Full Circle Comes Half-Way

Tim Baker’s latest novel, Full Circle, is a story about how our choices affect others, sometimes others we don’t even know, in unexpected ways. What does one do when your boss thinks you owe him a favor and asks you to commit murder? Mark Sullivan is faced with the choice and what he does sets in motion surprising events, while his boss, Joe Moretti’s choices set other events in motion, involving other people, and all these paths cross in some very entertaining ways.

As in all of Baker’s books several seemingly unrelated characters weave their way through the intricate details of plot with delightfully entertaining antics. A recovering alcoholic, a single mother trying to make ends meet, a self-centered contractor, an over-protective father, and a homeless woman, who seem to have little in common, find their karmic paths crossing in unexpected ways, but it all comes together when they come Full Circle.

In Living the Dream, a plumber’s apprentice with a moral code ends up crossing paths with a crooked contractor who’s unfaithful to his wife, and the endearing residents of Flagler Beach. In No Good Deed, a homeless guy and a gangster’s girlfriend cross paths with the plumber’s apprentice, who has straightened out his life and is now a groundskeeper trying to live the straight and narrow, some big time mobsters and a two-bit con-man, along with our old friends from Flagler Beach and surrounding areas. It’s one of the things I admire about Baker’s works.
I think the difference with Full Circle may be that the karmic element is the theme of the story, and it feels like the characters are forced to fit the mold on this one. I must admit, I was a little disappointed by it. Tim Baker is a talented author, with the ability to bust out this kind of story with skill and finesse, but it feels off in this book. It’s nothing I can put my finger on, but it didn’t grab my attention from the starting line, like Baker’s other books have. As a result, I found it harder to invest myself in the story and care about the characters.
Don’t get me wrong. Full Circle is a good story, a delightful tale, actually. It will make you smile, and make you sit on the edge of your seat at times. It will draw chuckles in all the right places. Although the execution is a little off, it’s not enough to make me put the book down. I still wanted to keep reading to see what happens next. I give Full Circle three quills.

You can find Full Circle and other books by Tim Baker on his website, Blindogg Books.