Made it to the Top 20 Free on Amazon!
Month: August 2013
Cover Reveal: The Promise, by April Baker
My good friend and a great writer, April Baker, has just released the cover of her book: The Promise. It’s GORGEOUS! Check it out:
About the Book:
Genre: Paranormal YA
Armed with kick-ass shoes, can CJ stop a maniacal coven leader, save the town, and still get Mr. Melt In Your Mouth Gorgeous while surviving the darkness coming for her?
The smoke from the fire burned her eyes, its heat caressed her skin and the taste of fear choked her. She was going to burn just as her ancestor did all those centuries ago in New Salem Village. How could she have been so wrong about everything?
Cassie Jayne Bishop grew up the only non-believer in town of Coven. When a stranger comes to the sleepy town of New Salem, everything she thought was true unraveled around her. Ethan made her question everything, even her sister’s death. Clues start to pile up and Cassie is determined to find out if the Coven was the real reason her sister died.
What she uncovers terrifies her to the very depths of her soul….
The Promise is a mystery at heart, but it has a romance that will make your toes curl and your heart melt.
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Purchase the book:
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About the Author:
So who am I? Well, I’m the crazy girl with an imagination that never shuts up. I LOVE scary movies. My friend Chazz laughs at me when I scare myself watching them and tells me to stop watching them, but who doesn’t love to get scared? I grew up in a small town nestled in the southern mountains of West Virginia where I spent days roaming around in the woods, climbing trees, and causing general mayhem. Nights I would stay up reading Nancy Drew by flashlight under the covers until my parents yelled at me to go to sleep.
Growing up in a small town, I learned a lot of values and morals, I also learned parents have spies everywhere and there’s always someone to tell your mama on you. So when you get grounded, what is there left to do? Read! My Aunt Jo gave me my first real romance novel. It was a romance titled “Lord Margrave’s Deception.” I remember it fondly. But I also learned I had a deep and abiding love of mysteries and anything paranormal. As I grew up, I started to write just that and would entertain my friends with stories featuring them as main characters.
Now, I live Huntersville, NC where I entertain my family and watch the cats get teased by the birds and laugh myself silly when they swoop down and then dive back up just out of reach. The cats start yelling something fierce…lol.
I love books, I love writing books, and I love entertaining people with my silly stories.
PS: DO NOT GET IN MY WAY IF THERE IS A SALE ON AT TARGET – my home away from home!
Book Review: Fate War Alliance, by E.M. Havens
Fate War: Alliance is the first book in the Fate War series.
Genre: Steampunk Romance
Overall **** 4 out of 5 Stars. I was provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
An arranged marriage between Prince Cole and Princess Samantha provides the alliance needed to defeat the Fate Army.
Prince Cole is your basic playboy-not-interested-in-being-King. Princess Samantha is anything but basic. When Cole’s brother is killed, Cole is forced to step into his place as next-in-line to the throne, but he doesn’t exactly go willingly. Sam wants to escape palace life, but before she can, her parents send her to a “finishing” school and wipe out her uniqueness and free will.
After being forced to wed and then consummate the marriage in front of a room full of strangers, Cole and Samantha get off to a bit of a rocky start. He wants to get to know her, but all she wants to do is please him, and the two wants don’t exactly compute. Eventually, Cole is able to coax out pieces of the true Samantha: she’s a fast reader who retains everything she’s read, she loves horses, dessert is her favorite part of a meal. But Samantha is constantly at war with herself, having been “taught” in the finishing school what a true lady is and Cole’s behavior won’t let her follow her what she’s “learned.”
When it is finally revealed that Samantha’s mother repressed her daughter’s genius in order to hide her paternity, Sam finally accepts herself for who she is and allows her true self to come to the surface. Cole gifts her a tinker shop and she shows aptitude for battle. When the Fate army begins closing in, she proves herself capable of of much more than building trinkets by leading the Alliance army to victory against the Fate.
This was my first foray into the steampunk genre and I quite liked it! Because the world is based on something I was already familiar with, Victorian England (with some medieval elements), the world-building didn’t throw me. It intrigued me. Havens does an excellent job of dropping in phrases and technologies unique to her world while giving the reader the context clues needed to figure out what those references mean.
The heat between Cole and Samantha was ABSOLUTELY FANFREAKINGTASTIC. Havens teases the characters and the readers and when things finally happen, it is well-worth the wait. It’s sweet, it’s sensual, it’s loving. And then, to top it off, the reader can tell the characters genuinely like and care for each other, beyond lust and love.
Character Development: **** 4.5 out of 5 stars. Samantha is one of the most complex characters I’ve ever read. Her constant internal battle is not only well-written and believable, it is also so unique. She merges the two stereotypical female characters we’ve come to expect in Princess stories: the weak, damsel-in-distress, needing her Prince to be her Savior, with the strong, bad-assed, take-no-crap-from-anyone warrior, and she does it in a way that is not stereotypical at all. I don’t think I’m explaining this correctly, but read it, and I think you’ll get what I’m saying. I loved Samantha, because to tell the truth, I’m a little sick of female characters who are strong only because it is un-PC to write a female character who isn’t strong. Samantha is weak AND strong. Insecure AND confidant. Subversive AND dominant. But she’s not all obnoxious about it.
The other characters were also really well-written. Cole started out a little cliche, but he grew on me, especially in his good intentions towards Samantha. Zeb was amazingly well-done, and he was only featured in a few scenes, so I imagine he’ll have a larger role in the next installment. Then there’s Jasper. Oh Jasper. For a character who appeared only once and who didn’t technically say anything, he was incredibly interesting. There’s mystery surrounding him – we don’t know if he’s good or evil, we don’t know why he joined the Fate army, we don’t know if he’s somehow controlling Samantha in her dark periods. So many questions, but good ones! I didn’t feel unsatisfied not knowing the answers to them, it just made me ready to read the next book.
Plot: **** 4 out of 5 stars. A lot happens in this book. We meet Cole and Samantha, they begin their married life, and Cole begins Samantha’s “re-education.” Then there is the discovery of Samantha’s true self. They fall in love. Samantha finally enables herself to trust Cole and become intimate with him. The Fate army draws near. Samantha proves she’s more than just a pretty face by leading their army. The progression of the plot is steady, the tension between Cole and Samantha perfect. There were a few scenes of conflict between Sam and Cole that felt a little forced/contrived to me, which caused me to remove one star, but for the most part, it was beautifully plotted.
Writing Style/ Voice of the Author: **** 4 out of 5 stars. Havens keeps it simple, which I really like. The story was easy to read, the dialogue flowed well and felt natural. The book is a breeze. There were a few awkward scene jumps, but for the most part, I liked the pacing. The author’s voice never intruded. I said it in my review of Gone Girl, and I’ll say it again: nothing ruins the flow of a book like the author’s voice intruding. Havens showed her story beautifully .
Favorite Lines:
“Although he had managed to cooperate as little as possible over the years with his father, King Arnold, his duties as Prince could no longer be ignored. Duty. He just couldn’t understand how societies so technologically advanced, and continuing to advance, could hold on to such archaic and simply barbaric traditions.”
“Sprocket Defend!”
“Sam found it wasn’t just warmth that soaked into her body from his touch, strength seeped in, too.”
Purchase Fate War: Alliance
About the Author:
Who is E.M. Havens? I’m a lot of things. The word that seems to define me most at the moment is mom. It can be all consuming. Not only am I a mom of three (one of them is a teenager…pity me), but I also home-school (pity me more). I share this awesome responsibility with the love of my life, best friend, and soul-mate husband.
Add to that, the twenty-five chickens, twelve turkeys, ten guineas, nine pigs, three barn cats, two Great Pyrenees guardian dogs, a Chihuahua, a house cat, and a goose, it makes for one crazy, full, and certainly entertaining life.
Somewhere in there I find the time to write. I started out young writing poems, then moved on to songs. I actually have a Bachelor in Music with a secondary in Science because I can’t stand English. Yes, the writer hates English. I like to read the story for the experience of reading the story, not to nitpick each letter and comma. But I digress.
I eventually found blogging and really enjoyed sharing my life that way. When an unfortunate turn of events separated me from my music equipment, I decided to use my overactive imagination, my love of reading, and my new found hobby, prose writing, to release some of my creative energy. I wrote my first novel and loved the experience. Fate War: Alliance is actually the second novel I wrote and the first to be published. Now I’m working on my third and several sequels to Fate War!
So that’s pretty much me, sitting in the Arbuckle Mountains of Oklahoma, reading, writing, collecting eggs from the coop, and being a schoolmarm. It’s a pretty great life.
Author Interview: E.M. Havens
E.M. Havens is the author of the Steampunk Romance series, Fate War. The first book in the series, Fate War: Alliance is available now, and I spoke with E.M. about the book, being a writer, and a few other random things. Come back tomorrow for my review of Fate War: Alliance.
I don’t know much about the Steampunk genre – can you explain some of its characteristics for my readers?
Steampunk generally refers to a story/movie set in Victorian or Wild West era with alternate fantastical, steam powered technology. The ascetic is usually lots of brass, silver, and gold with gears, cogs and of course steam. While the 1800’s London or America is the norm, steampunk can be done in other centuries and in made up places, though hardcore steamers might balk. Fate War is a bit of a hodgepodge. It’s a fantasy world loosely based on Victorian England, but I’ve thrown a little medieval in and there will also be many surprises in the next installment.
You write in a couple of different genres – do you have a favorite genre to write, and why?
I write in different genres because I’m a new writer and I haven’t found my niche yet! LOL! I think my favorite genre is just whatever happens to be fueling my passion at the moment. When a story won’t leave me alone, it doesn’t matter what genre it is, it’s my fave.
Your characters are very well-written. Do you base them on people you know, or do they spring from your imagination?
My characters are not based on any one person. They do exhibit characteristics of different people I know and interactions I’ve experience with others. Mostly, I just try and see life from that characters perspective and they seem to come alive. There are actually a few chapter after Sam’s big reveal with the Queen that were not in my outline because when the truth came out, Sam just didn’t react how I imagined. It was very disconcerting for me as a new writer. I tried to write the next scene I had planned but Sam just wouldn’t/couldn’t carry on the way I had envisioned. I finally just went with her and eventually we came back to the story line. So, to answer your question, it’s a little of both.
Tell me about the next book in the Fate War Saga.
Wouldn’t YOU like to know! I’m being pretty tight lipped about it, but I’ve left clues on my facebook page every now and then. Without giving too much away, I will say that we continue to follow Sam and Cole as they settle into their new roles…and it’s not going to be easy. As a matter of fact, there is much I’m dreading about writing a few scenes because it’s going to hurt. We will get an answer to “What the heck is going on with her freakin’ eyes!!!???” I promise. We will also get answers about Jasper and the Sovereign. In addition, we will follow some other well loved characters such as Captain Jensen and Hope. There will also be a plethora of new characters and love interests to keep things steamy!
I talk a lot on my blog about becoming a “real” writer. When did you feel like a real writer?
I think it was just last weekend. LOL! It was the strangest thing, for the first time in my entire life, when someone asked me, “what do you do?”, I answered, “I’m a writer.” It actually shocked me. I usually just say, “I’m a stay at home mom.” But it just came out. Then when they said, “Ohhhh….well are you published?” I answered yes and they proceeded to check out Amazon and download my books! I felt….real. LOL!
Tell me something completely random about yourself that has nothing to do with Fate War or writing.
I was in show choir in high school. It was really fun, but nothing like Glee…NOTHING like Glee. Okay, a little like Glee. Friday’s were spirit day’s and our director wanted us to wear shirts to support our group. That’s all well and good…and we did…but we were ridiculed relentlessly. Not because we were the show choir geeks, but because some idiot did not have the foresight many, many years ago when they named the group, that it might be a little awkward for a bunch of kids to walk around high school all wearing shirts that said, SWINGERS.
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Thank you, E.M. for stopping by and introducing me to Steampunk. Now everyone, go and buy her book!
Purchase Fate War: Alliance
About the Author:
Who is E.M. Havens? I’m a lot of things. The word that seems to define me most at the moment is mom. It can be all consuming. Not only am I a mom of three (one of them is a teenager…pity me), but I also home-school (pity me more). I share this awesome responsibility with the love of my life, best friend, and soul-mate husband.
Add to that, the twenty-five chickens, twelve turkeys, ten guineas, nine pigs, three barn cats, two Great Pyrenees guardian dogs, a Chihuahua, a house cat, and a goose, it makes for one crazy, full, and certainly entertaining life.
Somewhere in there I find the time to write. I started out young writing poems, then moved on to songs. I actually have a Bachelor in Music with a secondary in Science because I can’t stand English. Yes, the writer hates English. I like to read the story for the experience of reading the story, not to nitpick each letter and comma. But I digress.
I eventually found blogging and really enjoyed sharing my life that way. When an unfortunate turn of events separated me from my music equipment, I decided to use my overactive imagination, my love of reading, and my new found hobby, prose writing, to release some of my creative energy. I wrote my first novel and loved the experience. Fate War: Alliance is actually the second novel I wrote and the first to be published. Now I’m working on my third and several sequels to Fate War!
So that’s pretty much me, sitting in the Arbuckle Mountains of Oklahoma, reading, writing, collecting eggs from the coop, and being a schoolmarm. It’s a pretty great life.
Write What You Know
One of my co-workers said to me today that it was hard separating me from Abby in Twenty-Five. She said reading the book was like reading my journal. And she’s exactly right. It took a long time for me to allow anyone I knew in real life to read the book because she hit the nail on the head – I poured my emotions into Abby’s story. Her feelings are my feelings. The things that happen to her haven’t happened to me, but the way she feels about them is.
You have probably heard the old caveat, “Write what you know.” That’s what I did with Twenty-Five. I wrote about the person I knew best in the world – myself. It’s embarrassing and liberating at the same time. The book was written five years ago and I’ve changed even more than Abby does in the course of the story, but it doesn’t change the fact that at one point in my life I was feeling very vulnerable, frightened that I would never amount to anything, a hundred percent sure no one would ever love me. I’ve moved past some of those things, and some of them I’m still working on; knowing that I’ve exposed myself to the world, though, is freeing. I don’t have to hide my fears. I don’t have to hide my morals. They are who I am. And that’s what I wrote.
Book Review: Wicked Hunger, by DelSheree Gladden
Wicked Hunger is the first book in the SomeOne Wicked This Way Comes series.
Genre: YA Urban Fantasy
Overall **** 4 out of 5 Stars. I was provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Brother and sister Zander and Van have a secret. A BIG secret. They protect their secret and each other at all costs, until the new girl in town, Ivy, threatens to expose them both.
When I was reading Wicked Hunger, I had an eerily similar feeling as I did reading The Hunger Games. The two stories aren’t alike, plot or character-wise, but they both have a darkness that one doesn’t usually associate with YA. As I was reading Wicked Hunger, I kept thinking, I shouldn’t be enjoying this, I shouldn’t be enjoying this. Exactly the same reaction I had to The Hunger Games. With HG, I shouldn’t have enjoyed it because it was about children killing children. With WH, I shouldn’t have enjoyed it because it was about Zander and Van struggling with their hunger to cause others intense physical (and sometimes, emotional) pain.
Sometimes it’s the books we shouldn’t enjoy that we enjoy the most.
Zander and Van can’t explain WHY they have this hunger for pain, only that it has been passed down through their family. They think they are alone in the world and can’t explain their struggles with anyone, for their own safety as well as the safety of everyone around them. They both do their best to control the hunger, Zander by channeling it into football, and Van by gathering a group of close friends around her and teaching dance classes; but controlling the hunger is the hardest thing Zander has ever done when he meets Ivy. She fuels his hunger unlike any other person he’s ever met. Plus, he is immediately attracted to her, so that really doesn’t help! Van feels her hunger for Ivy, too, but luckily, her judgement isn’t clouded by teenage-boy-hormones.
When Van discovers what Ivy has planned to “out” their secret, she races to save Zander, Ivy, and herself.
Character Development: **** 3.5 out of 5 stars. Zander and Van are well-thought out and portrayed. I like that they have distinct personalities, but you also REALLY believe them as brother and sister. Ivy is complicated – the reader can never figure out what’s going on with her, but Gladden does a great job showing how untrustworthy she is. But my favorite character is probably Oscar. He is Zander and Van’s older brother who has literally been driven insane by his hunger. Although he only featured in 2 scenes, I could tell Gladden had his character down pat. His moments of crazy were beautifully interspersed with moments of lucidity and I’m really hoping for more of him as the series progresses.
I had to take stars off for some of the minor characters, though. Van’s group of friends is made out to be very important to her controlling her hunger, but the only one who gets any major “screen” time is Ketchup (fun name!). And even Ketchup’s character is very minimally drawn. We don’t get to see what it is about him that Van loves so much. I really wish there had been more scenes showing us their history together, because it is clearly important to Van. Then there’s Noah, a new kid in Van’s life, who seems to only be introduced as a distraction immediately forgotten. Van and Zander’s grandmother is their care-giver, but only appears in a few short scenes. We are told how strict she is, but it’s never shown. A definite missed opportunity that I’m hoping will be corrected in book 2.
Plot: **** 4 out of 5 stars. There actually is not a lot of action to this book. What drives the story is Zander and Van’s inner turmoil as they deal with the hunger. That being said, it is obvious that Gladden has put a lot of thought into her world. There are many of questions left unanswered at the end of the book, plenty to fill books 2 and 3!
Writing Style/ Voice of the Author: **** 4 out of 5 stars. Gladden does something unique, and it really works well for this story. She combines present tense and past tense. It gives the story an immediacy that intensifies the emotions of the characters. She also does a fantastic job of moving seamlessly between Van and Zander’s points of view. I never once got confused as to which character’s head I was in. I took one star off because I found it difficult to jump into the story. Gladden held back at the beginning a lot of the backstory, but then teased the reader with it continuously. I don’t mind teasers when they are subtle, but these were not subtle! I understand the purpose – build up the mystery and the tension and then reveal bombshells throughout the book – it’s just not my favorite way to do it. I know some readers who would absolutely disagree with me, though!
Favorite Lines:
“Bruises can tell stories better than most people.”
“The pain burns up my arms and into my chest, but I can’t escape the animalistic thrill of destruction.”
“Instead, the colors look to be slowly blending together, a potter’s clay not yet molded into what it is meant to become.”
Purchase Wicked Hunger on Amazon:
About the Author:
DelSheree Gladden lives in New Mexico with her husband and two children. The Southwest is a big influence in her writing because of its culture, beauty, and mythology. Local folk lore is strongly rooted in her writing, particularly ideas of prophecy, destiny, and talents born from natural abilities. When she is not writing, DelSheree is usually teaching yoga, coaching gymnastics, reading, painting, sewing, or working as a Dental Hygienist. Her works include Escaping Fate, Twin Souls Saga, and The Destroyer Trilogy. DelSheree’s newest series, The SomeOne Wicked This Way Come series, follows Vanessa and Zander Roth, siblings with an uncontrollable hunger for pain and suffering that will either gain them limitless power or lead them to their deaths.
Author Interview: DelSheree Gladden
DelSheree Gladden is the author of the new YA Urban Fantasy series, SomeOne Wicked This Way Comes. The first book in the series, Wicked Hunger is available now, and I spoke with DelSheree about the book, being a writer, and a few other random things. Come back tomorrow for my review of Wicked Hunger.
In Wicked Hunger, we get a very dark YA tale – what was your inspiration for Zander and Van’s family secret?
One of my favorite writers is Jim Butcher, and I was reading one of the Dresden Files books, and he used the term godling hunger to describe how one of the characters feeds on of those around him. It sparked an idea in me and made me wonder how a character would cope with having an uncontrollable hunger they didn’t know the source of. How would the they survive trying to suppress such a basic part of themselves? The idea for the story of Vanessa and Zander Roth’s struggle to control their hunger and find out where it came from developed from two words that caught my eye.
We want to know about Book 2! What can we expect in from the next chapter of the SomeOne Wicked This Way Comes series?
Right now it’s tentatively planned for release in January. The second book will be titled, Wicked Power. The final book, Wicked Glory, will hopefully be ready by the end of 2014, but I’ll do my best to keep readers updated on any changes.
You have several series published – what is it about series that you love writing?
I’ve never been very good at the shorter forms of writing like poetry or short stories. I guess ideas just take a while for me to put together! I really enjoy reading series, also, so I think that plays a big part in how I like to write as well. If I find an author I like, I don’t want the story to end. Hopefully some of my readers feel that way about my books!
Are you self-published or trade-published? Why did you go that route?
I’ve done both. Escaping Fate and the Twin Souls Saga were self published. I was frustrated with how few publishers and agents were willing to work with new authors at the time, and after I spent some time researching the process I decided that it was the best option for me. I went with traditional publishing with Inquest, but the experience was incredibly frustrating and I ended up going back to self-publishing for the rest of the series. With Wicked Hunger, I had planned to self-publish again, but ended up crossing paths with Kitty Bullard with GMTA and decided to try traditional once again when she offered me a contract for the series, and I’ve had a much better experience! Either option can be a great path.
I talk a lot on my blog about “Becoming a Real Writer.” When did you feel like a real writer?
I think it was probably when I got my first piece of fan mail. I was so excited that a reader enjoyed my book enough to send me an email and tell me how much she liked Twin Souls. It really made me feel like I was doing something worth while.
What advice would you give aspiring writers?
Connect with other writers. You can learn so much from other writers about not only writing, but every aspect of the book market. Even more, the support of other authors can help a struggling writer push through a tough piece of writing or deal with rejection, even celebrate with you when you sign a contract. I think that’s something every writer needs.
Tell us something completely random about yourself that has nothing to do with writing or Wicked Hunger.
One of my favorite painters is JW Waterhouse. I did several master study paintings of his works in college. I don’t have much time for painting lately, but it’s one of my favorite hobbies.
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Thank you, DelSheree for stopping by! Now everyone go and read her book!
Purchase Wicked Hunger on Amazon:
About the Author:
DelSheree Gladden lives in New Mexico with her husband and two children. The Southwest is a big influence in her writing because of its culture, beauty, and mythology. Local folk lore is strongly rooted in her writing, particularly ideas of prophecy, destiny, and talents born from natural abilities. When she is not writing, DelSheree is usually teaching yoga, coaching gymnastics, reading, painting, sewing, or working as a Dental Hygienist. Her works include Escaping Fate, Twin Souls Saga, and The Destroyer Trilogy. DelSheree’s newest series, The SomeOne Wicked This Way Come series, follows Vanessa and Zander Roth, siblings with an uncontrollable hunger for pain and suffering that will either gain them limitless power or lead them to their deaths.
An open letter to a frightened man
The more I read about Independent Publishing, the happier I am I decided to go that route. Was I scared I would never get published the traditional way? Absolutely. But that didn’t make my decision for me. The fact that traditional publishing seems to be dying? That did.
There was a blog post titled “Why Indie Authors Still Suck,” written by a man or woman who works in Trade Publishing. The post ranted about indie authors putting low quality work into the market, and that is me paraphrasing in the nicest way possible. In the post I’m re-blogging, an Indie Author eloquently and tastefully points out that traditional publishing is scared and as authors, we have every right to decide how we want to publish. As readers, we have every right to decide how we want to select and purchase books.
This is in response to “Why Indie Authors Still Suck” on So You Think You’re An Author by someone who calls himself “anonnymouse13”.
Now, I won’t address the obscenity, profanity, and random personal attacks liberally sprinkled through this post. Seventh grade was a lot of years ago for me, and that stuff stopped either shocking or amusing me years ago.
Looking at the forty percent or so of the post that actually says something, he has written a rather passionate defense of traditional publishing. Passionate, yes, reasonable, not so much.
Basically, he has one good point to make. Books require editing. That happens to be quite true. It is true for Indie authors and it is true for traditionally published authors. Quite frankly, I don’t know anyone who doesn’t agree with that. So I’ll just admit the obvious and agree with him.
Books require editing.
However, from that fact he…
View original post 1,008 more words
Book Review: Gone Girl, by Gillian Flynn
**** Overall 4 out of 5 stars
It takes some masterful writing to keep a reader engaged in a story with two incredibly, INCREDIBLY, unlikeable main characters. I took the star off because the characters were INCREDIBLY unlikeable. But I read their entire damn story.
On the day of their fifth wedding anniversary, Nick comes home to find his wife, Amy, has disappeared. All the evidence suggests he killed her. And he doesn’t do himself many favors – he’s strangely calm and unnerved by the disappearance. Entries from Amy’s diary tell a tale of two people falling in love, and then her husband becoming less and less worthy of that love.
Or course, it would be too easy if Nick had killed her. It would be too easy for her to be dead at all. So she’s not. And that’s where things go all bat-shit crazy and the reader gets sucked in to this dysfunctional relationship between 2 people who NEVER should have gotten married.
I was very weary throughout the first half of the book. I knew Nick hadn’t done anything to his wife, but only because, like I said above – it would have been too easy. Yet, he was so unlikeable. I practically hated him. And Amy. The pictures of Amy that Nick painted and that Amy’s diary painted were of 2 different people. And I didn’t like either of them. So I found it hard to stick with the book even though I wanted to see what the twist ending was I’d been hearing so much about.
About three-fourths of the way through the book, I couldn’t put it down. I spent 3 hours hunkered down on my couch (on a Friday night, no less) finishing it. I wanted to see what the crazy psycho characters were going to do to each other, how it would play out. By that time I had no clue how the author was going to end it, but I don’t think I’d call the ending a twist. I think it was very appropriate for how f***ed up the characters were, though.
Character Development – ***** 5 out of 5 stars. I did not like the characters, but Flynn did an amazing job of drawing their characters and delving into their psyche. The characters felt very real.
Plot – *** 3 out of 5 stars. The story begins with an unoriginal idea, a missing wife and her husband is the main subject, but Flynn subtly adds in twists, turns, intrigue. The characters become the plot. And, see above for how the characters were drawn.
Writing Style/ Voice of the Author – ***** 5 out of 5 stars. I’d give it 6. You know how I know a book is really good? I forget I’m reading a book. The author just tells the story. Keeps it simple. That’s what this was. I never felt intruded on by the author’s voice. There were no flashy words or prose to distract from what was happening.
One final note. This book was good, but from all the hype surrounding it, I expected to be sucked in immediately and to not want to put it down until I was finished. I expected a massive twist ending. Neither of those things were true. The hype actually let me down. When I started reading the book, I was a passenger on a 12-hour car ride. Ever few chapters or so I had to put the book down and stare out the window (that’s how much I disliked the characters). I didn’t want to keep reading, keep reading, keep reading. And I had what seemed like all the time in the world to do so. I was disappointed because everyone I’d talked to about the book had said how amazing it was. I wish I had read it without hearing all of the hype, because I may have liked it even more.
I Picked Up a Pen One Day... 