39.13: Heart-Shaped Box, by Joe Hill (paperback 2007)

This is Hill's first book, and for an author's debut novel, it's not bad. Truthfully, though, if this was the first Hill book I had read--if I wasn't already a fan of Locke and Key comics and hadn't read his most recent novel--I may not have picked up another of his works. The book is average in development, although it gains momentum as it continues. I felt that the writing even improved within this one novel; at the beginning, I skimmed whole pages or sections I found extraneous, but later in the book things seemed more focused and relevant. I'm looking forward to reading his second novel, Horns, and watching him grow into the skilled author he becomes by NOS482.