Lost On A Page by David E. Sharp

​    A wild and entertaining literary adventure, much as the title suggest, with characters hopping genres and, well, pages. This clever meta take on genre fiction was lots of fun.
   It begins as a noir with a properly noir seasoned detective named Slade who discovers he’s actually a character in a series of mystery novels. Moreover, he isn’t alone. There are other characters, from other novels and genres and they’ve recently gained sentience and an ability to not only traverse the realm of fiction but also change their prewritten destinies.
    They team up in opposition to the preformatted designs of their authors and creators, who resides in WWTBAW (World Where The Books Are Written) and also in opposition to their designated antagonists. The fight is fictional. The fight in real.
    It’s Stranger than Fiction action driven and mad on genre. The characters go from bodice ripping romance to space opera to zombie survival thriller. All in the name of…ok, the plot may get slightly confusing, because there’s so much going on, in so many different dimensions. But it is linear for all its wild digressions and does (of course) follow all the classic genre standards.
    It reminded me of the very excellent Gene Doucette’s Unfiction, which is a high compliment in my book. I loved the concept here. What reader hasn’t contemplated the fate of the characters they engage with and what is that fate wasn’t merely bound to the page but went way, way, way off page. Make your own adventure is no longer for readers only. And all the more fun for it. And yes, it’s busy and sort of frantic or manic at times, but well worth navigating.
     The meta aspect is a delight too, the authors interaction as they figure out what’s going on, right down to the final concept of making this all a book is very clever and very well done. The quiet librarian ought to be proud of his creation, all that time surrounded by books has really paid off. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.