Ockham’s Razor is by far not your typical tale from Dark Castle Lords Publishing. Author Bill Haworth takes a step away from castles, lords, and ladies and delivers a creation that is thought provoking, dramatic, and welcomingly humorous.
This short tale unfolds on a rainy day, atop a wet church and a cemetery filled with newfound mourners. Everything is about as normal as can be expected when a funeral ends and the friends and family of the recently deceased begin to depart. They take notice to a man climbing to the top of the church via scaffolding that had been left behind during roof repairs. It takes only a moment before the crowd becomes a gaggle of onlookers, each wondering how long it would take the man – named Tom – to plummet dead to the ground. To Tom’s rescue comes a priest – wise and calm – and after a bit of hesitation, Tom begins to confide the thoughts that have been troubling him.
Enter the government, the law, the eager and conflictingly paired police officer Barlow and firefighter Grant. Grant – with his street-smart gruffness – immediately clashes with Barlow, whose psychological methods of handling jumper situations seems too slow and peaceful to work. It is not long before the pair of rescuers, the priest, and Tom are neck to neck in religious and spiritual debate, slinging humorous one-liners and somehow intelligent thoughts back and forth.
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There are moments in the story when one must think, “How can this debate possibly be of any help to poor Tom?” Fear not, dear reader. Bill Haworth has justification for every dilemma you might encounter. He handles his situations well, leading into action, surprises, and impressive unexpected twists. To say more would give away too much of this short but thoughtful story. Fans of comedy, theology, religious debate, and action will be pleasantly entertained by this quirky tale. I know I was.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 Swords, Reviewed by J. L. Foster
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