By Jim Ewing Special to The Clarion-Ledger
Jackson author Matthew Guinn is moving into the Big Leagues of novelists with his second book, The Scribe.
A mystery that focuses on a grisly series of murders during the opening stages of the Atlanta 1881 International Cotton Exposition, a world’s fair precursor, Scribe has all the elements of the genre to propel Guinn to the top.
The protagonist, Thomas Canby, is a flawed and disgraced police detective and former Civil War soldier who creates as many personal complications in his life as he professionally seeks to solve. A compelling and complex character, Canby is an Atlanta native who joined the Union side for reasons of his own. Unraveling (and untangling), Canby’s life is as intriguing as the plot.
A theme throughout is Canby seeking to grasp the depth and elusiveness of pure evil, personified by a shadowy character who seems to outwit Canby and the leaders of Atlanta at every turn. But confront it, he does: including his own demons.
“When I really saw it for the first time clean and clear it was not a shadow,” Canby confides. “No fleeting glimpse. It was in flesh, real as dirt and cold as gunmetal…”
Mystery surrounds Canby’s quest, as troubled and confused as the callous and boastful shallowness of Atlanta’s post-Reconstruction civic leaders who have discredited and reviled him. It’s hard to tell friend from foe — least of all his partner, Cyrus Underwood, the first black police detective in Atlanta (advanced by those leaders for political reasons though also despised by them). All are suspects. All are flawed as human beings.
It all works, masterfully.
As a historical novel, Scribe is well researched, displaying historical accuracy for the Atlanta area after Reconstruction ended. It has a believable plot with startling twists and turns that grip the reader; spot-on characters that assume lives of their own with dialogue that springs organically from their characters. It’s a gripping tale that will have readers gasping, both in suspense and in horror. And Guinn provides a deft weaving of clues and facts that build mystery and interest.
If there is a criticism to the book, its strength is its weakness. Scribe is rigidly plotted and tightly written — good things. But it could have added a dimension to the characters if there were more fleshed out flashbacks or vignettes to provide lasting word pictures of the main figures.
For example, Underwood is primarily seen through the eyes of Canby, and not given his own voice and motivation. (A future novel perhaps?) The love interest, Julia, has a history with Canby, but we do not know her thoughts or yearnings.
These are minor details that do not detract from the book and, arguably, could have slowed its pace.
Guinn, who also displayed skill of national note in the critically acclaimed The Resurrectionist (an Edgar Award finalist), now has attained with Scribe the distinction of being one of the most promising fiction writers in America today. It proves Guinn to be a bona fide heavy hitter in the genre of mystery writing.
If he can continue on this course, building a body of work of equal quality, he will find himself among a rare few of serious literary merit. It’s exciting to see his work unfold and eagerly anticipate new works from this Southern author Jackson can claim as its own.
Jim Ewing, a former writer and editor at The Clarion-Ledger, is the author of seven books including Redefining Manhood: A Guide for Men and Those Who Love Them, now in bookstores.
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