I thoroughly enjoyed Patrick Brown’s first novel, Varied Traits. The plot is action packed and full of suspense. The author did an excellent job drawing the characters and I was particularly impressed at how ably he brought the female characters to life. True to the title, the characters are multi-faceted, and the author has a true facility for thoroughly imagining the details of a situation and allowing the reader to assert themselves in it. As a first novel it is remarkable; I eagerly await his future endeavors.