ever written in the coming months.
In terms of his thematic approach, this is a wonderful example of found family emerging through ambiguity. His argument here is that you don’t always need answers, but someone with whom you can ponder the questions. Some authors are tempted to offer information that is withheld from the characters, which is also awesome, but here Farris Smith includes the reader in the ambiguity by so doing you’re forced to experience the confusion along with the characters, it’s almost as if you yourself becomes part of the narrative. For me, the topic is so compelling and so unclear I felt more intimately connected with some of the character than I have with other writing styles. It’s awesome, and obviously the result of the author’s career to this point.
I’ve started reading his early novel Rivers, and while it’s also wonderful (review coming!) I can tell that he later embraces more unsolvable situations. In my opinion, it’s the unknown that makes spec fic so incredibly rewarding (I Who Have Never Known Men being another fantastic example).
Wonderful story. It also ends with one of the most incredibly visual and affecting scenes I’ve experienced - it was so good I forced my wife — who reads nothing heavier than scriptures — to read it as well so we could share the experience 😂
This guy is awesome.
June 16, 2025
"I believed something was wrong in the night and there is still something wrong in the night and it has gathered itself in the flesh and blood of that girl. Something beyond anything we can understand. That’s what I believe."
Well heck I don't know what I believe!😕 The thing is that I like Michael Farris Smith's writing, it just pulls me in and keeps me turning pages to see what's next, but this one has left me somewhat befuddled and vaguely dissatisfied. I like the characters Burdean and Keal, a couple of shiftless, guys living at the edges of society who find themselves in the middle of a moral dilemma, when at one of their "jobs" they find a strange little girl being chased by some bad men who think she can control the weather😖 They meet up with Cara, a girl with a hard past just trying to get by and all three of them are trying to keep the little girl safe from I'm not sure who or what exactly. This story was extremely confusing to me there is very little clarity as to who the little girl is and what she can do if anything. Cara has a story but no clear details about what happened to her or why, the end of the book is just weird and I'm still not sure what happened. All that to say that it kept me interested but I am not sure what it was all about. I probably would have rated the book less than 4⭐'s if the author would have been someone who's writing style I didn't like.
Well heck I don't know what I believe!😕 The thing is that I like Michael Farris Smith's writing, it just pulls me in and keeps me turning pages to see what's next, but this one has left me somewhat befuddled and vaguely dissatisfied. I like the characters Burdean and Keal, a couple of shiftless, guys living at the edges of society who find themselves in the middle of a moral dilemma, when at one of their "jobs" they find a strange little girl being chased by some bad men who think she can control the weather😖 They meet up with Cara, a girl with a hard past just trying to get by and all three of them are trying to keep the little girl safe from I'm not sure who or what exactly. This story was extremely confusing to me there is very little clarity as to who the little girl is and what she can do if anything. Cara has a story but no clear details about what happened to her or why, the end of the book is just weird and I'm still not sure what happened. All that to say that it kept me interested but I am not sure what it was all about. I probably would have rated the book less than 4⭐'s if the author would have been someone who's writing style I didn't like.
December 23, 2025
1.5 stars.
I actually have no idea what I just read, or what the author is trying to say with this book, nor do I care. First off, there is chapter after chapter told in vague descriptive language that doesn’t elucidate any semblance of what the story is truly about. The supposed mystery or question central to the narrative isn’t even revealed until more than 70% in - and I don’t mean solved, I mean that it even exists at all. After that, there’s nothing explored, nothing explained, nothing shown that might bring this little nothing story into a greater light. It just meanders along the same vague path. I prefer a bit more depth and lucidity.
There are a lot of words, most of them quite well written, beautiful even, if spare, but they don’t form a cohesive plot or build upon meaningful dialogue or character development. I think the author meant to be profound at times, but came across as meaningless and inane. For example, this exchange toward the end, which felt like the author was trying to reach a crescendo:
“Where is it?”
“Where is what?”
“My Watch!”
She shrugged.
“I don’t guess it matters where it is, I don’t guess it matters if you move away from her like I’m telling you to do. It’s not gonna change anything. Time will be time, the end will be the end, and so forth and so on”
“I know you” Cara said
“You don’t know me”
“I do, I’ve seen you”
“You saw me through the window when I stood with the flames”
“No”
“No?”
“I know you from somewhere else”
“Everybody knows everybody from somewhere else, we’re all one person. We all love and hate and bitch and moan. We all think we do it different but we don’t. You know me and I know you.”…“Now, get away from her.”
…
“Hadn’t you shot my house enough?”
“Enough?”
“Yeah, enough.”
“Everyone always thinks something is enough, or not enough, so we spin around and around” he said.
…
“You’re not the same” she said
“The same as what?”
“As anything I’ve ever seen. Taking her won’t start the hands of the watch. Taking her won’t stop your blood from flowing out of your body. What you don’t know is that taking her won’t change anything.”
…
“What you don’t know is that taking her changes everything!”
Well, we readers certainly don’t find out whether it changes everything or nothing, or something - or whether any of that even matters.
There are characters too, in theory, but we don’t know who they really are as people, or what they’re doing exactly, or why - just vague metaphorical musings, pseudo-spiritual imagery and near magical realism without the magic or reality, but really it leads to nowhere.
I wish someone could explain what the point of this is because I’m uncharacteristically baffled. This is my third book by Farris Smith, the second in a short time where I’m left bored and indifferent and wondering what it all means. I’m beginning to think this author is probably not for me.
I actually have no idea what I just read, or what the author is trying to say with this book, nor do I care. First off, there is chapter after chapter told in vague descriptive language that doesn’t elucidate any semblance of what the story is truly about. The supposed mystery or question central to the narrative isn’t even revealed until more than 70% in - and I don’t mean solved, I mean that it even exists at all. After that, there’s nothing explored, nothing explained, nothing shown that might bring this little nothing story into a greater light. It just meanders along the same vague path. I prefer a bit more depth and lucidity.
There are a lot of words, most of them quite well written, beautiful even, if spare, but they don’t form a cohesive plot or build upon meaningful dialogue or character development. I think the author meant to be profound at times, but came across as meaningless and inane. For example, this exchange toward the end, which felt like the author was trying to reach a crescendo:
“Where is it?”
“Where is what?”
“My Watch!”
She shrugged.
“I don’t guess it matters where it is, I don’t guess it matters if you move away from her like I’m telling you to do. It’s not gonna change anything. Time will be time, the end will be the end, and so forth and so on”
“I know you” Cara said
“You don’t know me”
“I do, I’ve seen you”
“You saw me through the window when I stood with the flames”
“No”
“No?”
“I know you from somewhere else”
“Everybody knows everybody from somewhere else, we’re all one person. We all love and hate and bitch and moan. We all think we do it different but we don’t. You know me and I know you.”…“Now, get away from her.”
…
“Hadn’t you shot my house enough?”
“Enough?”
“Yeah, enough.”
“Everyone always thinks something is enough, or not enough, so we spin around and around” he said.
…
“You’re not the same” she said
“The same as what?”
“As anything I’ve ever seen. Taking her won’t start the hands of the watch. Taking her won’t stop your blood from flowing out of your body. What you don’t know is that taking her won’t change anything.”
…
“What you don’t know is that taking her changes everything!”
Well, we readers certainly don’t find out whether it changes everything or nothing, or something - or whether any of that even matters.
There are characters too, in theory, but we don’t know who they really are as people, or what they’re doing exactly, or why - just vague metaphorical musings, pseudo-spiritual imagery and near magical realism without the magic or reality, but really it leads to nowhere.
I wish someone could explain what the point of this is because I’m uncharacteristically baffled. This is my third book by Farris Smith, the second in a short time where I’m left bored and indifferent and wondering what it all means. I’m beginning to think this author is probably not for me.
July 4, 2025
I’ve never read anything like this. This author has a way with words that I don’t understand how it is possible. Phrases jumped out at me that hit my chest with such power that I had to underline it. This story was weird and with a plot that in any other book I wouldn’t have cared for. But the author’s writing drew me in and kept me captive for the whole story. Just wow.
July 24, 2025
harrowing.
michael, were you inspired by cormac mccarthy when you wrote this? i felt blood meridian, no country for old me, the road
this was <3
i loved this a lot, these characters
i think i *would* enjoy another book that gave me more answers, it feels almost unfinished but i also enjoy that aspect, they’ll stay on my mind.
michael, were you inspired by cormac mccarthy when you wrote this? i felt blood meridian, no country for old me, the road
this was <3
i loved this a lot, these characters
i think i *would* enjoy another book that gave me more answers, it feels almost unfinished but i also enjoy that aspect, they’ll stay on my mind.
January 8, 2026
It doesn't matter if it's real. The point was never the proof, the answer. The point was the unknown and leaving it that way, reality an unnecessary force, a condemning freedom. Sacrifice, willing and unwilling, moves them into and through the story placed before them, a guiding force they do not know. Fate? Prophecy? Images and symbols reveal themselves to explain everything, or mean nothing, to provide the hint of answers they seek or to do nothing more than fill their quiet minds, sleepless, waiting for men with guns and deathly storms. I shot through the last half of this with a fury. Tears required. Add this to my list of existential musings.
"This is supposed to be fun, right?"
- MFS, on writing, in a panel at the MBF
"This is supposed to be fun, right?"
- MFS, on writing, in a panel at the MBF
May 29, 2025
Beautifully written book about crime, loss, hope and an unnamed evil.
December 9, 2024
Netgalley AR edition review: It's always a pleasure to read a new Michael Farris Smith novel. He has a gift for writing extended narrative prose that is abstract and deceptive, giving the reader enough information and emotion, but not spoon-feeding the plot to the reader. Lay Your Armor Down was no different. There aren't many characters, some are presented with minimal detail, and the setting doesn't change much. No matter. MFS's description and skill at characterization gives the reader room to ask questions and do the mental work to define the plot for themselves. Lay Your Armor Down is loosely centered around a 9-year old girl who is sought after by many people for clearly nefarious reasons, two friends/colleagues that are bound by their willingness to do jobs beyond the reach of the law, and a woman who has experienced trauma and looks after her neighbor suffering from dementia. The plot that unfolds leaves many questions unanswered and, again, requires the reader to come to their own conclusions and to fill in the blanks regarding meaning, symbolism, and motive, particularly with behind the scenes activity surrounding the main characters. To this reader, Smith shows the reader the ultimate respect and, truthfully, it's a gift to be allowed to interpret important details in a novel with no limitations - almost a poetic license. This might be Lay Your Armor Down's greatest attribute; Smith takes the risk of placing a lot of the undefined details of the novel in the reader's hands and, in this case, I believe this risk paid off. Masterful.
November 10, 2025
I’ve rarely read any Grit Lit I enjoyed (other than James Lee Burke and Tom Franklin) and I’m sorry Lay Your Armor Down didn’t change my mind. It was just too tedious. Good story but it takes Mr. Smith too long to get to the point in nearly every scene in the book. Also extremely irritating were his constant references to cigarettes and smoking. The book is 258 pages and it could be 200 pages if he’d left out half the smoking. After the first 30 or so mentions they really weren’t necessary. I know there will be many who enjoy Lay Your Armor Down and I’m glad for the author, a fellow Mississippian. I’m sorry I can’t be one of them.
July 25, 2025
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'Lay Your Armour Down' by Michael Farris Smith
This may be the first book I have read by this incredible author but it most certainly will not be my last!! WOW!!!! Just flipping WOW!!!! What an absolutely epic page turner!!! Well done Michael!!! How on Earth have I never read any of your books before? Absolutely smashed it!!!!!!! This book is extremely well written with vivid descriptions creating the perfect atmosphere for the storyline. The book cover and synopsis works perfectly with the book plot and I am most definitely looking forward to reading his previous and next book!!
I have absolutely no idea how this is the first time I have read one of this incredible author's books but I am so glad I have rectified that problem and I cannot wait to get hooked into more books by Michael, considering I can guarantee they are all amazing even if they are just half as good as this book they are guaranteed to be epic which means I will fly through them like I did with this book!! You really do need to grab your copy of this absolutely gripping, action packed and chilling page turner to discover more for yourselves and I promise that you will not regret it!! In fact, if you are anything like me you may even discover a new favourite author! With an absolutely addictive storyline ram packed with mystery, twists, bodies, action, murder, desperation, death, a gothic and haunting atmosphere, secrets, drama, suspense, brilliant characters plus so much more what are you waiting for? This book truly is a gritty, gothic, mysterious and action packed suspense with a hint of supernatural mixed in! I had absolutely no idea what to expect with this new author but this surpassed any expectations by far! I love the fact that I had no idea what to think of each of the very well built, realistic and unique characters and the fact that they showed that even if people do bad things there can be good in them which was a nice surprise. Michael had me hooked from the first page and kept his grip on my attention until the very last word and even then it still has not left my mind since. You do need to make sure you clear your schedules for this one!! I picked it up mid afternoon and would not stop until I had finished the whole book. This happened it one sitting of several hours as I had no hope of putting it down regardless of how much house work I should have been doing. Every single chapter ended in a way where I just had to read the famous one more which of course kept happening until I had finished the last one. It was extremely well written and Michael's evocative writing skills and descriptions transports the reader to Mississippi where they will meet Keal and Burdean who are on a mission to find something that will know when they see, an old woman called Wanetah who asks if they can keep her from the edge of the world, a young girl in the cellar of a church filled with bodies and Cara who joins forces to protect. This book is genuinely an absolutely addictive, nail biting, page turning, heart racing, haunting and compelling storyline and it has so many layers of mysteries and action for the reader to be kept guessing throughout. The plot was unique and realistic and Michael brings absolutely everything to life in front of your eyes. It started straight in the action and kept you going on a roller-coaster ride of suspense and mystery throughout. Well done Michael you did absolutely amazing and everything was tied up perfectly. The twists and turns in this book left me going from one chapter to another!!! I completely devoured it in one sitting as I just could not put it down. Prepare yourself for a rollercoaster ride!!! I just could not put this book down and I cannot wait to read more books in this series!!!
Before you start this make sure you clear your schedule because once you pick it up you are not going to want to put it down!!!!
The characters were very realistic, multi layered and well rounded each with their own unique personalities and individual flaws, strengths, quirks and weaknesses. The descriptions gave a really good in depth view of how the characters were feeling and what they were thinking. Each of the characters were well developed, unique and thanks to Michael's fantastic evocative writing skills they all came to life before my eyes. Here's to the next explosive book that I hope you are writing while I am busy getting stuck into your previous ones!!! This is exactly why I would like to welcome you to my favourite authors club!!!
Overall an absolute must read, pulse racing, chilling, addictive page turner that will keep you on edge and addicted.
#LayYourArmourDown #MichaelFarrisSmith #NoExitPress #RandomThingsTours #RandomTTours
@MichaelFarrisSmith @NoExitPress @RandomThingsTours @RandomTTours
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Review for 'Lay Your Armour Down' by Michael Farris Smith
This may be the first book I have read by this incredible author but it most certainly will not be my last!! WOW!!!! Just flipping WOW!!!! What an absolutely epic page turner!!! Well done Michael!!! How on Earth have I never read any of your books before? Absolutely smashed it!!!!!!! This book is extremely well written with vivid descriptions creating the perfect atmosphere for the storyline. The book cover and synopsis works perfectly with the book plot and I am most definitely looking forward to reading his previous and next book!!
I have absolutely no idea how this is the first time I have read one of this incredible author's books but I am so glad I have rectified that problem and I cannot wait to get hooked into more books by Michael, considering I can guarantee they are all amazing even if they are just half as good as this book they are guaranteed to be epic which means I will fly through them like I did with this book!! You really do need to grab your copy of this absolutely gripping, action packed and chilling page turner to discover more for yourselves and I promise that you will not regret it!! In fact, if you are anything like me you may even discover a new favourite author! With an absolutely addictive storyline ram packed with mystery, twists, bodies, action, murder, desperation, death, a gothic and haunting atmosphere, secrets, drama, suspense, brilliant characters plus so much more what are you waiting for? This book truly is a gritty, gothic, mysterious and action packed suspense with a hint of supernatural mixed in! I had absolutely no idea what to expect with this new author but this surpassed any expectations by far! I love the fact that I had no idea what to think of each of the very well built, realistic and unique characters and the fact that they showed that even if people do bad things there can be good in them which was a nice surprise. Michael had me hooked from the first page and kept his grip on my attention until the very last word and even then it still has not left my mind since. You do need to make sure you clear your schedules for this one!! I picked it up mid afternoon and would not stop until I had finished the whole book. This happened it one sitting of several hours as I had no hope of putting it down regardless of how much house work I should have been doing. Every single chapter ended in a way where I just had to read the famous one more which of course kept happening until I had finished the last one. It was extremely well written and Michael's evocative writing skills and descriptions transports the reader to Mississippi where they will meet Keal and Burdean who are on a mission to find something that will know when they see, an old woman called Wanetah who asks if they can keep her from the edge of the world, a young girl in the cellar of a church filled with bodies and Cara who joins forces to protect. This book is genuinely an absolutely addictive, nail biting, page turning, heart racing, haunting and compelling storyline and it has so many layers of mysteries and action for the reader to be kept guessing throughout. The plot was unique and realistic and Michael brings absolutely everything to life in front of your eyes. It started straight in the action and kept you going on a roller-coaster ride of suspense and mystery throughout. Well done Michael you did absolutely amazing and everything was tied up perfectly. The twists and turns in this book left me going from one chapter to another!!! I completely devoured it in one sitting as I just could not put it down. Prepare yourself for a rollercoaster ride!!! I just could not put this book down and I cannot wait to read more books in this series!!!
Before you start this make sure you clear your schedule because once you pick it up you are not going to want to put it down!!!!
The characters were very realistic, multi layered and well rounded each with their own unique personalities and individual flaws, strengths, quirks and weaknesses. The descriptions gave a really good in depth view of how the characters were feeling and what they were thinking. Each of the characters were well developed, unique and thanks to Michael's fantastic evocative writing skills they all came to life before my eyes. Here's to the next explosive book that I hope you are writing while I am busy getting stuck into your previous ones!!! This is exactly why I would like to welcome you to my favourite authors club!!!
Overall an absolute must read, pulse racing, chilling, addictive page turner that will keep you on edge and addicted.
#LayYourArmourDown #MichaelFarrisSmith #NoExitPress #RandomThingsTours #RandomTTours
@MichaelFarrisSmith @NoExitPress @RandomThingsTours @RandomTTours
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May 26, 2025
Talk about southern grit! Whew! No one writes desperation like Michael Farris Smith! It's as if he knows it deep down in his soul. He has a knack for writing about the downtrodden, about those who are down on their luck and have nothing left to give. He writes about broken people who may never be fixed or set right. He writes about desperate people, no-win choices, hope, and redemption. I found Lay Your Armor Down to be gripping, thought provoking, haunting, and intense. This book has a dark and dreary vibe throughout and feel of this book felt very much like a character as well as it carries the characters on their journey.
An old woman with dementia walks into a field in the middle of the night. She is drawn by a campfire. She is the beginning, but she is not the end. Two men have been given a mysterious job. They are to go find something precious. They only thing they are told is that "you’ll know it when you see it.". That is not much to go on and yet, they find a girl in an abandoned church cellar. She won't talk and yet they know, she is what/who they are looking for. Why is this child being hunted? What is to be done with or to her? It is clear to the men that there is something different about the girl. They take the girl and run. The girl is quite the mystery. There is something otherworldly about her. She is believed to have special powers....
While reading this book, I often wondered what the heck am I reading? Reading this book is like being blindfolded and sent to walk out in a field at night. It's dark, its eerie, is harrowing, it's unsettling, its mysterious. This book is dripping with atmosphere and tension. It sets the mood and when paired with the Mississippi setting, really nails the dark southern gothic vibe. During the book I wondered where this book was heading but enjoyed the desperation, the not quite knowing, the quest for survival, and redemption. What a thought-provoking book!
If you have not read a book by Michael Farris Smith before, you are seriously missing out!
Beautifully written, gothic, dark, and dripping with atmosphere.
*A witches words buddy read with Brenda and Norma. Please read their reviews as well to see what they thought of Lay Your Armor Down.
Thank you to Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.openbookposts.com 📖
An old woman with dementia walks into a field in the middle of the night. She is drawn by a campfire. She is the beginning, but she is not the end. Two men have been given a mysterious job. They are to go find something precious. They only thing they are told is that "you’ll know it when you see it.". That is not much to go on and yet, they find a girl in an abandoned church cellar. She won't talk and yet they know, she is what/who they are looking for. Why is this child being hunted? What is to be done with or to her? It is clear to the men that there is something different about the girl. They take the girl and run. The girl is quite the mystery. There is something otherworldly about her. She is believed to have special powers....
While reading this book, I often wondered what the heck am I reading? Reading this book is like being blindfolded and sent to walk out in a field at night. It's dark, its eerie, is harrowing, it's unsettling, its mysterious. This book is dripping with atmosphere and tension. It sets the mood and when paired with the Mississippi setting, really nails the dark southern gothic vibe. During the book I wondered where this book was heading but enjoyed the desperation, the not quite knowing, the quest for survival, and redemption. What a thought-provoking book!
If you have not read a book by Michael Farris Smith before, you are seriously missing out!
Beautifully written, gothic, dark, and dripping with atmosphere.
*A witches words buddy read with Brenda and Norma. Please read their reviews as well to see what they thought of Lay Your Armor Down.
Thank you to Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.openbookposts.com 📖
January 25, 2026
I've been a huge admirer of Michael Farris Smith's writing since I stumbled across Desperation Road ten years ago. He has backed it up since with terrific novels such as The Fighter and Blackwood and even pulled off a remarkable feat in Nick, which took the character of Nick Carraway and told his story in the years leading up to the events of The Great Gatsby. His skills are considerable but he has always been at his best in describing the struggles of working class underdogs battling against the odds in backwater USA. He has a facility with words that enables him to evoke sympathy and wonder in the reader and I was hoping for more of the same with his latest novel, only to feel a little frustrated by the last third of the book.
He has managed to establish himself as a leading figure in the Southern Gothic genre which is primarily set in the American South, using dark humor and macabre situations to explore social issues, moral decay, and the region's troubled history. He deals with the underbelly of Southern culture, exploring themes of inequality, violence, and profound social alienation. This is a genre which treads a fine line between between romantic myths and gritty realism and it's one which demands a great deal of restraint from the author if he is to avoid alienating readers who put a higher price tag on plausibility and prefer to keep at least one foot in the world they themselves have experienced.
For much of his latest novel, I felt that he was pushing that boundary but staying just the right side of it. For the last third however, I felt too much was being asked of me as the plot roared ahead, pushing the action into territory which went way beyond the plausible.
Am I disappointed? A little . . . yes. So how can I justify a four star review? Simple. Because there is so much to admire, even in the latter stages of the book. Michael Farris Smith is a wordsmith with an eye for natural description that I personally would kill for. There is so much to admire here that I wouldn't feel comfortable giving it any less. After all, when it comes down to it, my reservations about the book are down to personal preference and I'm not about to penalise an author for pursuing his art and respecting the tenets of his chosen genre, just because it doesn't ring every bell for me.
If you haven't already come across it, please read Desperation Road and follow this author on the journey he has made so far. You will be hard pushed to find nothing in there that you admire.
He has managed to establish himself as a leading figure in the Southern Gothic genre which is primarily set in the American South, using dark humor and macabre situations to explore social issues, moral decay, and the region's troubled history. He deals with the underbelly of Southern culture, exploring themes of inequality, violence, and profound social alienation. This is a genre which treads a fine line between between romantic myths and gritty realism and it's one which demands a great deal of restraint from the author if he is to avoid alienating readers who put a higher price tag on plausibility and prefer to keep at least one foot in the world they themselves have experienced.
For much of his latest novel, I felt that he was pushing that boundary but staying just the right side of it. For the last third however, I felt too much was being asked of me as the plot roared ahead, pushing the action into territory which went way beyond the plausible.
Am I disappointed? A little . . . yes. So how can I justify a four star review? Simple. Because there is so much to admire, even in the latter stages of the book. Michael Farris Smith is a wordsmith with an eye for natural description that I personally would kill for. There is so much to admire here that I wouldn't feel comfortable giving it any less. After all, when it comes down to it, my reservations about the book are down to personal preference and I'm not about to penalise an author for pursuing his art and respecting the tenets of his chosen genre, just because it doesn't ring every bell for me.
If you haven't already come across it, please read Desperation Road and follow this author on the journey he has made so far. You will be hard pushed to find nothing in there that you admire.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 76 reviews