Will Williams

Disorder collection

By: Namwali Serpell

Narrated by: JD Jackson

In a modern retelling of Edgar Allan Poe’s William Wilson by the author of The Old Drift, a young black man’s paranoia escalates as he is followed, challenged, and terrorized by a doppelgänger bent on sabotaging his life.

Ever since high school, somebody’s been playing the echo game on Will Williams. A look-alike with the same tattoos and the same name has been following him. Starting by implicating Will in petty crimes, and escalating to offenses with serious prison terms, he’s undermined every attempt Will has made to get his life on track. Now, drifting from city to city, Will’s doing everything in his power to outrun his shadow.

Will Williams is part of Disorder, a collection of six short stories of living nightmares, chilling visions, and uncanny imagination that explore a world losing its balance in terrifying ways. Each piece can be read or listened to in a single disorienting sitting.

©2019 Namwali Serpell (P)2019 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Interesting

Interesting reimagining of the tale. The narrator was very entertaining. I would have enjoyed just a little more clarification in some scenes as I was a little confused, but overall this was a captivating story.

Creepy, but fascinating.

Now this was a quick, GOOD READ!

He thinks that another is the cause of all of his troubles, but the reality is he’s the cause of his own problems. He’s managed to see himself as separate from the evil side of him that commits wrongdoing and attempts to place the blame on a doppelgänger.

A creepy, but fascinating read. I’ll have to check out more from this author as I was thoroughly impressed with her writing style.

Great Use of Unreliable Narrator

I understand that this is based on an old classic; fortunately for me, I was unfamiliar with the original work, so this story was able to seep in as I realized just how unreliable the narrator was. Well done.

Good short story

A surprise from start to finish. Great narrator and interesting storyline with an unexpected outcome.

Intense

I think this has to have been my favorite story of the entire collection. The narrator made me feel like I was fully a part of this story.