Skeleton Lake by Angela KuligMy rating: 2 of 5 stars
All the reviews I read made me want to read this book. I was so excited when I received my copy and couldn't wait to read it.
From the first chapter, I was completely lost. I had no clue what was being said. Maybe this was deliberate since Marlow was "drowning". So, I kept reading. The story began to work itself out over the next few chapters and I could see it more clearly.
The characters were not very deep. Even though the story was told through the eyes of Marlow, I just couldn't get into her, deep into her, to really feel any emotion towards her. Each character presented only provided more complication to the reader's ability to keep them straight. There was nothing discerning about the characters, nothing that made them want to be loved (or hated) by you. There were hints, don't get me wrong. But there was nothing that went deeper. I felt as I was reading this, it was just being "told" to me.
The story has a great premise, overall. Although the book is an easy read and the chapters are short, I just couldn't finish reading. I wanted to finish. I tried. But with the amount of grammatical errors, typos, cliches, and "telling, not showing", I just couldn't manage to finish. I got to Chapter 42. Maybe I will, one day, plow through the rest just so I know what happens.
Even though it's a self-pubbed book, with a little work and a couple more revisions it could have been a great read! I just feel it wasn't ready.
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Thank you for your honesty.
ReplyDeleteI rarely read self-published books. I just can barely do it. I read Bill Jones Jr.'s THE STREAM and I'm intending to read another self-pubbed novel very soon, but I just can't handle it most of the time. Why? Because of exactly the reasons you put forward in your review.
First of all, the author should thank you for being honest. I would hug and kiss you for giving me a critique like this, because it's the most valuable kind any author could ask for. People are too busy (excuse my language) sucking self-published authors' dicks for "making it happen" that readers ignore the things that make books shine.
I will avoid this book and hope the author uses this opportunity to better her work. Thank you for being honest about a review. I hope, if she reads your review, she appreciates your criticisms!
Aloha Lady Jai,
ReplyDeleteSo I'm enjoying your blog and am following you to see where your journey brings you.
My only question is: How do I pronounce "Jai" :)
PS: I read your bio and very sorry to hear about your husband's disabled veteran status.
Please tell him my family is safer because of the work he did (does) and I just wanted to say to him: thanks for your service to our country.