Review of 'Love's sorrow' by Terri Rochenski

A review copy was provided by the author in return for an honest review.

May I begin by apologizing to the author for the extended delay in finalizing this review. I wasn’t very well lately, and this is likely to impact my reading speed over the next few weeks as well, but please bear with me, I’m getting there.

I must say I am rarely so impressed with a novel. Terry, thumbs up! This is a great book, and I am giving it four and a half stars. There were a couple of reasons I didn’t go up to five. Perhaps I should start with them, and get the cons out of the way.

What bothered me was the certainty that I had all along that there was something wrong with Gavin MacKay. The author  showed her presence, albeit unwittingly, by presenting a main character who was suspicious from the beginning.

The author’s presence was noticeable throughout the book as she kept telling the reader things that she should have inconspicuously showed (as per the famous writing rule I keep quoting in my reviews.) I agree that sometimes this is not possible when writing a book  from a first person point of view, but I feel that there were many instances in the novel where Terri could have better used her writing skills.

Other than that, I can only praise ‘Love’s sorrow’ at every level. Beautifully written, authentic, it drew me in like a magnet and I just couldn’t put it down. One of those rare page-turners with well-developed characters, great attention to detail that provides an amazing sense of time and place, but most importantly an amazing, heartrending story for which I can only commend the author. I am glad that this is the beginning of a series, and I beg Terri to come back to me with the next instalment.

I apologize that this review is not more elaborate, but since I have no criticism to add, I see no reason to extend it.

Congratulations, Terri!

 

Terri’s novel can be purchased on Amazon in both hard copy and Ebook format. Click HERE to access the purchase link.

COMING SOON

Review of Old flame by Annabelle Blume

 

 

 

 

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Announcement

Due to persisting health issues, I am forced to postpone reviews for a little while. I hope to be back on track by the end of next week. I sincerely apologise to my readers, and to the authors whose books were scheduled for review this week.

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Review of 'A bridge to cross' by Edward R Hackemer

A review copy was provided by the author in return for an honest review. 

I recently read and reviewed ‘In A Cream Packard’ by the same author. In spite of my lengthy criticism of that novel, the author did not back down, instead requesting reviews of two other books that he wrote. Few authors take criticism well, and I truly appreciate Edward in this regard.

‘A bridge to cross’ has stirred my interest for several reasons. To start with, I was very curious to see how Edward’s writing has evolved. I was not disappointed.

The pros:

The expression is very pleasant, polished and highly educated; characteristics that are magnets to me when it comes to picking my readings.

I paid particular attention to the way the author depicted the late 1920s. A wonderful sense of authenticity was present all along. Few authors have the ability to capture time and place in their novels, and I must say that Edward masters it beautifully. Just like with my previous read, I could picture this novel successfully turned into a black and white movie (if this were possible nowadays).

I also appreciated the author’s thoughtful decision to add notes and a glossary of the 1920s slang at the end of the book.

The cons:

I feel I must repeat a comment made in my review of ‘In A Cream Packard.’ Although beautiful, the depiction of things and places is excessive, providing details that are often unnecessary and irrelevant. Edward may argue that they contribute to the sense of authenticity, but they are, in my view, unnecessarily elaborate. A good book is one that draws the reader in; one in which the author’s presence is barely noticeable, if at all. A writer’s first rule is ‘Show, don’t tell.’ This technique enables the reader to experience the story through action, words, thoughts, senses and feelings rather than through the author's exposition, summarization, and description. Ernest Hemingway has depicted it as ‘the Iceberg Theory,’ from which I quote what I believe to be the relevant phrase: ‘The dignity of movement of an iceberg is due to only one-eighth of it being above water.’ It speaks for itself.

A relevant example of the author’s departure from the above theory in ‘A bridge to cross’ is his description of the main characters. He tells the reader all about them in a few condensed paragraphs at the beginning of the book. I was disappointed to read all that was to be known about the characters, instead of seeing them fleshed out throughout the book. It felt as if there was nothing to discover or to explore about them after that.

Conclusion:

Although this novel has its shortcomings and fails to send my heart into an excited throb, it was a pleasant and relaxed read that I would certainly recommend to every lover of the 1920’s era, the dynamism of which is beautifully depicted therein. A great read sprinkled with some surprises, more energetic than ‘In a Cream Packard’, more daring too as far as romanticism and intimate scenes are concerned. 

Edward’s novel can be purchased on Amazon in both hard copy and Ebook format. Click HERE to access the purchase link.

COMING SOON

Review of Love's sorrow by Terry Rochenski

 

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Review of ‘The siren’s secret’ by Debbie Herbert

A review copy was provided by the author in return for an honest review. Due to personal commitments, it took me much longer than expected to read this book and to complete my review. I apologize to the author for that.

 

I must say that ‘The siren’s secret’ intrigued me. I never read a mermaid book before, and I was tempted to think that I will come across a bedtime tale rewritten to accommodate the reading tastes of an adult audience. Instead, I came across a complex plot that blends together romance, crime, social and family issues, all presented with a surprising normality, considering that the main character is not our everyday heroine. She’s a modern day woman with a real job, but a mermaid nonetheless, a marine creature with the head, torso, and arms of a woman and the tail of a fish.

The pros:

Debbie Herbert managed to combine a thriller, a romance and the paranormal element and make them look like our day-to-day life.

The romance is intense at times (graphic scenes alert!), but as opposed to other books that I read, it is not an unrealistic fairy tale. It contains all plausible elements of a love story: initial flame, emotions, conflict, heartache, trials, intimacy and so on.

The author managed to capture really well the family issues that tormented the households of the main characters. Quite complex situations involving painful truths, challenges, feuds between characters, reconciliation etc.

The description of the villain and his actions is just as intricate. We don’t only learn about his crimes, but we see inside his head, how he thinks, what prompted him to turn into the man he is today.

I also loved how the author captured life in the Alabama Bayou. It gave me a sense of authenticity, making me feel that I was actually walking along the town streets. It is great to read a story that gives a sense of time and place, and this novel achieved just that.

The cons:

Although I much appreciated the down-to-earth side of the romance story, I thought that it started too abruptly, only to go back to normality as I kept reading. Having said that, I disagree with other reviews that I read about this book. Some readers were disappointed with the relationship’s failure to really spark, but I truly think that the author managed to capture very well the initial intensity that characterizes the beginnings of a flame, then went on to describe what most people go through in their love life: setbacks and disappointments, mistrust, resilience and, ultimately, endurance.

I thought, however, that the characters failed to properly develop throughout the book, which probably prompted some readers to question the realism and depth of this love story. I felt that Tillman was too much of a contradiction, his reactions quite erratic, confusing and often unjustified, as it was his rudeness and professionalism. He is not a well-defined individual, which is a shame, considering his status as a main character. I cannot say that Shelly was really fleshed out either, but the author’s consistency in describing the differences between her and the two other mermaids (her cousins) created a feel of character authenticity, which ultimately saved the day.

I also have a problem with the clichéd life story of the villain. The typical childhood issues that turned him into a criminal would more rightfully belong to a newspaper clipping that summarizes a series of murders. I felt that the author failed to use her imagination, offering a trite, hackneyed scenario instead.

Tillman’s mother and brother are unnecessarily predominant in the book, and fail to contribute to fleshing him out. While some of the scenes involving them are clearly needed to move the plot forward, I thought that some other were there just to provide filling.

As opposed to the rest of the book, the ending is disappointingly slow, and I could see it coming from a mile.

Conclusion:

I have mixed feelings about this book. The writing and the dialogues aren’t as strong as they should be, there are pros and cons as described above, but overall I think that this is a very interesting and pleasant read, as it blends really well many potent elements. Without being an adrenaline pumper, this novel is quite attractive, and I would recommend it to all lovers of unusual paranormal.

 

Debbie’s novel can be purchased on Amazon in Ebook format. Click HERE to access the purchase link.

 

COMING SOON

 

Review of A Bridge to Cross

by Edward R Hackemer

 

 

 

 

 

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