PLAN B (Jonathan Tropper) - April 18/08

Jonathan Tropper's first novel, Plan B is an engaging yet overlong and plot-heavy effort revolving around a group of friends who kidnap their movie-star friend to help him kick his cocaine addiction. The book is rife with the kind of introspective elements that have come to define Tropper's work (ie "thirty... shit!"), but the author has also included plenty of story-related elements that are more than a little conventional and sporadically distracting. Still, this is a very effective first effort that does possess a number of relatable truths. *** out of ****