Time’s Up, Afton by Brent Jones – a #BookReview

Title: Time’s Up, Afton (Afton Morrison Series Book 4) by Brent Jones

Genre: Thriller, Crime Fiction, Vigilante Justice, Serial Killers

142 Pages

Publication Date: To be released October 29, 2018

ASIN: B07G25CNSF

Source: Author request

Title and Cover: Time’s Up, Afton – Love these beautiful covers

Book Blurb:

Some secrets stay buried for a lifetime, but nothing lasts forever.

Connected to a number of high-profile deaths, Afton finds herself not only under scrutiny from the chief of police, but damned in the court of public opinion, as well.

In the aftermath of the fiery assault on Wakefield, a low-level gang has infiltrated the town, flooding its streets with bad drugs, killing several teenagers. As Afton prepares for the final showdown with her tormentor, she marks each gang member as a target for elimination, in a methodical plan to gain the upper hand. What follows is a race against the clock that will keep readers guessing until the very last page, as Afton risks life and limb to fulfill her murderous mission of doing good in the world.

Time’s Up, Afton is the fourth and final part in a new serial thriller by author Brent Jones. Packed with grit and action, The Afton Morrison Series delves into a world of moral ambiguity, delivering audiences an unlikely heroine in the form of a disturbed vigilante murderess.

My Review:

Afton has placed herself square under the watchful eyes of Wakefield’s Police Chief Banks and spread the picture of her face far and wide. Damned in the eyes of public opinion as well as those of her brother and cohorts with whom she’d survived the conclusion of book 3, she appears left to her own devices to bring down her tormentor, the Man in Shadows. She has also unearthed a gang peddling deadly drugs that have resulted in the death of a number of local teens.

Her mother’s last words tend to echo in her head, pleading with her to do good in the world and to fulfill that promise, she is determined to rid her town of the vermin that has even shocked her own sensibilities. Still, Animus is back in spades and pushes and prods her to new heights of despotism in her blinding plan to clean up the meth gang as she continues her pursuit for Ray and struggles with herself over her violent and deadly tendencies, talking down Animus one minute while acquiescing the next.

As the author delivers one twist after the other, digging ever deeper into a well-plotted but totally mind-blowing conclusion, Afton lays out a single-minded course to expose the drug gang while trying to deliver the credit to Banks. There is still much to be learned of the twin that drives the narrative machinery. Really, Afton is trying to set it right. Except it seems, “the well-laid plans of mice and men…” or women…

It is a novella of hard-core graphically delivered violence and suspense that raises additional issues each successive page. The characters pit against each other in the eternal battle of good vs evil and leave the reader to wonder if the victory is being won by the good. If Afton succeeds in her plan, is it really a triumph after all? There is a scandalous final twist that reveals much behind the psyche of Afton.

Warning: As I’ve mentioned before, Jones delivers his unlikely protagonist in intense and often crude, raw dialogue, description, sexual reference, and graphic violence.

As noted before, author Brent Jones calls his series an abstract of “moral ambiguity.” But it is far more than moral ambiguity; psychopathically twisted beyond Hitchcock and King. For those of you who have read books 1-3, reading book 4 will set your hair on end and send chills and shivers elsewhere. It will complete a horror journey begun in the first book you couldn’t have imagined or expected from this generally emotionally and sympathetic author.

If you haven’t read any of the previous entries to the series, you really should begin with the first to better understand all the backstory and the how and why you got here. Begin with Go Home, Afton (#1), my review here and the second in the series, See You Soon, Afton. Follow up with book 3, Nice Try, Afton. Better yet, secure your complete series set that also includes a bonus short story–all perfect for Halloween; paranormal appearances and a vigilante murderess. The author is releasing a complete collection or bundle of The Afton Morrison Series, Books 1-4, that includes the bonus short story, A Book With No Pictures. The latter delivers a sweet moral punch of its own that you will no doubt enjoy and it functions much as a prequel to the series. (The collection will be available in paperback, audiobook, and eBook formats and is available for pre-order now through most popular outlets.)

Afton presents the age-old argument regarding whether or not the results are nature or nurture. In the end, it may be a debate that is not winnable. I was sent this ebook novella download by the author and greatly appreciated the opportunity to read and review. This series is recommended for any who look for a uniquely electrifying departure from your predictable genres that utilizes a dark plot, graphic situations, brutal conditions, mystery, and suspense.

As Tia would say, “We all wear masks, Afton. Sometimes it’s worth finding out what’s hiding underneath.”

The Author: From bad checks to bathroom graffiti, Brent Jones has always been drawn to writing. He won a national creative writing competition at the age of fourteen, although he can’t recall what the story was about. Seventeen years later, he gave up his career to pursue creative writing full-time.

Jones writes from his home in Fort Erie, Canada. He’s happily married, a bearded cyclist, a mediocre guitarist, and the proud owner of two dogs with a God complex. Subscribe to his newsletter (AuthorBrentJones.com) or follow him on social media (@AuthorBrentJ) for updates.

©2018 V Williams