One Word Kill

One Word Kill by Mark Lawrence

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

May 31, 2019: I've just re-read this review.  It is a pretty massive spoiler, I suspect.  Maybe not so much of you don't click, "read more".

One Word Kill might remind folks of the TV show Stranger Things as its primary characters are youngsters, perhaps who should have grown out of Dungeons and Dragons (D&D), but haven't. So our co-protagonists are bonded together as a set of socially prosecuted people by their evil peers because they are, or nearly are, "geeks". At that age, 15ish, perhaps only thinking nerds who can understand complex math, philosophy, history and retain an imagination are the least likely to be evil to their "not-the-same-as-me" peers. -just a cultural observation.

Nicholas "Nick" Hayes is our leukemia riddled, Chemo soaked protagonist. His D&D character is Nicodemus, who studied the arcane; he's a trainee wizard, if you like. Our remaining D&D band of brothers is Elton, who may have seen the Avenue of the Baobabs as an infant. He is The Game Master. There's Simon who can easily paint miniatures with his fat fingers. He plays Finious the thief, but he'd never steal in real life. I think Simon's a functioning Asperger's with a savant gift of math skills, but that's barely implied in the book.

John is the "Fonz" of the group who would never admit to having geeky friends, but his debonair facade doesn't annoy his D&D pals. He's always on time for Saturday D&D, so his ego is ignored.

THEN ONE DAY Elton, The Game Master, brings the mysterious Mia to the sacred Saturday D&D session, destroying all decency and protocol. Mia is next seen in the novel with John the faux Fonz throwing pebbles at Nick's window around midnight the day of this first Chemo treatment.


Mia showing up at the Saturday Dungeons and Dragon game, was blasphemy, but maybe a little cool. Mia has a mystical and magical attribute commonly called "being a girl", which totally confounds "geeks" who, everyone knows, are to girls what bug repellent is to bugs. Being both new to the D&D table and mysterious, at least to D&D playing introverted teens caused Mia to be assigned a D&D cleric character who she customized into a priestess of the Man Jesus.

The novel begins in January 1986 in London. A Commodore 64 gets mention in the novel, but not the game "Below the Root" which is another blasphemy to me, but not so much culturally, or in the book. Being set in the 1986 and playing D&D brings to mind Ready Player One! The book, not the movie, which I've sinned by not watching, yet.

More media must be mentioned… Marty McFly, hover boards, and Back to the Future. OK, I didn't need to mention it, but the book mentions hover boards, so why not mention it in the review.

Nicodemus IS Nick's D&D character’s name. This is relevant as the characters they play in the Saturday D&D session can leak over into "real life". Rethinking that… Simon isn't ever considered as Fineous the thief, or Mia a priestess named Jesus. So I jumped to that conclusion. Strained my calf with that presumptuous jump as well.

But it could be because of the mysterious bald headed, not a vampire, Demus guy. (Nick saw Demus in the January sunlight. That's irrefutable proof he wasn't a real vampire.) But it is frighteningly strange that Demus knows everything. I suspect being from the future might explain that. See where the Marty McFly thing pops to the mind? I don't recall if it is John or Elton who wants the hover board.

Making sense yet? I really liked One Word Kill by Mark Lawrence and recommend it. I read One Word Kill in four sessions on May 1, 3, 6 and 7. This review is for ebook and the audiobook narrated by Nick Harris, who did an excellent job. There were moments I loved this book which is why I would give it 4.4 stars, if such were possible.

Goodreads tells you "In January 1986, fifteen-year-old boy-genius Nick Hayes discovers he’s dying. And it isn’t even the strangest thing to happen to him that week" I really liked that blurb because it reminded me of the first line of one of my very favorite books:

"Tuesday was a fine California day, full of sunshine and promise, until Harry Lyon had to shoot someone at lunch." That's Dragon Tears by Dean Koontz, which is an amazing novel, so I had to read On Word Kill. It doesn't need to make sense, OK?

Mark Lawrence is an excellent writer. This is a wonderful book.

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