This is a tough one to rate. The first third to half of the book felt like a throwaway as things were set up. Really not very enjoyable. There were a lot of cliches that felt like a non-American writing American characters. But the book as a whole ended up being rather clever. I’m giving it four stars not really out of enjoyment but as a reward for that cleverness. It was such a different book from The last Thing to Burn, which I thought was brilliant. First Born didn’t live up to those expectations, sadly. I’ll be reading plenty more Will Dean. I think he’s a very talented writer.