Book Review of The Water Keeper by Charles Martin.
I enjoyed this book. I’d give it 5 stars and recommend it to anyone who likes crime fiction.
Keeping with the theme, this one definitely hit the justice mark and I think the redemption mark. Several characters qualified for redemption.
I read several other reviews, many commenting about how over the top his main character Murph is. He’s certainly an enigmatic character with a bunch of unrevealed secrets. And I agree he is over the top in his skill set, contacts and knowledge. But I also feel in this kind of fiction that’s what I want. I like extraordinary heroes, and Murph is that.
Some reviews also commented on the extensive description of Florida geography and how it was not needed. This seems to be a staple of Martin’s. I agree with the reviews that said enough already with the Florida geography. It was too much, but maybe Martin uses that to slow the pace and prepare for the next action sequence.
And there were many action sequences.
I like Martin’s style of slowly unfolding Murph. Almost up to the last page we are learning something new about him. A couple great twists I didn’t see immediately. Decent balance of action and insight. An interesting approach to fights. No detail at all.
Most important is the subject matter. Human trafficking. I believe it’s one of the most overlooked and gravest issues we have. One dear to me as my novel coming out in January deals with the same issue in a different way. Martin deals with a specific method of trafficking in a specific geographical area.
The Water Keeper did not have much, if any, overt Christianity. But it dealt with a nasty subject in a tasteful yet impactful way. No overt sex, no extensive profanity. And like I said above, a lot of the physical violence was implied. One interesting characteristic of Murph is that he’s an ordained priest.
If you’ve read The Water Keeper or when you do, post a comment here on what you thought about it.
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