Final Cut

Rating:
Summary: A Captivating Read!
Review: Final Cut by Kit Sloane

A movie set is a special sort of place, driven by both financial frenzy and creative temperaments. A crew on location tends to be locked into itself, having only its own members to turn to for emotional--even physical--security. In Final Cut, Kit Sloane shows the type of atmosphere that filming on location can engender. There, with time as money, work is rushed, and extra pressure is brought when the studio executive comes to call.

Place this usually fraught filming situation inside of an environment that is already lunatic, and you have the setting for Ms. Sloane's novel of suspense. Here, New Hollywood tries to come to grips with its revered history in the person of elderly eccentrics, who hate the newcomers for coming out on top. The new talent, in the meantime, is called upon to display a veneration to prior genius, which they do, although somewhat appalled by the sort of anachronistic mentality that rules on the ranch where they now film.

Protagonist Margot O'Banion Lake is particularly upset by the anti-Semitism she finds here, although her director paramour, Max Skull, who is himself Jewish, shrugs off a volley of ultra-blatant insults. He is too busy shooting his conception of the cowboys of the early West to pay attention to many of the matters that bother Margot--such as an attempt to murder her, she believes. Good heavens, yes, considering how much the filming costs each day.

Looking at the book as a participant in the movie business, I see much that I can identify with. The techniques and approaches have changed a lot since the time of Old Hollywood and it's fun to see the two juxtapositioned for their view of each other.

In a way, Ms. Sloane has produced a piece of film-making herself, in that she has taken a camera's eye view to every scene. Her observation is keen and the description lavishly poetic. We feel that we are on a movie set ourselves, visiting a grand old ranch, complete with miniature theater for the viewing of rushes or the owners' favorite titles. Sloane has brought both the prior and the present era of our film history to life.

The novel is, at base, suspense adventure. Amid the sweep of cinema in the making comes the mystery. Who is crazy and who is not? Who is going to leave the ranch alive? And who doesn't want to allow Margot, Max, and other key members of the Los Angeles team their liberty?

Anyone who treasures movies of both today and yesterday will take pleasure in this book. You can count on her authentic depictions.

Dennis W. Kear, screen actor and member Screen Actors Guild.

Rating:
Summary: Lurking Danger
Review: Kit Sloane takes readers through the Hollywood looking glass in this stunning novel of suspense where nothing is as it seems and danger lurks in unlikely places. Final Cut delivers it all--memorable characters, an intriguing plot, and suspense that builds until you won't want to put it down.

--Linda Grant, author of Vampire Bytes

Rating:
Summary: Can't Put it Down
Review: Kit Sloane's Final Cut gives readers both an insider's glimpse into a movie company on location -- and its descent into terror. With more twists and chills than a roller coaster ride, Final Cut will keep you guessing. A realpage-turner.

-- Kris Neri, Agatha and Anthony nominated author of Revenge of the Gypsy Queen and Dem Bones' Revenge

Rating:
Summary: Can't Put it Down
Review: Kit Sloane's Final Cut gives readers both an insider's glimpse into a movie company on location -- and its descent into terror. With more twists and chills than a roller coaster ride, Final Cut will keep you guessing. A realpage-turner.

-- Kris Neri, Agatha and Anthony nominated author of Revenge of the Gypsy Queen and Dem Bones' Revenge

Rating:
Summary: Could have been better
Review: Margot O'Banion Lake's ability to translate a writer's thoughts, a director's vision, and an actor's lines into a work of art has earned her a well-deserved reputation as one of the best film editors in Tinseltown.

In her series debut, FINAL CUT, the reserved and reticent Margot and her flamboyant lover and business partner, director Max Skull, make a trip to northern California to the ranch home of the late, legendary film editor Amory Evans. Max needs the rugged scenery of the high desert for his final shots. Margot will use the quiet atmosphere of Evans' studio to work her magic on the film.

Immediately upon their arrival at Palisades Ranch, the duo are caught off guard by Evans' widow and her twin sister. Leticia Evans and Bernice Sweet are two interchangeable peas in a pod. They are warm and welcoming, but Margot senses an uncomfortable underlying current she cannot explain. Something isn't quite right.

As they begin to work on the film, Margot and Max have some pretty strange experiences. They are housed in a worn down guest house while the twins live in luxury at the main house. Security cameras watch their every move. An entire film crew gets lost on the location. A van blows up. People disappear for stretches at a time and return with no memory of what happened during their absence. The ranch's handyman appears out of nowhere to stalk their movements. A black cat weaves in and out of the scenery, even though they are banned from the ranch. Pieces of animal fur are stuck under mattresses. Articles are rearranged.

Someone doesn't want Max and Margot to complete their work.

Is it the twins? Is it their peculiar handy man, Johnny Pine? Is it the studio's axe man, Adrian Browning? Or could it be the ghost of Amory Evans? The answers will surprise even the most jaded mystery fan!

The author falls a bit short in technique: (1) stretching what would have been a quality short story into 192 pages; (2) abusing the word "prickled" when referring to the many times Margot's skin reacts to fright; and (3) inserting unnecessary 'that' into an infinite number of sentences.

The basic story line is solid, however, and the author lays the groundwork for more Margot O'Banion Mysteries.