Trapped in a dead-end job as a bookstore cashier, Jenny passes time by flirting with the female customers. When her latest patron, Destiny Creech, shows interest in her, what follows is a relationship that quickly becomes romantic. While the two girls spend some of their time watching classic movies together, their shared passion becomes geocaching -- a method of treasure hunting via the use of GPS devices and encrypted clues.
And thus begins Andy Duncan's novelette, THE NIGHT CACHE.
Over the course of a few months’ time, the girls track down hidden caches, challenging themselves to be the first to crack the codes and find the newest locations. But as quickly as their relationship begins, it is cut short by Destiny's untimely death. As Jenny mourns her lost friend, she comes into possession of Destiny's notebook. Upon reading through her lover's notes, Jenny finds a series of coded messages and coordinates, leading her on one last expedition in an effort to find what Destiny left behind.
The thing that jumped out at me as I read THE NIGHT CACHE was how well Duncan captured the personalities and voices of the two girls. Destiny is portrayed as a free-spirit, always full of energy and on the lookout for her next adventure, whereas Jenny is left in awe of her new friend and tries her best to keep up as she's swept along. Despite the girls' brief time together, their relationship and conversations felt authentic and were enjoyable to read.
The other aspects I liked were the descriptions of geocaching and the various cryptography methods used to find the treasure. At various points in the story, Duncan shows the reader charts, codes, etc to illustrate what the girls are analyzing along the way. These sections get the reader more grounded in the girls' world, and even allows him or her to take a crack at breaking the codes.
My only complaint is that I wish the story were a bit longer. At just under forty pages, there's too little space to touch on everything. While I think the geocaching sections are given enough time, the area that falls by the wayside to some degree is the girls' time together. Duncan had done such a good job of describing their dynamic relationship that I wish he'd spent even ten or twenty more pages fleshing it out further. I think readers can make a case that the whirlwind nature of their friendship lends itself to leaving that section brief, but I still would have liked to see it broadened out.
THE NIGHT CACHE is available now from PS Publishing. The book is available in two states -- a $12 unsigned hardcover and a $24 signed hardcover.
(6 out of 10)
And thus begins Andy Duncan's novelette, THE NIGHT CACHE.
Over the course of a few months’ time, the girls track down hidden caches, challenging themselves to be the first to crack the codes and find the newest locations. But as quickly as their relationship begins, it is cut short by Destiny's untimely death. As Jenny mourns her lost friend, she comes into possession of Destiny's notebook. Upon reading through her lover's notes, Jenny finds a series of coded messages and coordinates, leading her on one last expedition in an effort to find what Destiny left behind.
The thing that jumped out at me as I read THE NIGHT CACHE was how well Duncan captured the personalities and voices of the two girls. Destiny is portrayed as a free-spirit, always full of energy and on the lookout for her next adventure, whereas Jenny is left in awe of her new friend and tries her best to keep up as she's swept along. Despite the girls' brief time together, their relationship and conversations felt authentic and were enjoyable to read.
The other aspects I liked were the descriptions of geocaching and the various cryptography methods used to find the treasure. At various points in the story, Duncan shows the reader charts, codes, etc to illustrate what the girls are analyzing along the way. These sections get the reader more grounded in the girls' world, and even allows him or her to take a crack at breaking the codes.
My only complaint is that I wish the story were a bit longer. At just under forty pages, there's too little space to touch on everything. While I think the geocaching sections are given enough time, the area that falls by the wayside to some degree is the girls' time together. Duncan had done such a good job of describing their dynamic relationship that I wish he'd spent even ten or twenty more pages fleshing it out further. I think readers can make a case that the whirlwind nature of their friendship lends itself to leaving that section brief, but I still would have liked to see it broadened out.
THE NIGHT CACHE is available now from PS Publishing. The book is available in two states -- a $12 unsigned hardcover and a $24 signed hardcover.
(6 out of 10)
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