This was my first book by Spencer, who is a known literary writer and I am interested in reading his others. The book is not a straightforward mystery, but rather a story about a man's inner life and what life means. Paul is a carpenter, a somewhat mysterious man who comes upon a man beating a dog in the woods. Enraged, he fights with the man and ends up killing him. Paul's guilt and how the killing affects his life is the sum of the story.I was also interested in Paul's girlfriend, a born again former alcoholic who is a well known author and mother of a troubled girl. There were also many other characters, perhaps too many for the story.My only criticism is that I ended by feeling I didn't know much about the characters, even Paul and there were a lot of loose threads that never got resolved (what was really wrong with Ruby for example), but the writing was fresh and interesting and I finished the book quickly. I knew nothing about this author or the book itself, but I found it in my library store for $1.00 and I liked the cover, with the German Shepherd mix dog on it and the blurb on back: "A man, a woman, a child, and an unforgettable dog combine forces in this gripping and surprising psychological thriller..."Sorry, for me it was no way a thriller (wonder why it was put in that genre when it obviously isn't at all) and seemed to be a character-driven literary fiction that tried too hard. None of the main characters, except Shep the dog, appealed to me and I lost interest in the middle and was unsatisfied with the end. All in all, some beautiful descriptions and lyrical writing, but it didn't do it for me without a plot that was actually going somewhere. Perhaps for another reader this would be a find, but for me it was only just barely okay. 3 stars
What do You think about Man In The Woods (2010)?
One that will be hard to forget. I was sorry to get to the end for more than one reason.
—sally03
I thought it was average. I thought parts of it were a little preachy.
—Sam
