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Whom Must I Kill to Get Published
Wes Pennington finally has a mystery manuscript worth selling, but the price might be his life!
More than anything, Wes wants to see his writing in print and for sale. After a horrendous break-up with his vampire-obsessed girlfriend, his well-meaning roommates sign him up for a writers conference in Cincinnati. Wes is elated when a New York literary agent likes the draft of his manuscript and arranges to meet him at the conference.
Once there, Wes meets the girl of his dreams and feels on top of the world...until the agent turns up dead!
More than anything, Wes wants to see his writing in print and for sale. After a horrendous break-up with his vampire-obsessed girlfriend, his well-meaning roommates sign him up for a writers conference in Cincinnati. Wes is elated when a New York literary agent likes the draft of his manuscript and arranges to meet him at the conference.
Once there, Wes meets the girl of his dreams and feels on top of the world...until the agent turns up dead!
250 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
4 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 25, 2012
I was asked to review this book by someone on twitter. I do not remember the name of the person and I am late in writing this review. So with that being said please remember that this is my opinion of the book. This book review is not a paid opinion but my opinion. To form your own personal opinions please support the author and acquire your own legal copy.
Whom is a not a short book a little over 200 pages. It is a fast pace book that will keep the reader wanting to finish or as most people would say it is a page-turner that you cannot put down. A crime-mystery book keeps the reader wondering how the plot will turn out.
The book starts out with Wes Pennington and his current girl friend Steph, who is obsessed with vampires. Wes is trying to be a published author just like Steph. The only problem is Steph has changed genre and is not only interested in writing about vampires. I guess because of the current fad going around now about vampires and everyone wanting to be in on what is current. Wes and Steph are eating lunch and she shows him her current manuscript. Wes does not like the current fad with vampires. I honestly can understand, I do not like to read vampire books, but that is just me.
Wes is a crime-mystery author. He has written a book with the character based upon his roommate’s girl friend. Wes and Steph have an atrocious break-up in public during their lunch. Wes seems appalled that Steph would act as she has in public.
To help Wes feel better his current roommate’s girlfriend, Cerise and roommate, Duncan decide to help him feel better and find a writers conference that will be about 2 hours away. Only they tell Wes they need his credit card to pay for everything but they will pay him back.
Of course what person would not try something like this hoping to find either an agent or publisher to get their book published. Wes signs up and meets some people in the group’s forum. He starts talking with Alex.
Alex is going to the conference also try to help get her grandfather’s book of memoirs published. She has talked about Wes to an agent Diana and her assistant Abe. The strange part is that somehow Duncan thinks he has found a publisher in Kentucky. He goes to meet the publisher and is not heard from again.
Somehow, Wes did not just write a crime mystery book he ends up being part of a crime-mystery espionage. During all of this, Wes learns more about Alex and realized that he has found the one perfect woman for himself, Alex.
While it is hard for a writer to write about someone, who is trying to be an author this author has pulled that off. This great book will capture the reader’s attention from the beginning to the end.
Thanks for a Great Read Jason Hoger.
The bunnies and I give this book 4 carrots.
April 3, 2012
With a title like this, a book almost has to be a winner. It reminds me in that respect of another gold-medal title, both of which I originally encountered some years ago on the once-great Authonomy website.
I must confess to a general prejudice against stories that have the writing of stories as their backdrop. The concept feels a little self-involved, although I'm sure we can get away with it once in a while. (Don't forget Mel Brooks' movie about making a movie, or even McCartney singing about love songs).
The hero of this yarn is Wes, a college student who is trying his hand at writing a murder mystery and who has been dumped by girlfriend Stephanie, who also writes. He goes off to a weekend writers' conference (oddly enough, with non-writing roommates Duncan and Cerise tagging along). In advance, he has formed an Internet friendship with a new girl named Alex, who will also be there. Alex arranges for him to meet with her aunt, who happens to be a literary agent. It turns out that Stephanie is there as well, along with her sneering new beau, who's another agent. Wes meets the aunt and learns that his manuscript requires a lot of work, but at least she is willing to work with him to get it burnished.
So far so good, if slightly unrealistic. But by this point Duncan has disappeared, and then the aunt is found murdered in her hotel room. As the plot thickens, Wes's humble manuscript appears to be at the center of the mystery, although he can't imagine how. On the positive side, suddenly Stephanie appears to have come to her senses regarding his qualities as a man. Oh, and Alex turns out to be a real dish, among other things, and she too likes him. I'm not going to get into what her parents are, but yep, they show up and become important characters as well.
This novel exists to give pleasure, and it does. I think its most obvious problem, when you get past some of the logical leaps, is a superabundance of characters. I had a little trouble sorting out the minor figures, which include other conference-goers as well as a character or two from Wes's work in progress. Also, it falls in two very distinct halves, with the first clearly being all in fun and the latter, post-murder part being an adrenalin-soaked marathon. It might have benefitted from a little more work to iron out those issues. However, it's a success.
I must confess to a general prejudice against stories that have the writing of stories as their backdrop. The concept feels a little self-involved, although I'm sure we can get away with it once in a while. (Don't forget Mel Brooks' movie about making a movie, or even McCartney singing about love songs).
The hero of this yarn is Wes, a college student who is trying his hand at writing a murder mystery and who has been dumped by girlfriend Stephanie, who also writes. He goes off to a weekend writers' conference (oddly enough, with non-writing roommates Duncan and Cerise tagging along). In advance, he has formed an Internet friendship with a new girl named Alex, who will also be there. Alex arranges for him to meet with her aunt, who happens to be a literary agent. It turns out that Stephanie is there as well, along with her sneering new beau, who's another agent. Wes meets the aunt and learns that his manuscript requires a lot of work, but at least she is willing to work with him to get it burnished.
So far so good, if slightly unrealistic. But by this point Duncan has disappeared, and then the aunt is found murdered in her hotel room. As the plot thickens, Wes's humble manuscript appears to be at the center of the mystery, although he can't imagine how. On the positive side, suddenly Stephanie appears to have come to her senses regarding his qualities as a man. Oh, and Alex turns out to be a real dish, among other things, and she too likes him. I'm not going to get into what her parents are, but yep, they show up and become important characters as well.
This novel exists to give pleasure, and it does. I think its most obvious problem, when you get past some of the logical leaps, is a superabundance of characters. I had a little trouble sorting out the minor figures, which include other conference-goers as well as a character or two from Wes's work in progress. Also, it falls in two very distinct halves, with the first clearly being all in fun and the latter, post-murder part being an adrenalin-soaked marathon. It might have benefitted from a little more work to iron out those issues. However, it's a success.
July 25, 2011
One of the first rules you learn as a writer is that you don’t write stories about writers. The stories rarely read well. But, if you can write it well…
Wes Pennington is a funny, slightly overdramatic character I couldn’t help but love. He is like a shaggy puppy that might annoy you in other ways but is too cute to abandon. He’s by no means a superhero, but I highly enjoyed reading the story from his perspective.
Horger writes with a focus on events and people rather than description, something that lends to an authentic first-person perspective.
My nitpick for this book comes at the end. While Horger has set up an interesting premise for his mystery overall, he throws me out of it in the ‘explanation phase’ and didn’t bring me back in. I felt as if there was a large part of the story – namely involving Alexandra’s family – wasn’t explained well enough for a satisfying ending.
Even so, I didn’t feel so left out of it that it changed my overall opinion of the book.
Wes Pennington is a funny, slightly overdramatic character I couldn’t help but love. He is like a shaggy puppy that might annoy you in other ways but is too cute to abandon. He’s by no means a superhero, but I highly enjoyed reading the story from his perspective.
Horger writes with a focus on events and people rather than description, something that lends to an authentic first-person perspective.
My nitpick for this book comes at the end. While Horger has set up an interesting premise for his mystery overall, he throws me out of it in the ‘explanation phase’ and didn’t bring me back in. I felt as if there was a large part of the story – namely involving Alexandra’s family – wasn’t explained well enough for a satisfying ending.
Even so, I didn’t feel so left out of it that it changed my overall opinion of the book.
February 1, 2010
Not just because this is by my writing partner and best bud, but because Jase nails this sweet, funny tale of an innocent caught up in events that are out of his control; with charm and humour.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews