The Tomb

The Tomb (1984/2004) F. Paul Wilson

Repairman Jack fixes things. Not appliances or houses or anything so prosaic, but instead fixes situations.

When he is asked to “fix” two separate problems at the same time, little did he realize that the situation would turn deadly–and the girl he loves in mortal danger–the girl he loves being in fact an actual child he will protect at any cost.

Jack is my kind of hero. He’s not a good person per se, in that he works outside the law to do what needs to be done. But when such a job needs done, he is the best man for the job.

And the story is just the kind I like as well: a noir mystery with supernatural overtones. This is very obviously a revision from the 1984 original publication, but that’s okay, since with a few changes, the story fit well into modern times (the lack of cell phones was the only glaring modern omission.)
What I particularly enjoyed was the fact that I truly had no idea what was going to happen–although I was pretty sure certain characters were going to survive, others I was not quite as sure about, which became slightly worrying as the deaths began to pile up.

The one thing I disliked was the book ends with Repairman Jack attempting to recover from his wounds–and you’re not told whether he lives or dies. Of course knowing that this was the first book in the series took the edge of that fear, but at least all plot lines were resolved, and loose ends were tied up. So I suppose it was a good enough ending–and one that seemed reasonable enough for Jack’s life.

If you like supernatural fantasy, then you will want to check out The Tomb the first book in the Repairman Jack series. And I am going to go order more of the series right now.
Rating: 8/10

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