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A review by jdcorley
Grift Sense by James Swain
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
In the "investigator versus heist" subgenre there's often too much of a temptation to make either the investigator or the heisters too smart or competent, to make a situation too complex or to hide the ball so that the heist is revealed and the investigator's reversal is revealed in a double twist. If it works it's a feat of narrative acrobatics, brilliant and memorable. But it usually doesn't work.
Swain goes another direction in Grift Sense. He may still be revealing facts right up to the end but you can get very close to an understanding both of the grifters and of our hero's actions. Instead of trying for a big twist, he tries to seek out the emotional reality inside the heist, the stuff that makes it work on us. And so, perhaps, above everything except the heist itself, this book is about aging and loss. Unexpectedly, despite the lack of fireworks, it's comforting and real.
Swain goes another direction in Grift Sense. He may still be revealing facts right up to the end but you can get very close to an understanding both of the grifters and of our hero's actions. Instead of trying for a big twist, he tries to seek out the emotional reality inside the heist, the stuff that makes it work on us. And so, perhaps, above everything except the heist itself, this book is about aging and loss. Unexpectedly, despite the lack of fireworks, it's comforting and real.