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The Empathy Effect
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 24, 2012
First let me get a disclaimer out of the way. I’ve chatted to Bob Lock over the Internet for years, so you could take this as ‘what his mates say’. However, I didn’t much like his previous book so said nothing about that one at all.
I just have to wonder if Bob first rejected agoraphobic steeplejack and claustrophobic miner to then settle on the most unlikely of heroes: an empathic traffic warden. He stuck this character in the somewhat precarious position of being cling-filmed to one of the supports of Mumbles Pier, then took it from there. This is a short chaotic romp swiftly including a couple of psychopaths, a superdog, kidnapping, murder, paedophiles and dog fighting. My one complaint would be too much dwelling on what I will call ‘the carrot effect’, which is a tad hackneyed (you know what I mean Bob).
I’ll say no more about it other than that I read through it quite rapidly and simply enjoyed it. Maybe some would consider £6.99 for a 135 page book a bit steep, especially when we’re getting 3 for the price of 2 at Waterstones right now. But this is small press, so to be expected. Writing humour is a difficult thing, one of the most difficult, and I'll venture that no one below the age of forty is capable of it. Bob Lock can make us laugh, and that’s a rare and precious thing.
I just have to wonder if Bob first rejected agoraphobic steeplejack and claustrophobic miner to then settle on the most unlikely of heroes: an empathic traffic warden. He stuck this character in the somewhat precarious position of being cling-filmed to one of the supports of Mumbles Pier, then took it from there. This is a short chaotic romp swiftly including a couple of psychopaths, a superdog, kidnapping, murder, paedophiles and dog fighting. My one complaint would be too much dwelling on what I will call ‘the carrot effect’, which is a tad hackneyed (you know what I mean Bob).
I’ll say no more about it other than that I read through it quite rapidly and simply enjoyed it. Maybe some would consider £6.99 for a 135 page book a bit steep, especially when we’re getting 3 for the price of 2 at Waterstones right now. But this is small press, so to be expected. Writing humour is a difficult thing, one of the most difficult, and I'll venture that no one below the age of forty is capable of it. Bob Lock can make us laugh, and that’s a rare and precious thing.
November 15, 2011
The Empathy Effect is a science fiction fantasy novel.
Cooper Jones, a Swansea traffic warden, is an alcoholic who has a special ability, he is an empath. He is almost able to read people's minds...almost!
Via the emotions of others, Cooper is able to "sense" what they are thinking and being able to easily read people, he never has a problem with bedtime companions.
On the day he gives Merc Man a traffic ticket, things begin to wrong. As he is writing the ticket up, he senses fear coming from a little girl in a white van that drives past him. When he learns of the little girl's kidnapping from a school field trip, Cooper believes Merc Man many know something about it and decides to "stake" his house out in order to gain concrete evidence of his guilt.
When Cooper gets arrested and finds out what is behind the true nature of Merc Man's mystery, he realizes he still has to find the little girl but what Cooper doesn't realize is that the people who kidnapped the child, are also out to set Cooper up. The people behind the kidnapping are dangerous, psychotic and one of them has sworn revenge on Cooper for an event that occurred when he was a child.
When Cooper's best friend, Janet, is also kidnapped and Cooper has been framed for her disappearance, he begins to realize that there may be more happening here than he first suspected. Time is running out and Cooper wonders if his empathic abilities will save him from the fate that is before him.
I thought this was an intelligent and well-written piece of literature. I enjoyed the prose of the author and enjoyed reading about Cooper and his tale. I thought Cooper was likeable, even with all his hang-ups and oftentimes, comical in the situations he finds himself involved with.
I liked how the story jumped from the present to the past, from one set of characters to the other. Most times this doesn't work in a book but Bob Lock has done amazing with this and the flow is not disjointed as so often happens.
I loved the sarcastic wit that was part of Coopers character and how he interacted with others. The tie-ins to all the stories was remarkably ascribed and absorbing to read. I loved the back story of the antagonists, and the quirks that they have.
I would give this book a four out of five stars, while I completely enjoyed the read, I found the reasons for the revenge to less than I had expected. The idea fell flat with me and well, it just didn't work. However, everything leading to that point and after, is very well thought out and executed.
Cooper Jones, a Swansea traffic warden, is an alcoholic who has a special ability, he is an empath. He is almost able to read people's minds...almost!
Via the emotions of others, Cooper is able to "sense" what they are thinking and being able to easily read people, he never has a problem with bedtime companions.
On the day he gives Merc Man a traffic ticket, things begin to wrong. As he is writing the ticket up, he senses fear coming from a little girl in a white van that drives past him. When he learns of the little girl's kidnapping from a school field trip, Cooper believes Merc Man many know something about it and decides to "stake" his house out in order to gain concrete evidence of his guilt.
When Cooper gets arrested and finds out what is behind the true nature of Merc Man's mystery, he realizes he still has to find the little girl but what Cooper doesn't realize is that the people who kidnapped the child, are also out to set Cooper up. The people behind the kidnapping are dangerous, psychotic and one of them has sworn revenge on Cooper for an event that occurred when he was a child.
When Cooper's best friend, Janet, is also kidnapped and Cooper has been framed for her disappearance, he begins to realize that there may be more happening here than he first suspected. Time is running out and Cooper wonders if his empathic abilities will save him from the fate that is before him.
I thought this was an intelligent and well-written piece of literature. I enjoyed the prose of the author and enjoyed reading about Cooper and his tale. I thought Cooper was likeable, even with all his hang-ups and oftentimes, comical in the situations he finds himself involved with.
I liked how the story jumped from the present to the past, from one set of characters to the other. Most times this doesn't work in a book but Bob Lock has done amazing with this and the flow is not disjointed as so often happens.
I loved the sarcastic wit that was part of Coopers character and how he interacted with others. The tie-ins to all the stories was remarkably ascribed and absorbing to read. I loved the back story of the antagonists, and the quirks that they have.
I would give this book a four out of five stars, while I completely enjoyed the read, I found the reasons for the revenge to less than I had expected. The idea fell flat with me and well, it just didn't work. However, everything leading to that point and after, is very well thought out and executed.
March 17, 2015
Shortlisted for the Rubery Book Award
The book is well written, the setting one the author knows well, and it shows. The style is slightly experimental as part of it is told in first person while the third person is used for the scenes where the main character does not appear,. The limited colour palate of the cover works well, although some of the judges felt that the title and author did not stand out enough, and preferred the image on the back to the front. There were a few concerns that the plot contained too many coincidences, but it was nonetheless an exciting, well-constructed novel.
The book is well written, the setting one the author knows well, and it shows. The style is slightly experimental as part of it is told in first person while the third person is used for the scenes where the main character does not appear,. The limited colour palate of the cover works well, although some of the judges felt that the title and author did not stand out enough, and preferred the image on the back to the front. There were a few concerns that the plot contained too many coincidences, but it was nonetheless an exciting, well-constructed novel.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews