Strange Currents


Fiction - Humor/Comedy
344 Pages
Reviewed on 08/05/2021
Buy on Amazon

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    Book Review

Reviewed by Saifunnissa Hassam for Readers' Favorite

J.C. Bruce's novel Strange Currents brings together investigative journalism and a murder mystery narrated with humor and wit. Alexander Strange is the narrator and principal character. He is an investigative journalist for Tropic Press and writes a viral online column about real-life occurrences: the strange, weird, and bizarre. Alexander is also an amateur sleuth. He now lives in Naples, Florida, aboard his fishing trawler Miss Demeanor. Sally Ann McFadden, known as Silver, writes novels about vampires and lunar landing conspiracies. Her brother Donald Wilson is found dead in the waters near Key West, apparently in a scuba diving accident. Silver knows her brother was an excellent diver and believes he was murdered. An international telephone company had hired Donald, a marine biologist, to investigate why sharks were eating through the underwater telephone cables. When Silver says Donald told her of finding a "mermaid" underwater, Alexander is hooked and agrees to investigate Donald's death.

I enjoyed reading J.C. Bruce's novel Strange Currents, a story that flowed with humor in the murder mystery plot. The author pulled me into the story as it turned dangerous, with puzzling twists and weird turns aplenty. I particularly liked how the dialogue and the narrative reveal the quirky, zany, and curiosity-driven principal character, Alexander Strange. I felt the overall story sprang vividly to life with the inclusion of other unique characters, particularly Alexander's friend and licensed private investigator Lester Rivers of Third Eye Investigators. I liked the easy-going banter, the funny, and at times even ridiculous one-liners. Nevertheless, I felt underneath all that Alexander's determination to solve the murder mystery. I liked the evocative descriptions of Key West and the Gulf of Mexico, creating settings full of tension and a sinister atmosphere. The story keeps getting more convoluted, with unexpected twists and turns to the very end. A well-crafted story, a strong character, and an incredible interweaving of humor, murder, and the weird things in life!