Going into this installment — I sat down, looked at my last two reviews and thought “I like them but I need something weird— something with a little edge, surprises, and more of a popcorn flick vibe. A few of the short stories in “Something to Look Forward Too” gave me a little bit of that but it didn’t fully scratch the itch. After a quick Google search of “Fantasy book from Alabama,” I had found something I believed fit the bill: “Bringing Home the Rain” by Bob McGough.
“Bringing Home the Rain” is the first entry in McGough’s “The Redemption of Howard Marsh” series, and I think it is a solid introduction to Howard and his antics.
As the series title implies, this book follows Howard Marsh, best described as “a liar, thief, a poor man’s wizard” who lives in the fictional Jubal County, Alabama. Howard is one of the fictional county’s less fortunate residents being borderline homeless and deeply wrapped-up in drug addiction. He scrapes by in the town of Elk Grove by stealing or doing odd jobs around the county: finding lost objects, water witching or solving magical problems for shadowy government agencies.
When I first discovered “Bringing Home the Rain” I was pretty skeptical. Though the idea of a “methgician” being a pseudo-magic investigator sounded pretty funny, I wasn’t sure how it’d come out in execution. Mostly I was worried it’d come off tacky or as a complete joke. To my delight, it surprised me with a compelling protagonist and fun premise.
Howard is the strongest aspect of the book, McGough gives our narrator a heavy dose of snark and a fair bit of ingenuity that makes following him rather enjoyable despite some very rough edges. Howard’s inner and outer voices are laden with well-written sarcasm and random little bits of Alabama – Howard “bleeds crimson” and the kudzu is plentiful in Jubal county.
An aspect I really like is that even though Howard is a magician, wizard or whatever you want to call him, his abilities don’t make everything just work out. I think his methods of managing his powers with various illicit substances adds an interesting twist and some character conflicts and growth opportunities.
“Bringing Home the Rain” is split into two parts essentially following Howard work through two of his odd jobs: sussing out why a five mile circle hasn’t received rain in seven months and looking for an acquaintance that’s gone missing after going to a traveling revival.
In the first job, we see Howard trying to solve the unnaturally long drought going on in a seemingly random five mile patch. This segment feels like it was used more to introduce elements of what he gets up to and a little bit of world building. We get introduced to a few of the locals such as Howard’s family, a local officer and the agency that hires him. Though none of them are fully delved into, I think all of the introduced characters are given a level of intrigue that makes me want to see how they and Howard move forward.
There’s a lot of humor sprinkled throughout this first story that makes it read pretty quickly, and Howard is set up to be a fun protagonist, but his rougher points are also on full display throughout this first part. Some less than upstanding acts push him towards his objective. We see how he treats his relationships, his rocky interactions with his family, and an old romantic partner. We see how he uses his powers as a tool to fuel his addiction, and how he picks and chooses what collateral damage to care about. Though, like I said, he’s a bit rough, I think this sets him up well for the “redemption” in the series title.
I much preferred the second half of the book. Here, Howard searches for Inez, a woman who “runs in similar circles,” after her son tells Howard she’s been missing since going to a traveling church revival. Though still filled with sarcasm and humor, there was a much more serious turn to this story as it delves into Howard’s views on his addictions and how it impacts him and the other addicts he hangs out with. I also enjoyed seeing a softer side to him as when dealing with the kids his motivations come off far more altruistic. And though I found the reveal of what happened predictable, the resolution had me fully engaged.
If you’re looking for a one off story I think you’re in the wrong spot. Though delivering some entertaining segments this is a set up book that begs for you to keep going and personally I am looking forward to checking out more Bob McGough’s work.
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