If you have been listening to this program for a while you know that I'm quite fond of a good detective novel. "Burn What Will Burn" by C.B. McKenzie is one of the more unusual detective novels that I have read lately because it has the detective novel vibe but there really are not any detectives involved.
As the book begins the protagonist, Bob Reynolds, has stumbled upon the requisite crime novel corpse floating in the water. As C.B. McKenzie describes this event in our interview Bob would prefer to push that thing right back into the water and pretend he had never seen it. Bob doesn't even qualify as a reluctant investigator because he doesn't want anything to do with it.
This one is set in the backwoods of Arkansas and it is a yarn. McKenzie is a gifted storyteller with a distinctive voice. This book is funny and compact and extremely entertaining. And as the author admits during our conversation, this was just one of many unpublished novels he has lying around the place. His next one will be set in Iceland. I can't wait.
The Book Nook on WYSO is made possible by six local library systems in southwest Ohio: the Greene County Public Library, Washington-Centerville Public Library, MidPointe Library System, Clark County Public Library, Dayton Metro Library, and Wright Memorial Public Library.
