The Third Step

by William Lobb

[chymerra]

The Third Step is a raw, gritty book that follows a young man as he deals with addiction, failed relationships, and a struggle with religion. Frankie does questionable things with his life. Things that include drug smuggling, murder, being involved with a girl who is disturbed and revenge. As Frankie starts spiraling out of control, he heads to New Orleans. It is there that he finds the strength to deal with his demons head-on.

Frankie was not a likable character and I am not going to pretend to like him. He did some despicable things in the book. Awful things. But, there were moments where you could see what type of person he could have been. That is what made this book so compelling and what kept me reading it.

Like I mentioned above, this is a raw, gritty book. If you are looking for a book that has a happily ever after, this book is not it. If you are looking for a book where the main character realizes that he needs to turn his life around to better himself, again not the book. This is the book to read if you are looking for a book that is based in reality. This is also a book that doesn’t shy away from anything.

I didn’t like The Third Step. But it was a compelling read and I had to finish it. I had to find out what happened to Frankie. It drew me in.

Now, why did I give The Third Step a 4-star rating if I didn’t like the book? Like I mentioned, the book was a compelling read. It was also very well written. Frankie’s angst over everything came across very clearly.

The end of the book bothered me. It wasn’t what I expected.