VERMIN STREET:
Life in These Walls

Author:
Mike Robinson

When you open Vermin Street: Life In These Walls, you get a whimsical yet gritty look at a world you never thought possible. Author Mike Robinson books you on one heck of a ride, with illustrations, a charismatic introduction, and a hardboiled glossary at the end. It's smart from start to finish.

We are introduced to a strange new locale with an introduction to vermin, and what their true nature is all about. It sets the tone and mood, and allows you to disappear from the daily grind into a witty sense of storytelling.

Cornelius Danger Blackrat, is a private eye, and narrator of the story. We see his action and experience his life from the eyes of a city rat. Immediately we are cast into a commotion going on at the infamous Soaked Fur Tavern, and quickly introduced to a slew of some of the most obscure characters I've ever had the gratification to meet. Enter such bullies as the Street Roaches, with a nasty leader at the forefront, Brock, with a picture that says it all. Feared highly is the Gerbil Mafia, with a set of rules to make any animal flee to safety. Intermixed with action, brawls, and mind games between enemies, there is more to the plot than meets the eye. Political satire, humor, imagery and visuals keep this story going flowing in a rapid pace. The menagerie of colorful characters, clever street and building names, and immaculate street-wise dialogue, give way to intelligence and pure entertainment.

Vermin Street is a fantastical private eye yarn full of ambience, atmosphere, scenery, and raw conviction. You can almost smell the sewer and see the smog that settles in the putrid city. A heavy cloud of smoke permeated around the book, and I swear there was a constant drip from a nearby broken pipe. You can lose yourself and get caught up, almost visualizing someone you know as any one of these baddies. Around the corner is always another shady character, requesting you as the audience.

The ending is a brilliant glossary of terms used and seen in the story, something worth viewing even before you start. This is well thought out, organized, and infectious. Mike Robinson has created an absolutely engaging presentation, by opening up a splendid sense of imagination for us all to enjoy.

~ Nancy Jackson, Mohr Reviews