In this story, Kelsey, an artist who is attempting to run her father's ski resort while he recovers from an illness, meets the intriguing and rich Jared, who has come to the resort in hopes of discovering what might have happened to his sister who was injured in an accident a few weeks earlier. Some other dangerous events occur, such as a suspicious breakdown in one of the snow mobiles, and it isn't long before Jared begins to realize Kelsey might be in danger. He is determined to protect her at all costs, even though the local lawman also seems romantically interested in our leading lady. Ultimately, Jared is able to thwart the bad guy and save his woman and her family from harm. I don't think that's a spoiler because you can see it coming from a few slopes away. However, what I won't give away is the identity of the culprit. That was not as obvious, though I was able to figure it out before the reveal at the end (and you will be, too!).
I found Kelsey and Jared both to be likable and fairly well-fleshed out. Some of the supporting characters were a bit lacking in development, but it didn't take away from the story for me. I found the setting to be most intriguing and I think that helped drive the story. The ending was a bit ridiculous, but Kelsey and Jared's story held my interest so well that I was willing to accept the final scenes despite their improbability.
This book is what I would consider a "light" read. I read it in a few hours. It was interesting enough that I had trouble putting it down a few times, but the story is not unique enough that it will stay with me for weeks as some stories do. I really like the author's voice. She did a great job of changing from one point of view to another without too many "head hopping" problems which sometimes occur, although there were a few times I wasn't sure whose head I was in. Nevertheless, the story moved along and kept my interest. There was some sex but it wasn't purposeless, and the story builds to it. I noticed that several editors are listed and yet there were still some mistakes that should have been caught by one of them, but it wasn't so distracting that it was difficult to read. Overall, I would be interested in reading more contemporary romance novels from this author.
You can find my **** review on Amazon here.
Thursday, September 24, 2015
Wednesday, September 23, 2015
My Review of Love Like You've Never Been Hurt by SJ McCoy
I really wanted to like this book.... There are pieces of it that were really great, but there was so much wrong with it (sigh), both from a plot stand point and as an editor, it just ruined it for me.
Let me start with the premise of the story. Emma is a screenwriter who lives in LA. She has a lot of friends--so many, in fact, it takes a while to remember who they all are. There's Holly, her best friend in LA, but then she has a group of friends she grew up with--Missy, Ben, and Pete. And Pete also lives and works in LA, and even though they are great friends, Emma has never met Pete's business partner, Jack, until early in the story when she literally runs into him. Later, we'll meet some other important people, like Grandpa, his best friend whose name I forget, Dan, Lexi, Laura, and Scot (yes, with one T.)
Emma realizes that she is interested in Jack immediately, but she had her heart broken by her ex-husband so she doesn't date or think about relationships ever--not even when she really thinks a guy is hot and knows he likes her, too. Even when Jack makes it clear that he is interested in her and that he's a good guy, she doesn't buy it. You can already see where it's going from early one when we discover that Jack has dated a lot of women but he's not a player and yet Emma is still scared that he'll cheat on her. Any guesses what ends up happening?
Nevertheless, despite this sexy man wanting her so badky, Emma ignores him and tries to run away. Her friends tell her to go for it, even Pete who knows Jack so well. She still runs away. Her friends call her "Mouse" because she keeps hiding in a "mouse hole." This may have been a cute analogy once or twice but it is stated over and over and over and over again. Eventually, of course, Emma gives in and decides to give Jack a whirl (or a roll--in the hay, as the case may be). But--as you can guess, there is one miss understanding after the other until the end, which I will not spoil for you.
There are so many occurrences that seem pretty far-fetched but need to happen for the story to work. For example we get a tiny shred of foreshadowing at one point when Jack takes his phone out of his pocket and puts in on a dresser.So later, when there is a misunderstanding, he can't call Emma because he doesn't have his phone. Also, in another situation where Emma is very mad at Jack about something she has very little evidence to suspect he did, she won't call him because she just doesn't want to think about it. She'd rather get really drunk on whiskey and spend the night at Ben's house. This does not seem realistic at all to me. The explanation, of course, is that she's a mouse and she's immature. Well, I don't buy it. She's not immature in anything else she does, so why would she be when it comes to relationships? Wouldn't she at least call him to tell him to go pluck himself?
There were some descriptions that McCoy wrote really well. She is particularly talented at writing steamy scenes, something many authors struggle with. They were believable and well described without being too intimate. She also took her time and let the story develop, which is a rarity with many romance writers as well. At times, it seemed a little drawn out, but for the most part, the pacing was pretty perfect.
I did not see an editor listed on the Kindle addition and I'm wondering if McCoy didn't attempt to edit her own work--something that is nearly impossible to do well. There are so many comma splices--like dozens--it was extremely distracting. Here is an example:"You hurt yourself by believing the worst, don't you see that?" Likewise, the word okay is constantly capitalized even in the middle of a sentence. Such as this one: "Hey, Mousey. Everything Okay?" There were also lots of places where she didn't put a comma before "and" where one was required and put one where it wasn't needed. There are plenty of questions that end with periods and even some statements with question marks. Here is an example of the first instance: "But did you see them, like, kiss or anything." and one of the later: "I thought he was supposed to be here?" Finally, there were some phrases used that I had never heard before that seemed odd to me, sort of like when I edit for second language learners, though I believe she is an American. Here is an example: "She stayed at mine last night, she was in a bit of a state." (note the comma splice as well!)
McCoy has several titles available, but I don't think I will be reading anything else from her unless it is highly recommended by a close friend. I didn't even bother to read the chapter of the next book included in the back of this one. I see that she has quite the following, and I think that's wonderful. Her writing just isn't for me. I need a story that makes me think and wonder what is going to happen, not something so predictable. And I would strongly recommend a good editor. For me, this one is only 2.5 stars, though on Amazon, I gave it 3 (rounded up.) You can check it out for yourself here. It is currently free as of September 23, 2015.
Let me start with the premise of the story. Emma is a screenwriter who lives in LA. She has a lot of friends--so many, in fact, it takes a while to remember who they all are. There's Holly, her best friend in LA, but then she has a group of friends she grew up with--Missy, Ben, and Pete. And Pete also lives and works in LA, and even though they are great friends, Emma has never met Pete's business partner, Jack, until early in the story when she literally runs into him. Later, we'll meet some other important people, like Grandpa, his best friend whose name I forget, Dan, Lexi, Laura, and Scot (yes, with one T.)
Emma realizes that she is interested in Jack immediately, but she had her heart broken by her ex-husband so she doesn't date or think about relationships ever--not even when she really thinks a guy is hot and knows he likes her, too. Even when Jack makes it clear that he is interested in her and that he's a good guy, she doesn't buy it. You can already see where it's going from early one when we discover that Jack has dated a lot of women but he's not a player and yet Emma is still scared that he'll cheat on her. Any guesses what ends up happening?
Nevertheless, despite this sexy man wanting her so badky, Emma ignores him and tries to run away. Her friends tell her to go for it, even Pete who knows Jack so well. She still runs away. Her friends call her "Mouse" because she keeps hiding in a "mouse hole." This may have been a cute analogy once or twice but it is stated over and over and over and over again. Eventually, of course, Emma gives in and decides to give Jack a whirl (or a roll--in the hay, as the case may be). But--as you can guess, there is one miss understanding after the other until the end, which I will not spoil for you.
There are so many occurrences that seem pretty far-fetched but need to happen for the story to work. For example we get a tiny shred of foreshadowing at one point when Jack takes his phone out of his pocket and puts in on a dresser.So later, when there is a misunderstanding, he can't call Emma because he doesn't have his phone. Also, in another situation where Emma is very mad at Jack about something she has very little evidence to suspect he did, she won't call him because she just doesn't want to think about it. She'd rather get really drunk on whiskey and spend the night at Ben's house. This does not seem realistic at all to me. The explanation, of course, is that she's a mouse and she's immature. Well, I don't buy it. She's not immature in anything else she does, so why would she be when it comes to relationships? Wouldn't she at least call him to tell him to go pluck himself?
There were some descriptions that McCoy wrote really well. She is particularly talented at writing steamy scenes, something many authors struggle with. They were believable and well described without being too intimate. She also took her time and let the story develop, which is a rarity with many romance writers as well. At times, it seemed a little drawn out, but for the most part, the pacing was pretty perfect.
I did not see an editor listed on the Kindle addition and I'm wondering if McCoy didn't attempt to edit her own work--something that is nearly impossible to do well. There are so many comma splices--like dozens--it was extremely distracting. Here is an example:"You hurt yourself by believing the worst, don't you see that?" Likewise, the word okay is constantly capitalized even in the middle of a sentence. Such as this one: "Hey, Mousey. Everything Okay?" There were also lots of places where she didn't put a comma before "and" where one was required and put one where it wasn't needed. There are plenty of questions that end with periods and even some statements with question marks. Here is an example of the first instance: "But did you see them, like, kiss or anything." and one of the later: "I thought he was supposed to be here?" Finally, there were some phrases used that I had never heard before that seemed odd to me, sort of like when I edit for second language learners, though I believe she is an American. Here is an example: "She stayed at mine last night, she was in a bit of a state." (note the comma splice as well!)
McCoy has several titles available, but I don't think I will be reading anything else from her unless it is highly recommended by a close friend. I didn't even bother to read the chapter of the next book included in the back of this one. I see that she has quite the following, and I think that's wonderful. Her writing just isn't for me. I need a story that makes me think and wonder what is going to happen, not something so predictable. And I would strongly recommend a good editor. For me, this one is only 2.5 stars, though on Amazon, I gave it 3 (rounded up.) You can check it out for yourself here. It is currently free as of September 23, 2015.
Tuesday, September 22, 2015
My Review of Insanity (Mad in Wonderland) by Cameron Jace
I love all things Alice, so I was really excited to read this, especially after all of the great reviews, but I was a bit confused even from the beginning. First of all, there's no true time established in the setting until much further into the book, so it was difficult to establish this was happening in present day and not Alice's original time. Once we learn it is present day, it's very confusing as to how Alice is alive. I found the idea that Alice is in an asylum very similar to ABC's Once Upon a Time in Wonderland. Though there were certainly elements that were different--like Alice isn't rescued from the asylum in order to go back into Wonderland, she is still in an asylum because everyone thinks she is crazy.
I liked the backstory regarding Alice killing everyone on the bus, including her boyfriend, Adam, but I don't feel like we ever get a clear picture of exactly what happened. And I think it seems pretty clear from the first time that we meet Jack that he and Adam are a bit too similar (don't want to give anything away.)
Also, when Alice is present, the book is written in first person, but when she's not, it's third person--which was just odd. Generally speaking, when I am reading a book in third person, I identify with the narrator as another person but when Alice is sometimes telling the story and then some identified person is, it was hard to follow. How do we know what is happening in Alice's story if she's not there? It almost seemed like the author didn't consider this when first telling the story and then went back and tried to patch it up.
I know this is a series and I'm not sure I'll be reading the rest. The characters were not engaging enough for me to seek out the next one, nor was the idea original or creative enough. I love Lewis Carroll's creation but I don't think this retelling/imagination hit the mark. I gave it ***.
Lots of other people disagreed with me, however, as this book has plenty of four and five stars. If you'd like to check it out yourself, you can find it here.
I liked the backstory regarding Alice killing everyone on the bus, including her boyfriend, Adam, but I don't feel like we ever get a clear picture of exactly what happened. And I think it seems pretty clear from the first time that we meet Jack that he and Adam are a bit too similar (don't want to give anything away.)
Also, when Alice is present, the book is written in first person, but when she's not, it's third person--which was just odd. Generally speaking, when I am reading a book in third person, I identify with the narrator as another person but when Alice is sometimes telling the story and then some identified person is, it was hard to follow. How do we know what is happening in Alice's story if she's not there? It almost seemed like the author didn't consider this when first telling the story and then went back and tried to patch it up.
I know this is a series and I'm not sure I'll be reading the rest. The characters were not engaging enough for me to seek out the next one, nor was the idea original or creative enough. I love Lewis Carroll's creation but I don't think this retelling/imagination hit the mark. I gave it ***.
Lots of other people disagreed with me, however, as this book has plenty of four and five stars. If you'd like to check it out yourself, you can find it here.
Literally Loads of Literature!
I read a lot of books. I currently have over 500 titles on my Kindle.
Most of them I get from Amazon--most of them are free or on promo at the time that I download them. That doesn't mean they aren't good.... it just means I'm cheap. I almost always post a review on Amazon, but sometimes I don't want to post all of my thoughts there or on Goodreads. So, I decided to start a blog where I can post longer, more transparent reviews. I will try to be fair to both the writer and the reader. I understand that someone put a lot of effort into this finished piece of literature--but I also understand that readers deserve to know what they might be getting themselves into.
I will also be accepting manuscripts/free books from authors, editors, promoters, etc., so if you'd like my honest opinion of your work, please feel free to email me at www.amyevanhorn@gmail.com.
If you'd like to know my credentials--I really don't have any more than the average reader. I've always been an avid reader. I love to talk about the books that I read. I have been a reading specialist for nine years, reading teacher for fifteen. I love to write and do so as often as I can. I've been blogging for about seven years. I am honest and articulate.
Please feel free to leave your own comments regarding my reviews, especially if you have also read the book. I'd love to hear from you.
Most of them I get from Amazon--most of them are free or on promo at the time that I download them. That doesn't mean they aren't good.... it just means I'm cheap. I almost always post a review on Amazon, but sometimes I don't want to post all of my thoughts there or on Goodreads. So, I decided to start a blog where I can post longer, more transparent reviews. I will try to be fair to both the writer and the reader. I understand that someone put a lot of effort into this finished piece of literature--but I also understand that readers deserve to know what they might be getting themselves into.
 |
| I really love books.... |
If you'd like to know my credentials--I really don't have any more than the average reader. I've always been an avid reader. I love to talk about the books that I read. I have been a reading specialist for nine years, reading teacher for fifteen. I love to write and do so as often as I can. I've been blogging for about seven years. I am honest and articulate.
Please feel free to leave your own comments regarding my reviews, especially if you have also read the book. I'd love to hear from you.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)