Look, I know I’m biased. I created the guy. But if you’ve read Woody Buchman or dipped into Woody Buchman – Glasgow, you’ll know what I mean when I say this character sticks with you. He’s not a clean-cut hero. He’s not even a guy you’d necessarily want to trust with your wallet. But that’s the point. Woody is messy, flawed, smart as hell — and painfully real.
We’ve all seen the standard crime thriller protagonist: ex-cop, hard-drinking PI, maybe a military background, one tragic backstory, and an endless supply of moral clarity. Woody? He’s not that. He’s a white-collar criminal running from the wreckage of his own life. He’s charming one minute, falling apart the next. He’s got demons — prescription bottles full of them — and a past he’d rather snort than face.
But here’s the twist: people love him.
Not because he’s good. Because he’s honest. Even when he’s lying, there’s truth in his eyes. You see the damage. You see the brilliance. You see the guy who could’ve been someone great if life hadn’t chewed him up and spat him into the gutters of Glasgow. And even as he sinks deeper into that world, you’re rooting for him. You want him to claw his way back — not to sainthood, but to something like redemption.
That’s what makes Woody Buchman more than just another thriller character. He’s turning into a cult figure because he’s the embodiment of what happens when the system breaks you and you still try to fight your way through it. He doesn’t quote philosophy. He lives it. On the streets. In the pokey. On the run. Every move he makes is a blend of brilliance and disaster.
And let’s be honest: it helps that he’s got women like Anna and Bonnie orbiting around him — two strong, complex, unforgettable forces in their own right. They don’t save him. They see him. And that’s rarer than any plot twist.
So yeah, I’ll say it — Woody Buchman might just be the antihero crime fiction needs right now. And if you haven’t met him yet, well... you’re missing out.
Ken
