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Paranoia and Mistrust
The Hook follows a man searching for his wife and daughter who ends up in a mysterious town and is falsely accused of murdering several children. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
Part of the setup was inspired by a true story about one of my uncles who was in the Navy. He went AWOL (Absent Without Leave) to go find his family. He was in a lot of trouble with his commanding officer, but no one died. The rest of the inspiration was me wanting to write a story with themes of paranoia and mistrust as well as mistaken identity. These tropes help with building tension and that felt appropriate for this story.
The characters in your novel are richly developed, drawing readers into the storyline. What were some ideas that were important for you to personify in your characters?
My primary focus for my characters was to not give too much of their backstory. I tried to give enough information about their past to make them interesting and give them agency, but I felt a lot of their backstory didn’t lend itself well to the overall story with multiple characters. On my end, I wrote detailed pages about character’s backgrounds. I’d say only about 10% of those backstories were included in the novel.
What was the hardest part about writing a mystery story, where you constantly have to give just enough to keep the mystery alive until the big reveal?
The hardest part was outlining the plot. When do I give certain information? When should I build tension? I wrote a brief synopsis of each chapter to make sure I had a clear sequence of events. Some of it changed after I started writing. Some chapters were added after and some were shifted around. I wrote the story and all the edits and drafts on and off for about 3 years, and I think that helped me solidify the details and remove the parts that didn’t work. These kinds of stories require a lot of polishing to get things just right.
What is the next book that you are working on, and when will it be available?
I have a second edition of a short story collection I published in 2019 coming September 17, 2024; The Morbid Museum: 5th Anniversary Edition. The second edition will feature two previously unpublished stories as well as an excerpt from my next short story collection that I’m currently writing. It is available for pre-order on Amazon, B&N, Bookshop.org, iBooks, etc…There are more details on my website.
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The Hook
In The Hook, set against the evocative backdrop of the 1970s, author James Pack takes readers on a thrilling journey through the unsettling murders plaguing the town of Hallowell. The novel’s distinctive feature is the mysterious presence of bullfrogs at each crime scene, lending a uniquely eerie quality to the already perplexing homicides. This detail, combined with the arrival of new residents, weaves an engaging narrative tapestry that keeps readers thoroughly absorbed.
Central to the story is Earnest, a Navy retiree seeking a peaceful life with his family. His world is upended when his wife and daughter disappear, leading him to Hallowell in a fraught search for answers. Pack’s narrative style is notable for its blend of third-person narration and excerpts from Earnest’s diary. This dual approach immerses the reader in Earnest’s internal world while offering a comprehensive view of the story’s environment and secondary characters. Pack adeptly intertwines mystery, suspense, and emotional resonance elements, creating a richly layered story. The climax skillfully ties together the novel’s various threads, resolving key mysteries but leaving some questions intriguingly unanswered. The book’s strengths include well-crafted character arcs, vivid descriptions, and a constant undercurrent of tension that captivates the reader.
The Hook is remarkable for its complex plot and innovative storytelling. Pack’s detailed prose vividly captures the story’s darker moments, making it an enticing read for those who relish a mystery rich in intricate details and atmospheric tension.
Pages: 342 | ASIN : B0BWQ1SRBC
LITERARY TITAN 