The Trouble With Book Reviews

Book reviews are difficult. I want to say nice things about the author. I want to say it is a great read. But that is not always the case.

It is summer, which means I get to read whatever I want right now. Currently, I am reading an old historical romance and a new mystery/suspense published by Multnomah. Two very incompatible reads.

The mystery/suspense utilizes concise action driven writing. The historical over uses passive construction and shifts point of view randomly, but I have read dozens of books with these problems and can overlook this. This type of structure is typical for the genre and for books written during that era. The newer book has plot holes and contradictions within the story. Which is worse?

Either way, it is hard to read! I am line editing everything. But really it gives me hope. The stories are still getting out there. The books are still getting published. Books are still being read.

Hopefully in a few days I will have a new book review. Two if I can get through the non-fiction I just received. As for the historical romance--I have no room to dis on Johanna Lindsay. However, I will have to pick up the newest novel to see what she has learned in the past thirty years and forty plus books.

Mary Higgins Clark: No Place Like Home

My first love may be historical fiction, but every now and then I enjoy a good psychological thriller. Nothing too twisted, but a book with a lot of suspense. There's something decadent about vicariously experiencing danger through the pages of a good novel.

Mary Higgins Clark's No Place Like Home delivers a good pace, plenty of clues and a solution that satisfies.

The pacing is good. She reveals enough clues, strategically placed, to keep up the tension and keep the reader engaged. However, this is not a book that compels you to read it straight through the night.

Clark's ability to drop clues is once again superbly demonstrated in this story. She weaves a tale that is believable, and lulls the reader into a false sense of security before springing the climactic surprise.

The solution is believable, but the epilogue throws in a twist that sounds a bit like an afterthought. This is a very good read. However, if you are looking for an edge of the seat thriller try one of her earlier novels such as: Where are the Children?, The Cradle Will Fall, or Loves Music Loves to Dance.