Bingo 9: Steal
The Ending Writes Itself could be described as a book about stealing lives (there is murder afoot), stealing ideas (in several different ways as writers complete to outdo each other), and/or also a literal theft or two.
The premise is a clear set up for a locked room style murder count down: a famous writer has died leaving the final book in his signature series unfinished; the publish and editor keeps the death quiet, invites a bunch of struggling writers to an island retreat to see who can write the best conclusion to said series and thus win the contract opportunity of a lifetime. Once everyone gets to the island, personalities and conflicts of various sorts set up, the murders start. Big questions are 1) who will survive, and obviously 2) who is the killer? You’ve got the married couple who are having various personal and professional struggles, the new kid not quite published, the guy who seems to like being a writer but not actually writing, the one who might actually be in it for the craft, etc., and naturally most everyone has at least one secret or two they want to keep hidden. No phones allowed (they’re locked up in a safe with a countdown clock), the only boat is naturally stolen, and everyone has a typewriter to use to write their ending within a certain specified time frame.
It’s actually a decent mystery with a twist/reveal that is both timely, one I didn’t quite see coming, and also a little hyperbolic. But then again, there’s also some less than subtle commentary about the modern publication system. All this makes sense when you realize that Evelyn Clark the author is actually co-authors V.E. Schwab and Cat Clarke, a novelist and screenwriter. There are probably a lot of author and publisher and editor in-jokes here that I’m not catching but there are still plenty of references and probably suggestions that I do. For example can we think of an author who just can’t seem to finish a final book in his series who might be the basis for Arthur Fletch? Hmmm. Likewise, the author stereotypes are there in all the contestants who also represent different genres, and it might be a fun game I haven’t tried to consider who each of them might be representative of besides the general type.
It’s cynical without being hopeless, a generally interesting premise, and interestingly written (even thought I really don’t like first person progressive style narration).
