The Soul Thief (2007)

This book was a pretty quick read, although I didn't really understand it.

The description of the book on the flyleaf looked very interesting - a psychological horror story. Nathanial Mason is a grad student in Buffalo, New York around 1970. He meets up with an odd guy named Jerome Coolberg. It seems like Coolberg is trying to steal Mason's identity. Thirty years later, they meet again and it gets really WEIRD. Other stuff happens, too. Mason's house gets burglarized (or does it really?), he dates a woman who pretends to be intellectual, he dates a lesbian, he works in a soup kitchen, he has a breakdown.

Since I was puzzled by the ending, this review is very short. ( )

Got halfway through, wasn't enjoying it and didn't care about any of the characters, so I stopped reading it. ( )

I liked the innovative style and how it assisted in carrying along the story. The characters were believable and the plot revealed itself through their characterizations.
The author knows his craft and uses words skillfully. ( )

THE SOUL THIEF is my third Baxter book, and I liked it, but it's something of a puzzle. I mean, who's telling this story? Is it Nathaniel Mason, or is it the weird watcher, Jerome Coolberg? And why does Nathaniel fall for the lesbian artist, Jamie, when he's already involved with Theresa, who offers him no-strings uninhibited high-energy sex? And how does Coolberg know so much about the intimate details of Nathaniel's family history? Well, follow Nathaniel from his disturbed grad school days in Buffalo to his settled, married years in the New Jersey suburbs - with some blackout gaps and a major fast forward - and maybe it will all become clear. Or maybe not, and, like me, maybe you'll wonder if you missed something, if you should go back and reread the whole damn thing.

But, confusion aside, it's worth the trip. Because Baxter's strength always comes through in his characters, and THE SOUL THIEF is no exception. Nathaniel Mason, as well as the strange, sexually ambiguous Coolberg, are two more memorable characters to add to the varied collection I've already encountered in FEAST OF LOVE and SAUL AND PATSY. Highly recommended, but pay attention!

- Tim Bazzett, author of the memoir, BOOKLOVER ( )

Tortured young man attending graduate school in Buffalo who meets some fellow students who are bizzare. Many of the scenes seem to get played out through someone else's eyes - especially since the lead refers to himself in the third person. Ultimately an unsatisfying chunk of existential claptrap. Would give it 2.5 stars only because I was enjoying it up until the end. ( )