There is something about a wounded warrior that is appealing in fiction. Anti-heroes who have dark pasts, who know disappointment and failure, are much more interesting to me than the uncomplicated square-jawed hero.
I relate more to failure than anyone who has it too easy. Batman’s billionaire life would fall apart if someone pulled off his mask just once. To me, Superman’s personal stakes aren’t high enough. Superman’s basically a god. Batman is a rich guy who spent years training his body and mind to be the world’s greatest detective (or a fairly psychotic badass, depending on which vintage of the comics you favor.)
We love a main character with a mysterious past
On my very first night away at university, I found myself in Frosh Week activities. It wasn’t my scene but that first night was special because we watched Casablanca. (No, I’m not that old. It was a retro movie night.) Fun fact: The movie’s original title was Everybody Comes to Rick’s.
There’s a great moment in that movie. Someone asks Rick how he came to find himself in Casablanca. Rick replies, “My health. I came for the waters.”
“The waters? What waters? We’re in the desert.”
“I was misinformed.”
Isn’t that a great bit of dialogue? And Bogart delivered the lines so laconically, it’s hilarious. My other favorite exchange is:
“You despise me, don’t you?”
“If I gave you any thought, I suppose I would,”
Ha!
Anyway, we find out about Rick’s romance in Paris in a flashback but he’s kind of a blank slate at first. He’s not going to tell you what you don’t need to know. He’s damaged and flawed but somewhere underneath all that baggage, there’s a person trying to do the right thing. That’s why I love Easy Jack in The Night Man.
Ernest “Easy” Jack has been estranged from his father and he’s a pariah in his home town of Orion, Michigan. On a medical discharge from the army, Easy really just wants to be left alone to train German Shepherds and recover. His eyes are sensitive to sunlight. He’s got a bum knee. He’s weary but when he comes home, he finds his war is not over. An ex-girlfriend in trouble shows up. His dad is a smuggler who gets mixed up with a dirty cop’s dirty business. Complications ensue.
Easy could walk away from trouble but trouble keeps finding him. The truth is, Easy can’t bring himself to walk away. Deep down, he’s not a bad guy but he has to deal with a lot of really bad guys. Dealing with evil on its own terms, you might end up doing things that are beyond the law. Easy doesn’t have a lot of money or resources. He’s got a lot of experience, some cleverness, and a German Shepherd. That’s all he brings to battle. Gotta love an underdog paired up with a dog named Sophie.
That’s why I love The Night Man. I hope you will, too.
You can pick it up in ebook and paperback on Amazon. Please do and if you dig it, please review it.
Click any of the links to the right or hit this universal Amazon link.
Enjoy!
~ RCC