Book Review of The Lingering Darkness by Jim Mittler

Author Jim Mittler

This book is the inaugural one published by a former neighbor of ours by the name of Jim Mittler. I was pleasantly surprised and blown away by its description of characters, machinations of the plot, and page-turning details, which makes one wish to read the book from cover to cover without interruptions after opening and delving into this fascinating and exciting novel.

The last sentence written on the back cover sums it up perfectly! “A nonstop thrill ride from beginning to end, The Lingering Darkness is a contemporary political mystery that will keep pulses racing.”

Great Neighbors

It would never have crossed my mind that our friendly neighbor had the talent to write such a novel. His wife kept telling me that Jim had led such an exciting life to date. Who knows the hidden talents of our friends or neighbors until one gets to know them better? That is certainly the case to our getting to familiarize ourselves with Jim and his lovely family.

I was up on a ladder one day with a chain saw trimming a dying redbud tree in our backyard. My husband had back problems, so he was on the ground holding the ladder. Jim, who was our new neighbor at the time, was in his backyard. He could see me over the six-foot wooden fence separating our two yards, and he told me to get down.

He immediately came over to help and finished the job of cutting down that tree. Whether it was my age and grey hair or just being genuinely neighborly, we were sincerely grateful for his help. That was one of our initial interactions, and it was so beautiful to have Jim and his family for our neighbors for a time.

If some fairy godmother could grant wishes, my husband and I wish that they could have remained our neighbors for a long time. Jim's wife and children are all wonderful individuals, and we loved hearing their children laughing and playing in the backyard. It was a melody that touched our hearts and made us smile.

Variety of Life Experiences

During his life, Jim's experiences lend credence to writing details of this thrilling novel, much of which happens upon the water. Some of it includes salvage diving, captaining a boat, knowing the ins and outs of mechanical details of small crafts to gigantic sized ships and more.

Jim Mittler currently works and has worked for some time in the offshore oil industry. Before moving back to Houston and becoming our back door neighbor, he and his precious family had lived in Scotland with Jim working for the same large international company.

It is with an apparent ease that Jim can embellish this story with factual details gleaned from his life experiences and vivid imagination. It places the reader amidst this thriller with believable characters and events rapidly building to the climax.

The Beginning of a Series?

One of my favorite authors used to be John Ludlum. He often wrote about conspiracy theories and terrorists, with one main character being the centralized figure throughout the book and hero of sorts.

We collected many of Ludlum’s books throughout the years, and I can see doing the same with ones written by Jim Mittler. He is already in the process of writing his second book.

The Lingering Darkness portrays the main character, that of Rip Atwater. He discovers and has to contend with a conspiracy which could portend a disaster of monumental proportions.

I don’t wish to spoil the book by telling too much of the plot. Suffice it to say that there are plenty of characters that make this book exciting and keep one on the edge of one’s seat as this sinister plot develops towards its cataclysmic ending. It leaves an opening to another possible publication with the same main character as the Ludlum books used to do.