KILL ME by Stephen White
Stephen White is an accomplished writer. He has written many best sellers and has a large fan base. Each of his new novels are awaited with anticipation and his latest, KILL ME, is no exception. But with this book his readers get less than they expected. KILL ME is an indulgent thriller that neither satisfies through its plot or through its characters.
Once again Dr Alan Gregory is a character in the story. Gregory has been the focus in other White novels but in this one he is definitely a supporting player. An anonymous rich man comes to him for psychiatric counseling and ends up telling him a bizarre story of money and madness. The man is wealthy beyond his wildest dreams, and leads a life that is full of extreme thrills and hair-raising adventures.
One day while this man is out with his buddies on a skiing adventure he makes the statement that he would not want to live if he was going to have to suffer a lot or be totally incapacitated. One of his friends comes up to him later and tells him if he is serious he knows an organization that will make sure he is never in this type of situation. If it arises they will take him out, so to speak.
The rest of the book deals with his dealings with the organization and their efforts to kill him when he develops a medical problem. Of course by this time he has changed his mind but the contract is irrevocable. He visits Dr. Gregory to make a clean confession and to seek advice, guidance, whatever.
The book flip flops back and forth in time with events being told totally out of sequence and sometimes only half told and then picked up in a later chapter. This yo-yoing of the plot makes for dizziness and confusion. It also weakens the impact of what is happening. It is hard to keep up with the timeline without a spreadsheet of some sort.
It also doesn't help that none of the characters are likeable. The main character certainly isn't. He comes across as a self-centered fool who is so concerned with his total well being that he makes a deal with the devil and then doesn't like it. He is also an absentee father and husband, and likes to flirt with other women just for the fun of it though he has a faithful wife sitting at home.
White does manage to create some suspense at the end but then loses the impact when he makes the climax of the story so over the top that it is laughable. Nothing holds up and the structure of the plot falls into a "get it over with" ending.
Stephen White has talent as an author. He knows how to create characters, as well as fashion a tricky plot. But in KILL ME the characters are losers and so is the reading audience. This is the kind of book that you might read till you finish it and then wonder why did you waste your time.
KILL ME won't kill you with boredom, just with disgust.
KILL ME is published by Dutton. It contains 352 pages and sells for $25.95.