Science Fiction and Fantasy Association of New Zealand

Finders Keepers Finders Keepers
by Russ Colchamiro
3 Finger Prints

Supplied for review by 3 Finger Prints

Reviewed By: Simon Litten

Finders Keepers is Russ Colchamiro’s first novel, though not his first foray into the world of the written word: as he has had several short stories published and is a co-author of the comic-book mini-series Timespell.

Finders Keepers is a rollicking novel that ties two principal themes and several inter-related story lines together by way of shifting points of view. The two themes are the discovery of the joy of travel by Jason Medley, a first time backpacker with no experience of life beyond New York state; and the creation of the Milky Way and its artistic centrepiece Earth and its solar system.

The action revolves around a bottle of cosmic creation powder that fell to earth and how it affects its finder, the people who dropped it, and what the Minder of the Universe will do if he ever finds out. Complexly simple really.

Finders Keepers was a novel that surprised me by the way: its characters changed and grew as the novel progressed; the unrelated plotlines coalesced into a whole; the persistent tongue in check attitude towards creation and the religion; and how deeply the author’s love of travel infused the book. For all those reasons this book should be read and promoted – unlike Milo’s Smear, which really is nothing you’d want to look at.

SFFANZ is a non-profit organisation and registered charity
designed to bring together fans of the fantastic in New Zealand

Contact us by email at: enquiries@sffanz.org.nz