Rob Cline makes storytelling appear effortless

Rob Cline doesn't make it look easy yet, but that could be just around the corner for the Cedar Rapids author.

Cline delivers an engaging yet inconsistent first novel in “Murder by the Slice” (CreateSpace, 302 pages, $11.99). The book displays considerable wit and charm in the form of lead character Paul Chambers, a philosophy graduate/pizza delivery guy who becomes embroiled in a sometimes over-the-top narrative after delivering a pizza to a dead man.

He quickly goes from near-anonymity to local prominence when he's featured in news stories by competing journalists - one a potential love interest - and heavily promoted by a boss who wants nothing more than to sell more pizza. A gem of an elderly character, a few bad guys, a few less-than-effective cops and a bit of industrial intrigue come into play as Chambers stumbles around at the center of things - churning out clever pizza delivery rules of the road along the way.

Cline has a deft ear for dialogue that serves him well. But at times he reaches beyond appropriate vocabulary choices for a whodunit of this nature, which could be jarring for some readers.

The pages fly by when the storytelling is at its finest, which occurs most of the time. Cline introduces a compelling cast of characters and for the most part develops them well, even successfully coaxing the reader into caring about them. Still, the narrative bogs down at times. Too many elements get juggled at once, and the proceedings come close to pushing the bounds of plausibility at times. Perhaps that's by design, because there is a certain whimsy, even wackiness, at play - and for many readers that may even add to the overall charm.

The bottom line is that talent is at work here. If Cline has more stories to tell, he should tell them. He has the ability to make it look effortless.

Comments: (319) 368-8876; dale.jones@sourcemedia.net