In the last couple of months I've finished two novels whose ending drove me a little nuts. Well, that's not quite true - one element of their ending drove me nuts. The element where the author conveniently forgot their own plotting. I don't want to do spoilers, so I won't name them. Let's call them Book One and Book Two. In Book One a cop who has a standard issue gun, and carries it at all times, suddenly forgets she has it with her and ends up in hand to hand combat as she tries to escape. How do you suddenly forget that you have a weapon that's a little more potent than your hands? In Book Two a private investigator disarms a man, taking his gun. Moments later, when the disarmed man's buddies show up, the PI runs for the kitchen to find a knife! A lo and behold he's taken prisoner until his own buddies show up to rescue him. If three guys turn up wielding guns, why forget about the gun you've just confiscated in the hope that a knife will deflect the bullets? I'm all for artistic license, and I'm happy to suspend my disbelief when required, but I find that pretty difficult if the story is realist fiction and the plot device is plain daft. These scenes added to the suspense and tension in the story, but sometimes the little things just drive me nuts!
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