This was a much better book than I expected it to be. The creation of place and time is expertly and subtly achieved and I found myself completely drawn in to this world where everything is changing. With the First World War out of the way and the Great Depression yet to hit society is changing and for middle aged Cora Carlisle it is a very confusing time - first women showed their ankles and now they dare to show their knees and have stopped wearing restrictive corsets; scandalous!
The plot itself meanders gently along in a wholly convincing way and Cora, as narrator, is completely believable and empathetic. When her origin story is revealed there is a touch of shock to it, after all she is the perfect Kansas Matron. However, it is related in such a gentle and matter of fact way that it feels wholly believable. Couple this with the dark secrets of her marriage (which come as no surprise to the reader when they are revealed) and her brief, but life changing and life affirming, visit to New York and she soon becomes a character that you wish you knew.
If you are expecting a fictionalised account of Louise Brooks' life, and the blurb does point that way, then you will be disappointed. Yes she is a character within the book but she very much takes centre stage to Cora. In all honesty, this would have worked just as well with a completely fictional damaged ingenue but it probably wouldn't have been quite so much fun. It did lead me to read more about Louise Brooks' life and from what I can tell the author has done a great job of relating the facts of her life and even managed to get some of the complicated person on to the page.
It does cover a wide range of topics that are, perhaps, as sensitive today as they were in the 1920s and 1930s. Most importantly it shows prohibition from the perspective of someone who believes wholeheartedly in it and then sees the collateral damage of the wholesale banning of alcohol; not a viewpoint we are used to seeing. It also covers the American equivalent of the Magdalene Laundries, the orphan trains sent out from the East Coast to the mid-west and the prevaling social attitudes towards immigrants, people of colour and women.
The only down side for me was the rush through the war and post war years with whole decades being glossed over towards the end. There is a nod to the complete 360 in social mores and the burgeoning freedom of women and the start of acceptance for members of the homosexual community but only a brief tip of the head.
Overall this is a warm book with a completely engrossing storyline and a vibrant lead character.
THIS IS AN HONEST REVIEW OF A COPY OF THE BOOK RECEIVED VIA THE PUBLISHER
Saturday, 19 October 2019
Friday, 18 October 2019
Friends Like These by Hannah Ellis
2.5 Stars
I suppose this could be classed as quirky; if quirky is an euphemism for unbelievable situations populated with disparate characters that never really manage to struggle to full life. As a debut novel it shows promise and I have read one of Ms Ellis's later tomes and that showed that she can write believable characters in peculiar circumstances very well so I know she is better than this.
Marie is "troubled", she doesn't really have a large social group and when her Best Friend gets offered a job in New York she decides that she needs to expand her friend group. Unfortunately, she wants "trendy" friends and the group she tries to insert herself in to are stereotypically horrendous (the noughties version of Hooray Henries). Contrast these with the people that eventually become her friendship group who are all Salt Of The Earth types. Throw in the perfect boyfriend that she just can't see for what he is and the rogue of an ex-boyfriend. As you can see it is all more than a tad formulaic with no sheen to gloss over it's shortcomings.
However, the scene setting and plot development is, on the whole, accomplished. Even if the plot is overwrought and pretty much unbelievable in places. There is also a dry, gentle humour to the writing and quite a lot of the dialogue has a ring of authenticity to it - I often find dialogue to be the cringiest bit.
I didn't race to finish it but neither was I tempted to give up on it. The moral of the story is a bit heavy handed (especially relating to Marie's relationship with her eccentric mother) and Marie generally needed a good slap throughout most of the book. It passed the time and was, mostly, inoffensive. I was shocked to see there are 2 more books following on from this one - somehow I don't think I'll bother. However, if you do like this genre then I can recommend Beyond The Lens by the author and I wouldn't hesitate to read another of her later works.
I suppose this could be classed as quirky; if quirky is an euphemism for unbelievable situations populated with disparate characters that never really manage to struggle to full life. As a debut novel it shows promise and I have read one of Ms Ellis's later tomes and that showed that she can write believable characters in peculiar circumstances very well so I know she is better than this.
Marie is "troubled", she doesn't really have a large social group and when her Best Friend gets offered a job in New York she decides that she needs to expand her friend group. Unfortunately, she wants "trendy" friends and the group she tries to insert herself in to are stereotypically horrendous (the noughties version of Hooray Henries). Contrast these with the people that eventually become her friendship group who are all Salt Of The Earth types. Throw in the perfect boyfriend that she just can't see for what he is and the rogue of an ex-boyfriend. As you can see it is all more than a tad formulaic with no sheen to gloss over it's shortcomings.
However, the scene setting and plot development is, on the whole, accomplished. Even if the plot is overwrought and pretty much unbelievable in places. There is also a dry, gentle humour to the writing and quite a lot of the dialogue has a ring of authenticity to it - I often find dialogue to be the cringiest bit.
I didn't race to finish it but neither was I tempted to give up on it. The moral of the story is a bit heavy handed (especially relating to Marie's relationship with her eccentric mother) and Marie generally needed a good slap throughout most of the book. It passed the time and was, mostly, inoffensive. I was shocked to see there are 2 more books following on from this one - somehow I don't think I'll bother. However, if you do like this genre then I can recommend Beyond The Lens by the author and I wouldn't hesitate to read another of her later works.
John Christie Of Rillington Place: Biography Of A Serial Killer by Jonathan Oates
First things first, this book is well researched and even the tiniest of reference sources is listed by the author - this gives it an automatic star. The inclusion of contemporaneous photographs is a nice touch and many of them have not been reproduced before - this gives it half a star. Unfortunately this means that the text itself, the actual reason the book was purchased only gets 1.5 stars. I was also surprised to note that this book only has 224 pages, it felt substantially longer than that and it was a challenge to get to the end without just giving up.
The first problem I had with it was this is written like an academic book rather than one for mass consumption. I had no issue with the myriad footnotes as these relate to sources to support the information given. What I did take issue with was the constant referencing of dates (particularly birth and death dates), they break the text and prevent absorptive reading. There is no reason why a separate timeline appendix could not have been created to provide all this information and it would have made the textual flow much more digestible. I appreciate dates of particular events are necessary and I did not have issue with this but each and every member of Christie's family (and there are a lot of them) have their birth and death dates listed as do many of the witness accounts for his early life.
Then there is the author's general tone throughout the book. What starts of as merely factual soon degenerates in to him mentioning other people who have written about the intertwined cases of Evans and Christie and stating that they have things oh so very wrong - usually because they have a date out by 24 hours. It quickly becomes a diatribe of "I'm right and they are wrong" and trying to separate the details of reality from the book becomes increasingly difficult - especially once the author brings Ludovic Kennedy and the film reconstruction based on his book in to play.
I also found it very interesting that at no time does he mention Timothy Evans' mental incapacity. I was under the impression that it was fairly well documented that this was a man of relatively low IQ and whilst he does mention potential issues with literacy nothing else is made of it - except to say that he believes he could read perfectly well. For me, I think earlier accounts are more accurate regarding Mr Evans and that he was easily suggestible and fairly child like in his world view; thus making it easy for both Christie and the legal system to manipulate him in to a confession that he may or may not have believed. Interestingly despite all the deep research in to the lives of the victims and Christie, Evans is not paid the same courtesy (beyond his familial connections) and there are no contemporaneous recollections from work colleagues and friends which previous authors have used to show how child like he was.
There is a very definite agenda from the author and this is not merely a recounting of the facts surrounding the case. Rather, it is the author's contention that two murderers lived under the same roof at the same time and that Evans should never have been pardoned. Couple that with the author's bias towards the acknowledged Christie victims as being "the lowest of the low" and his incessant need to prove himself superior to other biographers of the subject it soon becomes a quite turgid mess.
Overall, well researched but heavily affected by personal bias.
The first problem I had with it was this is written like an academic book rather than one for mass consumption. I had no issue with the myriad footnotes as these relate to sources to support the information given. What I did take issue with was the constant referencing of dates (particularly birth and death dates), they break the text and prevent absorptive reading. There is no reason why a separate timeline appendix could not have been created to provide all this information and it would have made the textual flow much more digestible. I appreciate dates of particular events are necessary and I did not have issue with this but each and every member of Christie's family (and there are a lot of them) have their birth and death dates listed as do many of the witness accounts for his early life.
Then there is the author's general tone throughout the book. What starts of as merely factual soon degenerates in to him mentioning other people who have written about the intertwined cases of Evans and Christie and stating that they have things oh so very wrong - usually because they have a date out by 24 hours. It quickly becomes a diatribe of "I'm right and they are wrong" and trying to separate the details of reality from the book becomes increasingly difficult - especially once the author brings Ludovic Kennedy and the film reconstruction based on his book in to play.
I also found it very interesting that at no time does he mention Timothy Evans' mental incapacity. I was under the impression that it was fairly well documented that this was a man of relatively low IQ and whilst he does mention potential issues with literacy nothing else is made of it - except to say that he believes he could read perfectly well. For me, I think earlier accounts are more accurate regarding Mr Evans and that he was easily suggestible and fairly child like in his world view; thus making it easy for both Christie and the legal system to manipulate him in to a confession that he may or may not have believed. Interestingly despite all the deep research in to the lives of the victims and Christie, Evans is not paid the same courtesy (beyond his familial connections) and there are no contemporaneous recollections from work colleagues and friends which previous authors have used to show how child like he was.
There is a very definite agenda from the author and this is not merely a recounting of the facts surrounding the case. Rather, it is the author's contention that two murderers lived under the same roof at the same time and that Evans should never have been pardoned. Couple that with the author's bias towards the acknowledged Christie victims as being "the lowest of the low" and his incessant need to prove himself superior to other biographers of the subject it soon becomes a quite turgid mess.
Overall, well researched but heavily affected by personal bias.
Books and Brews by Susan Harper
2.5 Stars
When Monica and Mona's grandmother decides to retire she leaves them her bookshop to run. This, as the name suggests, is not ordinary bookshop though - one half is in the mundane, human world and one half in the magical world. Now, Monica and Mona are twins but only Mona got the magic, Monica is more of a squibb in that department so it is fairly clear how things are divvied up. Apparently the grandmother could produce magical clones of herself so she didn't need help running the stores - not sure how that worked in the Human World to be honest.
At first it's quite fun reading about Monica trying to get to grips with mortal technology and hopelessly trying to resist using the few spells she can make work. Throw in a shop cat that is a witch being punished by having to "do time" as a familiar and with a nice line in caustic put downs. The world of the Magical Bookshop seems really intriguing but we only get brief glimpses of it when Monica goes to visit Mona. All fairly entertaining, even if the same ground gets covered two or three times through this slim volume.
The murder mystery part is fairly straightforward, man found drowned which could be an accident or foul play. Monica inserts herself in to the investigation because she is crushing on the Police Officer investigating. Monica tries using her magic herself - cue disastrous event. The truth comes out of what happened and Monica seems to be in with a chance with her crush and has made some Human friends in to the bargain.
Overall this is a good concept but executed fairly poorly; with a predictable plot and strangely simplistic vocabulary. There is little in the way of character development or scene setting and it all tends to move along in a "she did this, then this happened, so she did this" way. However, there is something charming about the simplicity so it isn't an out and out flop.
When Monica and Mona's grandmother decides to retire she leaves them her bookshop to run. This, as the name suggests, is not ordinary bookshop though - one half is in the mundane, human world and one half in the magical world. Now, Monica and Mona are twins but only Mona got the magic, Monica is more of a squibb in that department so it is fairly clear how things are divvied up. Apparently the grandmother could produce magical clones of herself so she didn't need help running the stores - not sure how that worked in the Human World to be honest.
At first it's quite fun reading about Monica trying to get to grips with mortal technology and hopelessly trying to resist using the few spells she can make work. Throw in a shop cat that is a witch being punished by having to "do time" as a familiar and with a nice line in caustic put downs. The world of the Magical Bookshop seems really intriguing but we only get brief glimpses of it when Monica goes to visit Mona. All fairly entertaining, even if the same ground gets covered two or three times through this slim volume.
The murder mystery part is fairly straightforward, man found drowned which could be an accident or foul play. Monica inserts herself in to the investigation because she is crushing on the Police Officer investigating. Monica tries using her magic herself - cue disastrous event. The truth comes out of what happened and Monica seems to be in with a chance with her crush and has made some Human friends in to the bargain.
Overall this is a good concept but executed fairly poorly; with a predictable plot and strangely simplistic vocabulary. There is little in the way of character development or scene setting and it all tends to move along in a "she did this, then this happened, so she did this" way. However, there is something charming about the simplicity so it isn't an out and out flop.
Thursday, 17 October 2019
Drowning With Others by Linda Keir
3.5 Stars
I believe this book is what they call a slow burner, basically code for lots of fairly useless information being thrown at the reader that isn't really necessary to the plot or the building of the characters but adds a nice touch of verisimilitude to the story. There is an awful lot of that here - present in large doses in both the present day adult incarnation of The Copelands and in their rarefied, Private School senior year. It does work, sort of, but it did leave me wishing the editor had been a little heavier handed with the green pen - after all, there are only so many times you can listen to a characters internal angst about the same issue before your brain starts to glaze over.
The premise for the story is a good one. Twenty or so years ago Ian and Andi where Glenfield Academies star couple, now they still seen as the perfect married couple. Unfortunately for them they both have secrets buried deep alongside their senior year break up and now what appears to be the corpse of the missing writer in residence, Dallas Walker, has been found it looks like those secrets are not going to stay buried much longer. Throw in a few adult roadbumps (bad, bad business decision Ian - even I could see the red flags all over that one) in their personal and professional lives and this is definitely NOT a good year to be a Copeland.
Initially the world building is incredibly good but it does start to become bogged down in minutiae. This is particularly evident when dealing with the flashback periods for Ian and Andi and in Andi's modern day persona. I found this to be a real shame as the overall story and the convoluted various possibilities for what happened to Dallas are enthralling, well plotted and the telling is, overall, accomplished well. Just such a pity that it gets derailed by rambling reminiscences of girlhood stomach upsets and womanly business concerns. Strangely, I found myself wanting to know more about the wider family dynamic - Ian with his wealthy parents who are major contributors to Glenfield Academy and transplanted Californian Andi and her Hollywood father. Certainly there are tensions still evident in the social schism between the two clans and that is one area that I felt didn't get sufficient attention.
On the whole, I found this an absorbing tale where the mystery behind the murder is less important than the lives of the people involved. For me, this was really a tale about moving from adolescence in to adulthood and the pitfalls we don't notice until we are trapped within them.
I believe this book is what they call a slow burner, basically code for lots of fairly useless information being thrown at the reader that isn't really necessary to the plot or the building of the characters but adds a nice touch of verisimilitude to the story. There is an awful lot of that here - present in large doses in both the present day adult incarnation of The Copelands and in their rarefied, Private School senior year. It does work, sort of, but it did leave me wishing the editor had been a little heavier handed with the green pen - after all, there are only so many times you can listen to a characters internal angst about the same issue before your brain starts to glaze over.
The premise for the story is a good one. Twenty or so years ago Ian and Andi where Glenfield Academies star couple, now they still seen as the perfect married couple. Unfortunately for them they both have secrets buried deep alongside their senior year break up and now what appears to be the corpse of the missing writer in residence, Dallas Walker, has been found it looks like those secrets are not going to stay buried much longer. Throw in a few adult roadbumps (bad, bad business decision Ian - even I could see the red flags all over that one) in their personal and professional lives and this is definitely NOT a good year to be a Copeland.
Initially the world building is incredibly good but it does start to become bogged down in minutiae. This is particularly evident when dealing with the flashback periods for Ian and Andi and in Andi's modern day persona. I found this to be a real shame as the overall story and the convoluted various possibilities for what happened to Dallas are enthralling, well plotted and the telling is, overall, accomplished well. Just such a pity that it gets derailed by rambling reminiscences of girlhood stomach upsets and womanly business concerns. Strangely, I found myself wanting to know more about the wider family dynamic - Ian with his wealthy parents who are major contributors to Glenfield Academy and transplanted Californian Andi and her Hollywood father. Certainly there are tensions still evident in the social schism between the two clans and that is one area that I felt didn't get sufficient attention.
On the whole, I found this an absorbing tale where the mystery behind the murder is less important than the lives of the people involved. For me, this was really a tale about moving from adolescence in to adulthood and the pitfalls we don't notice until we are trapped within them.
The Apocalypse Club by Craig McLay
3.5 Stars
I'm beginning to think that Mr McLay has it in for insurance agents, this is the second novel of his set in an Insurance Company that I have read. I will readily admit that I kept waiting for the supernatural element to sneak in to the tale but, if anything, this novel is more science fiction in classification than anything. You have your dystopian near future, you have your historical back story, you have a shadowy organisation that appears to be up to nefarious deeds and you have a seemingly ordinary character that looks set to save the world - or, in Mark's case probably make things worse.
At first I was a bit confused where the novel was going. The Victorian explorer set opening was great and the epistolic nature of the telling sucked me in. Then we were in a near future with a young man unhappy in his work but with an incredible back story that seemed completely at odds with the earlier bit. It does all come together, sort of, in to a coherent tale but it is a bit of a trial getting there at times. It doesn't help that the timelines move about an awful lot which can leave you a bit disorientated and wondering when exactly you are but once you have got used to the rhythm of the writing it becomes easier to key in to which time period you are dealing with.
There is a good deal of rather wry, sarcastic humour scattered through the book and the actual telling of the story is engaging. Told almost entirely from Mark's point of view it does feel as though the character is sat down with you and telling you his tale first hand. The problem I had with it was I never really believed in his world or worried that he was in any sort of peril - after all he was sat here telling em about it so it must have all worked out in the end; right?
Mr McLay is a natural storyteller and that shines from the page and it definitely engages the reader. Unfortunately, the story itself is a little lacking in this case. It will definitely entertain you though.
I'm beginning to think that Mr McLay has it in for insurance agents, this is the second novel of his set in an Insurance Company that I have read. I will readily admit that I kept waiting for the supernatural element to sneak in to the tale but, if anything, this novel is more science fiction in classification than anything. You have your dystopian near future, you have your historical back story, you have a shadowy organisation that appears to be up to nefarious deeds and you have a seemingly ordinary character that looks set to save the world - or, in Mark's case probably make things worse.
At first I was a bit confused where the novel was going. The Victorian explorer set opening was great and the epistolic nature of the telling sucked me in. Then we were in a near future with a young man unhappy in his work but with an incredible back story that seemed completely at odds with the earlier bit. It does all come together, sort of, in to a coherent tale but it is a bit of a trial getting there at times. It doesn't help that the timelines move about an awful lot which can leave you a bit disorientated and wondering when exactly you are but once you have got used to the rhythm of the writing it becomes easier to key in to which time period you are dealing with.
There is a good deal of rather wry, sarcastic humour scattered through the book and the actual telling of the story is engaging. Told almost entirely from Mark's point of view it does feel as though the character is sat down with you and telling you his tale first hand. The problem I had with it was I never really believed in his world or worried that he was in any sort of peril - after all he was sat here telling em about it so it must have all worked out in the end; right?
Mr McLay is a natural storyteller and that shines from the page and it definitely engages the reader. Unfortunately, the story itself is a little lacking in this case. It will definitely entertain you though.
Alan Partridge: Nomad by Alan Partridge
I can't put my finger on it but there was just something "off" about this book. Somehow the lunacy that is the World Of Partridge just doesn't quite work in the same way that it did in I, Partridge. Set after the events of the film Alpha Papa this book sees the inimitable Alan take his prejudices for a wander between Norwich and Dungeness Power Station. Ostensibly he dresses this up as following his father's harrowing journey for a job interview - in reality, it is Alan being his usual idiotic self and throwing a strop because "other people" get paid to make TV Shows about walking.
It does have the accepted Partridge style and wanders off in to a surreal world that you can almost recognise but is so distorted by Alan's ego that it becomes almost a pastiche of itself. Therein lies the problem, somehow it all feels a bit forced; a bit too try hard - just like Alan himself really.
Whilst there are moments of accepted Partridgean brilliance, they are few and far between with the bulk of the book falling strangely flat (something I did not expect - maybe that is the problem, I expected too much from it). The constant footnotes actually served to distract from the reading this time around and whereas in I, Partridge they really added something to the story this time I actually gave up on reading them as they really didn't add any humour or further insight to the chaos that is Alan.
Overall, it was an okay read that did garner a few giggles but certainly no guffaws.
It does have the accepted Partridge style and wanders off in to a surreal world that you can almost recognise but is so distorted by Alan's ego that it becomes almost a pastiche of itself. Therein lies the problem, somehow it all feels a bit forced; a bit too try hard - just like Alan himself really.
Whilst there are moments of accepted Partridgean brilliance, they are few and far between with the bulk of the book falling strangely flat (something I did not expect - maybe that is the problem, I expected too much from it). The constant footnotes actually served to distract from the reading this time around and whereas in I, Partridge they really added something to the story this time I actually gave up on reading them as they really didn't add any humour or further insight to the chaos that is Alan.
Overall, it was an okay read that did garner a few giggles but certainly no guffaws.
Sleep by C.L. Taylor
2.5 Stars
Oh dear, this turned in to a jumbled mess quite early on in proceedings. It starts off quite well with introducing us to Anna and you get a good sense of the character in both her professional and personal life. When the accident happens that steals the lives of Freddy and Peter and leaves Mohammed severely injured the description of Anna's reaction is well handled and believable. I could even get behind her mental collapse and seeming paranoia after her release from hospital, attending the funerals and then the Court Case. When her relationship with Alex collapses and she moves back home to her parents I am still "with it" but finding myself having to suspend belief in parts. This is then compounded when she moves to the remote Scottish Island of Rum to get away from everything and start a new job as a Hotel Receptionist cum general factotum.
It is once we get to Rum that the book really started to fall apart for me. Not one of the characters have any real depth to them and they all have just a sheen of personality to them. Each and every one of them fits in to a particular niche which gives them a plausible reason for being Anna's tormentor. Unfortunately because of their very generic attributes this means that as soon as they have all settled in to the hotel and the storm hits you know that the least likely candidate is going to be the one responsible. Sadly, it wasn't even really fun getting to the denouement that proved the reader right.
It would seem that the author realised this as there is a side story of Freddy's father thrown in that it seems is behind her torment. Throw in a handful of peculiar obituaries and comments from their writer directed towards both the deceased and Anna. All add up to a nice little distraction, but not a truly effective one as although at first they do serve to cast suspicion in other directions they, ultimately, just serve as break points in the action on Rum.
I was very disappointed with the book as the pace varied between a slow plod and then frantic, fevered activity. Not always a bad thing but in this case the frantic bits didn't create tension but instead came across as overwrought and, to be honest, rather laughable. With the exception of Anna none of the characters are particularly believable and even Anna eventually becomes a caricature of herself. So, between plot, pacing and characters there isn't a lot to recommend the book and once you are around 100 pages or so in it just became an exercise in getting to the end of it all.
Normally when there is so much going on, and there is a LOT going on, I find that it sucks you in and really involves you in the story being told. In this case it just seems like everything, including the kitchen sink, has been thrown at the book and it just left it muddy and rather boring. There is so much hyperbole on the cover that it made me wonder if I was reading the right pages or if another book had been substituted between the covers.
THIS AN HONEST REVIEW OF A FREE COPY OF THE BOOK RECEIVED VIA READERS FIRST.
Oh dear, this turned in to a jumbled mess quite early on in proceedings. It starts off quite well with introducing us to Anna and you get a good sense of the character in both her professional and personal life. When the accident happens that steals the lives of Freddy and Peter and leaves Mohammed severely injured the description of Anna's reaction is well handled and believable. I could even get behind her mental collapse and seeming paranoia after her release from hospital, attending the funerals and then the Court Case. When her relationship with Alex collapses and she moves back home to her parents I am still "with it" but finding myself having to suspend belief in parts. This is then compounded when she moves to the remote Scottish Island of Rum to get away from everything and start a new job as a Hotel Receptionist cum general factotum.
It is once we get to Rum that the book really started to fall apart for me. Not one of the characters have any real depth to them and they all have just a sheen of personality to them. Each and every one of them fits in to a particular niche which gives them a plausible reason for being Anna's tormentor. Unfortunately because of their very generic attributes this means that as soon as they have all settled in to the hotel and the storm hits you know that the least likely candidate is going to be the one responsible. Sadly, it wasn't even really fun getting to the denouement that proved the reader right.
It would seem that the author realised this as there is a side story of Freddy's father thrown in that it seems is behind her torment. Throw in a handful of peculiar obituaries and comments from their writer directed towards both the deceased and Anna. All add up to a nice little distraction, but not a truly effective one as although at first they do serve to cast suspicion in other directions they, ultimately, just serve as break points in the action on Rum.
I was very disappointed with the book as the pace varied between a slow plod and then frantic, fevered activity. Not always a bad thing but in this case the frantic bits didn't create tension but instead came across as overwrought and, to be honest, rather laughable. With the exception of Anna none of the characters are particularly believable and even Anna eventually becomes a caricature of herself. So, between plot, pacing and characters there isn't a lot to recommend the book and once you are around 100 pages or so in it just became an exercise in getting to the end of it all.
Normally when there is so much going on, and there is a LOT going on, I find that it sucks you in and really involves you in the story being told. In this case it just seems like everything, including the kitchen sink, has been thrown at the book and it just left it muddy and rather boring. There is so much hyperbole on the cover that it made me wonder if I was reading the right pages or if another book had been substituted between the covers.
THIS AN HONEST REVIEW OF A FREE COPY OF THE BOOK RECEIVED VIA READERS FIRST.
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Lego Tony Stark's Sakaarian Iron Man 76194
I know nothing about the "What If" TV show but what I do know is that I absolutely LOVE Mechs and Lego always manage to put somet...
