When Moody wakes up from this dream, he remembers he is no longer a private investigator, and his thoughts slide into his favorite subject…death, generally his own. Moody drives a cab by night and works part time at a newspaper by day. Down deep he wants to reconcile with his ex-wife and five year old child.

A Vietnam vet and former mental patient; Moody defines his character by these weird dreams and psychotic nightmares. In his spare time, he dates Xanthia Welch, the daughter of a wealthy local businessman. When Xanthia’s father is stabbed after leaving Moody’s cab, Moody is taken in for questioning. A few misunderstandings later, Moody is free and Xanthia pays him a retainer to find her father's murder.

While Moody botched his last investigation and is, at first, reluctant to become involved, he starts asking questions in between his other jobs. As Moody retraces Welch's past, he discovers it was a clever façade of deceit. He is fortunate in acquiring some new friends along the way to help. At times, one has the sensation that every oddball character that the author could create is in this novel.

Since the point of view is always Moody’s in Moody Forever, the novel is very one-dimensional. That would not be so bad, but Moody’s preoccupation with self and death is wearing. Perhaps if the book could be viewed purely in terms of providing insight into the effects of post-traumatic stress syndrome, it might be more tolerable. But as it is, Moody seems to wallow in his suffering.

The result is that the reader is left indifferent toward an unsympathetic principal character, and the others are not defined well enough to generate much of a reaction. In addition, the dialogue is pedestrian in places, and segues between scenes lack smoothness.

What will elevate the book in some readers’ estimation is the author's originality and creativity…bizarre as it sometimes is.

--Thea Davis