Ahh Bentley Little.
Having read several of his books I believe this is my favourite horror writer. IT's not stephen King or Richard Laymon but Little. I don't even read so many of books in one go because I don't want this to end.

I've read The Store; The Association (my favourite); The House; The Mailman; The Collection; The Resort; The Town; The Revelation; The Walking.

I have to read His Father's Son; Death Instinct; The Burning; The Disappearence; The Vanishing; University; The Return; The Summoning; Dominion; Guests; The Policy; The Academy; The Ignored and the Haunted.

Some of the newer ones I never had them because they are too expensive like The HandyMan; The Influence; The Consultant; The Circle; The Bank - but lets be real, I will buy them probably.

So, this one follows the same trope as the previous I've read and it's the only writer I know that does this.. We follow Jason who discovers that he has some real artistic valour at writing letters. He finds out that as he writes letters they are heard and good things happen. As times passes on he understands that he has some kind of power and some of actions have really impact, not like previous where he received some free food or something like that.

The story itself it's written in first perspective and it was interesting to see that he is a unreliable character and sometimes do or say something that he goes against what he previous said.
Most novel (at least 2/3) are about this power and about the consequences of his actions. But all of this time, and from time to time he receives enigmatic letters that come into reality and change his life. He starts writing not because of pleasure or need but because it's a job and at the same time an addiction.

The "evil" entity turns out like the evil that exists in the book The Store or The Association. It's within us, it's no one, it's everyone, it's a bit lovecraftian. It's very difficult to fully tell who the enemy is.

But it's Jason a good character? Not at all. He is a evil character on his own after all in his teens he makes a girl get dressed, through some letters and even sent a picture. His sex life it's all about him and he even kill his own father - true to be told - his father his not the best father with frequent beatings. His mother is no better and he continually torment her with letters. He is self-centered and as I said obsessed with writing and the power that comes with it.

I've enjoyed it. I've read it 4 days which to me it's pretty good. Advisable but to newcomers I would advise starting with either the Store or the association.

A book that would've worked twice as well if it had been half the size, Bentley Little's "Dispatch" gives us a glimpse into the weird world of Jason Hanford, a man who discovers at an early age that he has an affinity and talent for writing letters. He writes them in staggering quantities, and the results they get are equally staggering. It's almost as if they possess a certain indescribable power -- governmental policies change, people die, lives are altered. Perhaps its just a gift ...

It's an intriguing premise, but not an intriguing novel. Never mind the redundant descriptions of Hanford's letters, never mind the almost comical (and hardly creepy) twist the novel takes 2/3rds of the way through, and never mind the glaringly obvious plot elements (half of which turn into holes). The weakest spot in this novel is, in fact, the central character himself, a man so despicable that it is hard to care about anything that happens to him, scary or not. The novel treats us to a healthy dose of his horrific childhood, so it's not hard to imagine how he became the man he is, but that's not enough to make him a sympathetic character, let alone an interesting one.

The novel's premise, however, IS interesting enough to make you wonder where it's headed, to keep you reading through the stalls and the padding, and the writing is deft enough to make the trip go quickly. The final destination, unfortunately, succumbs to too much silliness and is, ultimately, nothing to write home about.

I found Bentley Little's, Dispatch, to be well written and entertaining. However, the first half of the book seemed a bit slow to me. In fact, I put the book down several times - because of the slow tempo and some problems I had with Jason Hanford, the hero of the story - only to come back and try it again later. To Little's credit, the book does pick up in the second half and really gets revved up for the last quarter, redeeming both the storyline and the protagonist.

Let me explain my comments about the protagonist. I guess I'm a little old fashioned, but I like to root for the hero of a story. With Jason Hanford, a person with an unusually persuasive style of writing letters, I found this nearly impossible to do. For the first half of the book and part of the second, Jason exhibits absolutely no redeemable qualities. He uses his friends, hates his family, destroys lives and even kills people, all with no remorse. He even states this several times throughout the book. In the end, he does somewhat redeem himself, and it was for hoping that this would happen that I continued to read. But I did continue to read the book, and that says a lot about Bentley Little's writing abilities. If you like dark characters and anti-heroes, you'll like Dispatch.

- Bob Avey, author of the Detective Elliot series

My first book I read from Bentley Little. I figured since he had been recommended by another famous horror fiction writer, he was good. And this one is a great first one to start out with. Interesting plot about a guy who writes letters and they come true. I don't want to spoil anything, but it's got one of the most fresh and original plots I've read in years.

Stephen King recommended author and book. He says: "BEST OUTRIGHT HORROR NOVELIST. Bentley Little, in a walk. Don't know Bentley Little? You're not alone. He's probably the genre's best-kept secret, but at least 10 of his novels are available in paperback; you can pick up three for the price of that flashy new hardcover you've got your eye on. The best thing about Little is that he can go from zero to surreal in 6.0 seconds. My favorites are The Store (think Wal-Mart run by SAYYY-tan) and Dispatch, in which a young fellow discovers that his letters to the editor actually get things done. Bad things."

King blurb about this novel: "Little is the horror poet of ordinary things. In this surreal novel, a lonely young man discovers his letters to the editor — and to the famous — bring actual results. Of course he eventually finds out he's working in Satan's own office pool, but that's the fun of the damned thing."

1/10/06 Lilja's Library Stephen's Picks.

Not my usual read, but after trying Bentley Little out reading "The Ignored," I gave this book a shot. I found it to be a bit strange and not typically my kind of horror. I actually do a lot of letter writing so this book appealed to me.

In a nutshell, the book is centered around Jason, who from 5th grade on, loved to write letters. It started out with a penpal in Japan to him writing letters of complaint to local burger joints, movie theatres and theme parks. He would always get a response from them for freebies. His letter writing then turns political. He finds that he can make changes through letters. But be careful what you wish for, because you might end up getting more than you bargained for. THe book turns dark when Jason takes a job as an official Letter Writer.

The book definitely keeps you reading, and in my personal opinion, goes a little too sci-fi-ish in the end, but it was a good read. My only wish is that the end of the book regarding his wife and child were different, with the closure I felt I did not get. But for horror sake, I can see why he did what he did.

The only Bentley Little book I did not like.Couldn't even finish it.

I have owned this book for years but never read it. As I exhausted my library books and don't like e-books, I perused my cache of books and picked this one out. It was the usual Bentley Little, not outstanding but still fun. Just what I needed right now.

I really liked the premise of this one. Very Death Note adjacent. And then it turned kind of dumb with the unrealistic magical realism, the alternate dimensions, and so forth. And then it turned around again and had the most gloriously cheesy ending I never expected. I straight up laughed out loud at the finale. So - in terms of premise, 4, middle 2, end 5 (but you're only going to love the cheesiness of the ending if you're a fan of cheese already - think Sharknado style cheese). All in all, up until the ending, I considered not keeping the book, but it truly redeemed it for me.

I absolutely loved this book until the last chapter, when it completely fell apart. Still I gave the book 4 stars for a very innovative, thought-provoking and timely story line.

There is no way that this book should work. It's essentially about 400 pages of a guy writing letters. Yet . . . that's Little's genius. He takes ordinary things--like a mailman, a homeowners association or even a superstore--and turns them into insidious things with powerful statements to make. This time he takes on letter writers, and he does a hell of a job. However, sometimes he has trouble with endings, and this is one of those instances. There is a twist near the ending, but it's just so absurd that he lost me. It was a decent ending, but my suspension of disbelief was blown for it. Still, this is a hell of a book, and I like it a lot!

Pretty good horror novel in the typical Little fashion. Seems like most reviewers preferred either the first half or the second half. I feel all of the books I've read by Little are strong in the beginning and tail off near the end. This one is no exception. I must say I really enjoyed the concept which was pretty unique compared to any other horror story I've ever read. Nicely done Bentley...on to the next....