REVIEW: A Shade of Vampire by Bella Forest

Series: A Shade of Vampire #1
Genre: YA Paranormal
Pub Date: December 2012 (self-published)
Format: eBook
Source: Received from the author in exchange for an honest review.
Download the first few chapters and try it out! (Many thanks to Ms. Forest for providing the excerpt!)

On the evening of Sofia Claremont's seventeenth birthday, she is sucked into a nightmare from which she cannot wake.

A quiet evening walk along a beach brings her face to face with a dangerous pale creature that craves much more than her blood.

She is kidnapped to an island where the sun is eternally forbidden to shine.

An island uncharted by any map and ruled by the most powerful vampire coven on the planet. She wakes here as a slave, a captive in chains.

Sofia's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn when she is the one selected out of hundreds of girls to join the harem of Derek Novak, the dark royal Prince.

Despite his addiction to power and obsessive thirst for her blood, Sofia soon realizes that the safest place on the island is within his quarters, and she must do all within her power to win him over if she is to survive even one more night.

Will she succeed? ...or is she destined to the same fate that all other girls have met at the hands of the Novaks?

MY THOUGHTS
Firstly, I would like to thank Bella Forest for contacting me to offer a copy of A Shade of Vampire in exchange for an honest review here at Melissa's Bookshelf. I thought the premise and the setting for the story sounded incredibly intriguing and would offer a breath of fresh air to the already heavily saturated YA paranormal/vampire market, and in that respect I was absolutely right. Unfortunately, the execution just wasn't quite there. Believe me, there is so much potential for this story, but I think it would require some extensive editing and rewriting to bring it to the level it needs to be in order to be a 4- or 5-star read for me.

I think the over-arching issue is that Forest does far more telling than showing, as the expression goes. It seemed like the vast majority of the story was given through dialogue, and on top of that, often there were not enough descriptors used to enable the reader to know who was speaking. Though there was a little bit of world-building, there simply was not enough to truly do the Shade justice -- I wanted so much more. In addition, the story is told with the chapters alternating between the points of view of Sofia and Derek, and while that can work in some cases, I found it to be choppy, confusing and difficult to follow in this book. I think the difficulty I had lies in the fact that Sofia and Derek sound very similar -- Derek certainly didn't come across as a 500-year-old vampire that had been in a magically-induced sleep for 400 of those years. There were attempts to reinforce Derek's actual age and the time he had missed by having him not know what current technologies were, but the way he spoke and acted just was not what I would have expected of a vampire who was alive and turned during the 1500's, then asleep the last 400 years. He lacked a certain formality, mystery, and maturity that I think would have really added to his character. In truth, most of the characters in the story were pretty bland -- we are only really given surface qualities and characteristics and little is done to develop either Sofia or Derek, not to mention any of the supporting cast.

And honestly, I couldn't understand why Derek was so wrapped up in Sofia almost immediately, except for the fact that we know she is apparently very beautiful. But the one small thing she does early in the story that touches and impresses Derek just didn't seem like enough to spark the obsession that follows and sticks around through the rest of the book. If anything, it seemed like it really came down to Sofia's looks, despite the attempted indications otherwise. Regardless, as I read, I just felt completely detached from the story and the characters -- I simply didn't care how events played themselves out. More detailed character development would have gone a long way to making me feel more invested in Sofia and Derek.

Given the uniqueness of the premise, I really wanted to like this book, which is probably why I pushed myself to finish it. Clocking in at 149 pages for the paperback edition, A Shade of Vampire is a relatively short read, but I actually think that it would benefit from being longer, filled with more imagery, world-building and significantly more in-depth character development. At times, I also found myself having to re-read some parts to understand what was going on, due to some awkward phrasing, as well as the lack of sufficient descriptors during the dialogues; hence, my earlier remark about editing and rewriting. But in fairness, I have also seen a lot of very positive, even glowing reviews out there, so take mine as only part of the overall picture. I will say this, though -- I do love that cover!


Links:

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REVIEW: Stained

Stained by Ella James
My rating: 2 of 5 stars



I've been interested in discovering more independent authors lately and was hoping to find a new favorite. Unfortunately, that is not the case with Ella James and her Stained series.

THE GOOD: With more than its fair share of originality in its presentation of Nephilim, the story has a lot of potential. I was a little worried that the book would come across as dull and too cliched because -- let's face it -- a lot all of these supernatural beings are just overdone in today's YA world. (Not that this stops me from reading about them, mind you.) Without a doubt, it takes some talent to make paranormal YA feel fresh and make you feel like you are actually reading a new story.

THE BAD: The writing. Okay, I know I am not a writer and though I would dearly love to write a book or several, that's just not who I am and I am coming to accept that. However, I have read enough over the years to be able to come to a reasonable conclusion about the quality of writing in a story. Many times I found myself cringing at the author's choice of phrasing and the voice of Julia's character and consequently, the entire story. I understand wanting to paint a picture with vivid words and analogies, but it was as if James chose to use overly dramatic descriptors for practically everything in the story. It became ridiculous pretty early on. Not to mention some additional editing would have helped to uncover and correct some easy-to-spot grammatical/spelling errors, which seem to be all too common in independent publications.

THE UGLY (UGH-LY?): A toss-up between the supposed budding romance between Julia and Cayne/Cayuzul and the ridiculously juvenile voice in which the story is told. Take your pick. Somehow, the vernacular/slang of the modern teen just sounds utterly ridiculous when immortalized in the pages of a book. Cringe-worthy, indeed.

For me, the writing was enough of a turn-off that I simply can't see myself continuing the series, unless someone out there can convince me that it will get better. It's a shame, because at those rare times when I could look beyond James's annoying choices of phraseology, I really felt like I was getting a glimpse of the makings of an original paranormal series. But in reading other reviews of this book here and on Amazon.com, I would say I am in the minority, so you can just take my review for what it is -- my opinion and just one of many.

Originally posted at Goodreads. View all my reviews

REVIEW: McKenzie

McKenzie by Penny Zeller
My rating: 2 of 5 stars



I wanted to like this book because I usually do love marriage of convenience stories, but quite honestly there was not much I found to like. But let's start with the positive, shall we?

WHAT I LIKED:
~ Asa: He was the only character that had any spark of personality or life. His witty lines were easily the best dialogue in the book.
~ The story concept of a mail order bride: I've always been a sucker for these stories, I guess it's the romantic in me.
~ While there is certainly a strong focus on God, His plan, and Biblical verses, Zeller has managed to convey this without preaching. This, in my mind, is probably her greatest accomplishment with this story.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
~ The vast majority of the characters. I found McKenzie to be absolutely detestable and her transformation didn't sway my opinion much at all. It was just too late at that point and more than anything I just wanted to roll my eyes. I really wanted to like Zach more, but he was just rather dull and uninteresting. The supporting characters were really much more likeable and lifelike than the two main characters were.
~ The writing. The dialogues were so forced and lifeless. I couldn't imagine hearing most of the conversations taking place, with the exception of Asa's lines. He had spark and wit, to be sure.
~ The interludes of McKenzie's daydreams. They simply didn't add anything to the story for me.

To be honest, I found myself skimming much of this book just to get to the parts where the story was being advanced. Clearly, I am in the minority as most rate this book pretty highly, so you can take my review with a grain of salt and I won't be offended. :-)

*This review was originally posted on Goodreads. View all my reviews

Review: Forever and the Night

Title: Forever and the Night
Author: Linda Lael Miller
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Pub Date: Orig. November 1993, Penguin Group; this eBook version April 2012, IGLA
Format: Nook Book
Source: Purchased from BN.com

Synopsis (from BN.com)

Neely Wallace, having stumbled upon an unsavory secret concerning her employer, a U.S. Senator, is on the run. Her main goal is simple, to stay alive. The last thing she needs or wants is to fall in love—especially with a time-traveling vampire like Aidan Tremayne. Aidan has some complicated challenges of his own to meet, since a number of very bad and very powerful former humans are out to drive the proverbial stake through his heart. 

My Thoughts

Linda Lael Miller was one of the first romance writers I read, and one of very few that I have kept up with from time to time over the years when I feel the urge to pick up a romance. When I noticed she had independently re-released this vampire romance on ebook, I thought I would give it a try (it's only $4.99, after all, and I love a good vampire story) and see what her story from nearly 20 years ago was like. Well, as I recently discovered when trying to re-read a book of Miller's recently after a long hiatus, I seem to be discovering that I don't care for her books as much as I used to.

To begin with the technical, something odd happened with the translation of this title to ebook. Spacing is off and there are bizarre instances when a number "1" will appear instead of the letter "I". I think there was also an instance when the word "Mend" appeared where I think it should have been "friend"? I'm not sure; it was really, really strange -- and unfortunate that it should go to mass market in that condition. But enough about that -- I do think it deserves mentioning, but let's move on to how I felt about the story.

And as for that, I felt... not much. I easily skimmed at least the last half of the book. The story was dull, most of the the characters were lifeless and one-dimensional, save one (thank goodness for Valerian!), and I am beginning to question why I liked Miller's writing. Granted, this book is nearly 20 years old, so I think I should re-read a recent work of Miller's before questioning my loyalty to her books. There was just SO much of that clichéd, over-the-top, flowery writing of the romantic scenes that I found myself rolling my eyes. If the story had been better, I could have lived with it, but the story was pretty lame and there was very little to like about Neely or Aidan, which makes it pretty difficult to find any connection with the book at all. And I am so sick of the "oh, I barely know you, but I know that I love you with my entire being" device.

So... yeah... I don't have a lot of great things to say about this one. There are two reasons I am not just giving this book one star. The first is the character Valerian. Given how little we see of him, it is amazing how much more vibrant he is than either Neely or Aidan. I expect that a future book in this series must be devoted to him, but I will not be reading the rest to find out. The second reason I didn't completely blast the book is one that would be considered a spoiler, but this book has been around so long it hardly seems worth worrying about that. Aidan Tremayne is a vampire who doesn't want to be a vampire and will do anything to change back into a mortal man. I haven't read any stories like that out of the various vampire books I've read over the years, so it was refreshing for me. I just wish it had been enough to save the story for me.

My Rating

Review: Lady Alexandra's Excellent Adventure

Title: Lady Alexandra's Excellent Adventure
Author: Sophie Barnes
Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance
Pub Date: June 2012, HarperCollins Publishers
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased from BN.com

Synopsis (from BN.com)

It's going to be a wild ride…

Lady Alexandra Summersby is not your average society miss. Not only is she more likely to climb a tree than she is to wear a dress, but she has also sworn off marriage. Alex loves taking chances, which is how she finds herself embroiled in a secret mission as she races across the country with the Earl of Trenton. But Alexandra is about to discover that the real danger lies not in duels, but in her completely unexpected reaction to Lord Trenton's company.

Michael Ashford, Earl of Trenton, is a man of duty. Honorable, charming, and a hit with the ladies, he's never had trouble staying focused—until now. Lady Alexandra is like no other woman he's ever met, and suddenly the prospect of marriage seems far more appealing. Now, to convince Alexandra that a life together could be an adventure like no other….

My Thoughts

I really ought to give up trying to find other Regency Romances that will measure up to Georgette Heyer's, which I tend to hold as the standard for the genre. These days, I know not to expect that they will be the clean reads that Heyer's books were, but I always hold out hope that they will have the detail, plot, and wit that make Heyer's stories stand out. Sadly for me, Lady Alexandra's Excellent Adventure falls short both as a work of Historical Fiction and a Romance.

The storyline and the events around it (and frequently, the people's reactions to said events) are so absolutely ridiculous and implausible that I found myself rolling my eyes almost constantly. Barnes tries to capture some of the language of the time but includes little else that makes you feel as if this is supposed to be set in the Regency period. Honestly, it's a modern story that is trying to masquerade as a Regency Romance. On occasion, there is some witty banter between the characters, but I didn't find that it made up for the rest of the book. Once I hit the halfway point, I skimmed most of the rest of the story to see how it played out.

Personally, I think anyone who regularly reads romance (or even someone who doesn't) would not be particularly impressed with that part of the story, either. I didn't find Alexandra's and Michael's relationship to be particularly touching or romantic. Not only that, but after just one day of knowing each other, it is implied that all of these "deep" feelings and emotions are supposed to have surfaced within each of them, causing them to question their own personal opinions of marriage, blah, blah, blah. Seriously? More like deep feelings of lust. At least try to drag out the tension and the budding relationship for a little longer and try to make me feel like Alexandra and Michael are developing true, honest feelings of love for each other.

Perhaps if either the storyline or the romance itself had been executed better, I could have bumped up my rating of this book. But as it stands now, I wouldn't recommend Lady Alexandra's Excellent Adventure to anyone looking for Historical Romance/Fiction or any kind of Romance. Edited to add: I probably should have realized from the title alone that this was going to be a less-than-spectacular read.

My rating:

Catching up on Reviews: The House in Grosvenor Square

Title: The House In Grosvenor Square
Author: Linore Rose Burkard
Genre: Regency, Historical Fiction, Christian Fiction
Pub Date: April 2009, Harvest House Publishers
Format: Paperback
Source: Purchased from Books-a-Million

Synopsis (from the back of the book)

As Ariana Forsythe plans her wedding to Philip Mornay, she must adjust to the realization that she is soon to become the wife of an extremely wealthy man. She wonders if it’s wrong to rejoice that her future husband is rich. But she promises herself to use her new position to do what she can to aid the numerous street waifs she sees all too often in London.

During a tour of her future home—the house in Grosvenor Square—Ariana makes plans to redecorate according to her tastes. But when Philip arrives home later, he is informed that an expensive silver candlestick and a miniature portrait of George III have gone missing. Moreover, each time Ariana visits the house, accompanied by a friend or relation, another item disappears.

When Ariana suffers an abduction attempt by two villains, and other mysterious goings-on are unexplained, Mr. Mornay must unravel the  mystery of who is after Ariana and why.  He knows he has to prevent any harm from befalling his future bride, even if it means he must keep her under lock and key in his own house!

My Thoughts

Well, you might know by now that I seem to have mixed luck with my Christian Fiction reads.  This, unfortunately, was not one of my luckier picks, it seems.  I was pretty excited about the idea of a Regency Inspirational book, but this is a far cry from my beloved Georgette Heyer's Regency England.  (And I'm sorry, I know it's probably blasphemy in the world of books and literature, but I will take Heyer over Austen any day of the week.)

I did not realize when reading this book that it was actually the sequel to another book, Before the Season Ends.  I don't believe that my opinion of this book would have changed any even if I had read the first book, though.  I had several issues with this story when you get right down to it.  I thought the characters were flat.  Oh, I suppose Ariana was fleshed out pretty well, but Philip Mornay was such a bore.  The supporting cast wasn't much better.  I felt like I didn't even know who Mrs. Bentley was -- I never knew what to expect with her.  Peter O'Brien... I hardly even know what to say about him.  I suppose I can see where there may be a sequel involving him and Ariana's younger sister, but you won't catch me reading it.

The synopsis would also lead you to believe that you will find mystery and intrigue inside this book, but we basically know from the beginning who is behind the plots against Ariana, both in Philip Mornay's home and with respect to the kidnappings.  What's the fun in that?  I like to be able to speculate about what is going on and see if my guess is right when the evil-doers are finally unmasked.

Really, I found the whole book to be a snooze-fest.  By and large, there were few sparks for me as far as the romance was concerned -- perhaps once or twice I got momentarily excited by Ariana and Philip's relationship, only to have those feelings fall flat soon after.  By the time I was about a third of the way through I found myself skimming more than actually reading every page.  I'd say the Christianity piece is preachier than what I like to read, but it wasn't THAT big of a turn-off in that respect.  I guess I just had a harder time envisioning it within the Regency world than I thought I would.  But when you get down to it, I had bigger problems with the story, the characters, and the mystery, or lack thereof.

My rating:



If you have reviewed this book, please feel free to leave a link to your review in the comments section!

Review: Karma for Beginners

Title: Karma for Beginners
Author: Jessica Blank
Genre: Young Adult
Pub Date: August 2009, Hyperion
Hardcover, 305 pages
Book Source: The Book Report Network on behalf of Disney-Hyperion

Synopsis


Fourteen-year-old Tessa has never had a normal life. Her mother, a frustrated hippie with awful taste in men, has seen to that. But when her mom pulls her out of school to live at an ashram in the Catskills, Tessa goes from being a freak among normal people to being an outcast among freaks. Freaks who worship an orange robe-wearing guru. And while her mom is buzzing with spiritual energy, and finding a little too much favor with the guru, all Tessa feels are weird vibes.

Unless she’s with Colin, the gorgeous guy who fixes trucks for the ashram. The connection they share is the most spiritual thing Tessa has ever felt. But he’s older—like illegally older—and Tessa’s taking dangerous risks to spend time with him. Soon her life is blooming into a psychedelic web of secrets and lies and it’s clear that something’s about to give way. When it does, will she have anyone to hold on to? Will she even know herself?

My Thoughts

Firstly, thank you to Nicole with The Book Report Network for sending me a copy of this book! Simply from reading the synopsis, I thought it sounded like an interesting premise and a promising story. Upon starting the book, I realized it was set in the 80's, which I also found to be a nice change from the modern setting that is usually depicted in stories lately. While I initially found the relationship between Tessa and her mother (and their move to an ashram) intriguing, ultimately the story fell flat for me.

I think the reason it didn't resonate is that I simply couldn't relate to the characters. I have never felt the way Tessa did, nor did I ever contemplate acting the way she did and making some of the decisions she chose. While this is supposed to be a young adult novel, I was really turned off by the amount of sex and drug use that was depicted. I guess it happens, but I have to admit if I had a 14-year old daughter, I would not want her reading this novel, nor do I really feel that is appropriate for anyone in that general age group. The first part of the story that focused on the move to the ashram and the effect it had on Tessa and her mother was certainly interesting, but the story started going downhill shortly thereafter.

The writing is generally solid, with my only complaint being the use of first person point of view. I seem to have become more sensitive to that lately and I really thought some of the phrases felt awkward simply because they were written in first-person. So, while I can appreciate that many people would probably enjoy Karma for Beginners, it did not work for me, nor would I feel comfortable recommending it to others.

My rating:


Other reviews of Karma for Beginners:

A Novel Menagerie ~ Harmony Book Reviews ~ Book Reviews by Jess

If you have reviewed this book and would like to see a link to your review here, please leave a comment with the permalink to your review!

Review: The Manning Brides

Title: The Manning Brides (Marriage of Inconvenience & Stand-In Wife)
Author: Debbie Macomber
Genre: Fiction, Romance
Pub Date: Originally 1992, this edition 2008, MIRA
Mass market, 475 pages

Synopsis

Rich Manning and Jamie Warren have always been friends--and nothing but friends. However, that changes when she asks him to father the child she so desperately wants. Rich agrees--if she'll marry him. Because he thinks their Marriage of Inconvenience could become a real marriage instead.

Paul Manning, a grieving widower with three small children, turns to Leah Baker for help and comfort. When that comfort begins to grow into something else, Paul discovers that he wants more than a Stand-In Wife.

My Thoughts

I had never read a Debbie Macomber novel before this set of books, which I happened across our local independent bookstore several weeks ago. I decided I wanted to start a light read last night and, well, that's pretty much exactly what I got and so I'm writing just one review for both stories. I've read a few romance novels, and I actually have to say I appreciate the fact that Macomber does not go into graphic detail when it comes to sex, though there are certainly enough innuendos.

In the end, I have wonder if I'm just not a good candidate for romance novels--at least not those that are like these two books. The story lines just felt so unrealistic and ridiculous--especially the way the couples were acting. I found myself rolling my eyes often, and I'm not sure that I have ever been more frustrated with characters than I was when it came to Rich & Jamie and Paul & Leah. How they could not have a clue as to what the other person was feeling, not know what they themselves were feeling and ultimately say some absolutely stupid things to each other was beyond me. Maybe I just can't relate, but I just can't envision real people acting like these silly couples. The timing of the development of the relationships also felt odd--things happened much too quickly and, to me, the various family members did not react to certain events the way I think most people would. Actually, I felt that both stories--but especially Stand-In Wife--focused so much on the couples and hardly at all on other characters (friends & family) that the stories just felt even less real.

I realize that romance novels are very much an escapist read, but I need more substance to really appreciate a story like either of these and to truly "escape." Macomber's writing is easy to read and follow, and I could at least enjoy the fact that the books both ended "happily ever after." But I think that lately I've been reading so many books that are deeper, more emotionally gripping, and better written, and I was simply unable to appreciate this title in the manner it had been intended.

My rating:


If you have read and reviewed this book, please leave a comment with the link!

REVIEW: No Place for a Lady by Maggie Brendan

Genre: Christian Historical Fiction

Pub Date: Jan 2009, Baker Publishing Group

Format: Trade Paperback, 304 pages

Source/FTC Disclosure: I purchased my copy of this book. I was in no way compensated for this review and my opinions are my own.

Crystal Clark arrives in Colorado's Yampa Valley amid the splendor of a high country June in 1892. After the death of her father, Crystal is relieved to be leaving the troubles of her Georgia life behind to visit her aunt Kate's cattle ranch. Despite being raised as a proper Southern belle, Crystal is determined to hold her own in this wild land--even if a certain handsome foreman doubts her abilities. Just when she thinks she's getting a handle on the constant male attention from the cowhands and the catty barbs from some of the local young women, tragedy strikes the ranch. Crystal will have to tap all of her resolve to save the ranch from a greedy neighboring landowner. Can she rise to the challenge? Or will she head back to Georgia defeated? Book one in the Heart of the West series, No Place for a Lady is full of adventure, romance, and the indomitable human spirit. Readers will fall in love with the Colorado setting and the spunky Southern belle who wants to claim it as her own.

MY THOUGHTS

Well, from everything I've read out there, it seems I'm in the minority, because I was not very impressed with No Place for a Lady. And for that reason, this review will be relatively short and to the point. I really wanted to like this book, especially after reading several 5-star reviews on Amazon and BN.com, but in the end I was disappointed. The plot was flimsy; neither it nor the characters had much depth, in my opinion. I'm starting to think that I must not be a big fan of Christian Fiction. It feels like the storylines are very formulaic and clichéd. I have read several of Janette Oke's novels, and while I enjoyed them after awhile I felt like I was reading the same story over and over again. Oke's advantage is that she is able to give depth and realism to her characters and make the plot more meaningful. The story behind No Place for a Lady had potential--it was sweet, but cheesy at the same time--300+ pages of fluff in the end.

Other reviews of No Place for a Lady:

Allison's Attic

Relz Reviewz

MYSTERY MONDAYS REVIEW: Where Are You Now? by Mary Higgins Clark

Welcome to another week of Mystery Mondays! I have another review today, then I'm also going to post a question for discussion later on. But now for the review...

Genre: Fiction, Mystery

Pub Date: 2008, Simon & Schuster

Format: Hardover, 289 pages

Source/FTC Disclosure: I purchased my copy of this book. I was in no way compensated for this review and my opinions are my own.

It has been ten years since twenty-one-year-old Charles MacKenzie Jr. ("Mack") went missing. A Columbia University senior, about to graduate and already accepted at Duke University Law School, he walked out of his apartment on Manhattan's Upper West Side without a word to his college roommates and has never been seen again. However, he does make one ritual phone call to his mother every year: on Mother's Day. Each time, he assures her he is fine, refuses to answer her frantic questions, then hangs up. Even the death of his father, a corporate lawyer, in the tragedy of 9/11 does not bring him home or break the pattern of his calls.

Mack's sister, Carolyn, is now twenty-six, a law school graduate, and has just finished her clerkship for a civil court judge in Manhattan. She has endured two family tragedies, yet she realizes that she will never be able to have closure and get on with her life until she finds her brother. She resolves to discover what happened to Mack and why he has found it necessary to hide from them. So this year when Mack makes his annual Mother's Day call, Carolyn interrupts to announce her intention to track him down, no matter what it takes. The next morning after Mass, her uncle, Monsignor Devon MacKenzie, receives a scrawled message left in the collection basket: "Uncle Devon, tell Carolyn she must not look for me."

Mack's cryptic warning does nothing to deter his sister from taking up the search, despite the angry reaction of her mother, Olivia, and the polite disapprovalof Elliott Wallace, Carolyn's honorary uncle, who is clearly in love with Olivia.

Carolyn's pursuit of the truth about Mack's disappearance swiftly plunges her into a world of unexpected danger and unanswered questions. What is the secret that Gus and Lil Kramer, the superintendents of the building in which Mack was living, have to hide? What do Mack's old roommates, the charismatic club owner Nick DeMarco and the cold and wealthy real estate tycoon Bruce Galbraith, know about Mack's disappearance? Is Nick connected to the disappearance of Leesey Andrews, who had last been seen in his trendy club? Can the police possibly believe that Mack is not only alive, but a serial killer, a shadowy predator of young women? Was Mack also guilty of the brutal murder of his drama teacher and the theft of his taped sessions with her?

Carolyn's passionate search for the truth about her brother — and for her brother himself — leads her into a deadly confrontation with someone close to her whose secret he cannot allow her to reveal.

MY THOUGHTS

First off, let me say that there are many reasons why I like Mary Higgins Clark. For one thing, her books are generally very easy to read, with short chapters--as you read, each one tends to change over to a different part of the storyline, keeping the plot moving. Clark is also usually pretty good at making you suspect multiple people but leaving small clues that can only lead to the culprit--these are often subtle and can easily be glossed over. I've actually tried to pay closer attention to everything she writes now--once in awhile I'm successful at figuring out who commited the crime, but more often than not I end up shocked. Something else I like? The fact that her stories are generally pretty clean--minimal foul language and no gratuitous sex.

All that being said, this book just didn't quite do it for me. Suprisingly, there were several things that bothered me about this story (and I think it's because I'm starting to read things from a more critical point of view). The main character, Carolyn, seriously annoyed me. She really had no business trying to solve this mystery on her own and made things a lot worse because of her involvement. The other thing that bugged me, is while I suspected one of the characters as being an accomplice (and it ended up being true), there was no part of me that guessed the real reason why. This time I don't think Clark was as good at dropping her clues as she usually is. Normally I'll find myself thinking, "oh yeah!" when I read how everything was wrapped up, but this time I just thought, "huh???" There were some good side stories, but the character development was off and ultimately I was pretty disappointed when I finished, so I can't really say that I recommend it. (Rather disappointing for a Mystery Monday review, if I do say so myself.)