Bad Ronald-Jack Vance mystery novel, book review
Bad Ronald-Jack Vance mystery novel Bad Ronald was written in 1955 but was not published until 1973 when it was issued under the author’s actual name John Holbrook Vance. It is a 171 page “mystery” novel that reads more like a short horror novel. The draft title of the book was "Something Awful." It is a difficult book for me to review because, although it is fairly well written, it is not only improbable but involves a main character who is a detestable, sociopathic, racist, cruel, arrogant, seventeen year old boy who rapes and murders young girls when he is not obsessing about food or busy creating his fantasy world of Atranta. Ronald is completely selfish and has no sense of empathy toward others. At one point he wonders if it is wrong to rape but decides that since it is so much fun it must be a good thing. He also sees himself as being very special. "He deeply resented the terms 'sex offender', 'deviate', 'murderer' when used ...