Short Story Wednesday Review: Resume Speed by Lawrence Block

From the magnificently massive archive…

 

Resume Speed by Lawrence Block is a quirky stand-alone novella. The stranger with little more than the clothes on his back gets off the bus in the small town of Cross Creek, Montana after seeing a help wanted sign in a local diner. He goes by the name Bill Thompson. He keeps to himself and slowly begins a quiet existence in the small town.

He does that by taking the job as a fry cook. He takes a room in a local boarding house, gets a library card, and gradually begins to assume an identity among some of the locals. They know him to be a quiet and unassuming man who may or may not have suffered a great loss. While it is not clear to them it is clear to the reader that Bill Thompson is running from something though he seems like a good guy.  There are the occasional hints that make the reader wonder what happened before he came to town.

Currently only available as a kindle single e-book this sixty page read is a good one. Not all questions are answered in this highly entertaining read and that is more than okay. A whisper of mystery begins the tale and a gale of mystery ends it. In between there is plenty of complexity and details/allusions to ponder before one can Resume Speed.

 

 

Material was provided by author Lawrence Block in response to a comment I had made on Bill Crider’s review. You can, and should, read Bill's review and the many otehr good things on his blog. Don't forget his books too!

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2016, 2022