Tales of Fascination

September 19, 2020September 19, 2020Everything Else

Imagine Don’t Show

In the writing world, the words “Show, don’t tell” are often given as advice. Countless blogs describe why it’s better to show and not tell, how to show instead of telling, and (naturally) why sometimes it’s better to tell and not show. Let’s go beyond that and say you’ve mastered the art of “show, don’t tell.” None of us ever will, but for sake of argument, we’ll pretend we subscribe to this sentiment and are looking to take our skills to a higher level. Is there another step to increase the effectiveness of your writing?

Perhaps the answer lies in the movies, especially horror movies. The most effective of these movies follow an adage of “don’t show the monster until the end.” The best of these movies like Jaws or Alien allow your brain to fill in details the camera never shows you. Just recently I watched a newer movie called The Ritual which did exactly the same thing. The Ritual has some problems but it shows only part of the monster until the end. In one scene, when it’s following the victims, and you see it briefly, it’s very creepy. Goosebumps properly raised.

Video has sort of ruined this adage for movies as you can pause your movie and observe the movie in full glory. Yes, directors have gotten smarter and show you only part of the monster—Alien did this extremely effectively because that darn thing’s head looks like the pipes of the ship—at a time, reducing the pause effect. However, I miss the thrill of being in the theater and seeing something that might have been the monster but I’m still unsure. Now is there a lesson here that the written word could benefit from? I think so.

If you allow your reader to imagine and fill in the details, your story will be far more effective than if you explain in detail what’s going on. Who wants to see the magician show you the trick? Keeping specific details from the reader draws them in and invests them more into your story because they’re telling parts of it to themselves.

Consider: “Shaina stepped into the empty room, disturbing a thin layer of dust on the floor and walls. Noticing a gold-framed mirror hanging askew on one wall, she stepped toward it, stopping in the middle of the room. She completed the circuit to the reflecting glass and blinked. Shaina extended her fingertips, swiped away the dust, and peered into the reflection. A translucent second face stared back at her over her shoulder.

Now let’s end this passage a different way: “Shaina extended her fingertips, swiped away the dust, and peered into the reflection. Only her own pale face, wide-eyed and drawn, gazed back at her, and she released an unsteady breath. Laying a hand on her chest, she turned around and stood still. Slippered footprints from the opposite end of the room had joined her own trail and the ended next to hers.”

So both are examples of show, don’t tell. I don’t have to tell you that Shaina is scared and worried about what she’ll find in the room. The face that appears over her shoulder in the first passage is written matter-of-factly without any description. You should know Shaina is freaked out by what came before and how you react to the passage. But what about the second passage? You could say it’s different, but not really. Other than the ghost being visible, there’s little difference here. A woman enters an empty room and encounters a ghost is an apt description for both paragraphs.

Does “Imagine, Don’t Show” only work for horror or the supernatural, or only in scenes that evoke fear? No, it can work in all sorts of situations. Consider:

“Jiu’s eyes sparkled in the candlelight, her warm smile inviting me to ask her more. Sweat beaded on my forehead. I gulped and lowered my hands and unfolded the paper where I had written down my questions. I cleared my throat to speak, but Jiu spoke first.”

“Jiu’s eyes sparkled in the candlelight, her warm smile inviting me to ask her more. How to continue this conversation? The paper with my questions in my hand felt like a fifty-pound weight and I debated opening it. What was the best question I could ask? Looking into her eyes, I knew the perfect one, but she asked me a question first.”

Both describe a nervous narrator. Yes, the second passage has more “deep voice” going for it, but focus on the difference. Readers ask themselves in the second passage “what was this perfect question?” and then they answer it using their imagination. And now, as the conversation may go in a different direction, the unasked question hangs large, investing the reader in what will happen next. Will they ever hear the perfect question?

If you’re worried about using this technique, let me assure you that this is what you do when you end a chapter. Chapter endings are often cliffhangers, asking questions that fire the readers’ imagination and wanting them to read more. So you already do it at the end of chapters but not throughout the chapter. Take that skill and employ it more throughout the narrative.

Is there a downside? Absolutely. You have to have details because you’re also painting a picture in your reader’s minds. It’s inherent in movies but not on the printed page so you must supply the relevant information. Also, if done poorly, it won’t fire up the reader’s imagination, and if the writing is too obscure, it may work against you. Readers won’t be able to follow the passage. As with all writing where you balance show and tell, you should balance imagine and show. In fact, “imagine” is not to be used excessively. It’s best if you sprinkle it in, not dump its contents into a chapter. Be careful. It may end up that the reader imagines a better scene in their mind than you plotted. In the first example, if their ghost is a shrivelled-up desiccated corpse and later you describe it as a beautiful woman, your reader may be disappointed.

So the next time you want to liven up a paragraph, think of “Imagine, Don’t Show” and see if you can rearrange something to fire up your reader’s inner eye. They’ll come up with a lot on their own, elevating your novel, and participating in making it a great story.

September 13, 2020Everything Else

Review of Den

Hope Bolinger’s Den, a sequel to her first novel Blaze, is a contemporary take of the Bible’s Book of Daniel.

Danny Belte enjoys fun times with girlfriend Rayah, hangs around with best friends Michelle and Hannah, and goes to a premier school: King’s Academy. The academy should be his ticket to the very best colleges. On the surface it seems like life is going his way, but nothing could be further from the truth. In his sophomore year, he experienced a number of unpleasant events including nearly losing the aforementioned three friends to a premature death. Now, his best friends are all suffering from PTSD, the school still engages in despicable acts, and peer pressure runs amok on social media. However, Danny finally has what he lacked in the first novel, a large amount of evidence to put his oppressor in jail. But will he succeed in bringing justice to his school?

It’s hard to summarize this novel without giving a lot of it (or the novel preceding it) away. Suffice it to say, the plot is much more fascinating than my simple summary. This novel, with its nods to Lemony Snicket as well as the bible, grips the reader as the events turn from bad to worse for Danny. At one point, I thought this may turn into a mystery but it’s not a puzzler per se. More advice to the reader: treat this very much as allegory and not a contemporary novel. The plot follows the extraordinary events in the Book of Daniel as intended. Whether Biblical Daniel survived actual lions or survived events that would be better if he had faced lions is immaterial. Daniel survives because of his trust in God.

Den stands out as an intriguing example of entertainment and message mixed together. The entertainment comes from its compelling story. You feel for Danny and his friends as they suffer through everything King’s Academy has to throw at them. But where this novel really shines is in its message. I haven’t read a novel this year with more to mentally chew on than this book. Bolinger hits all the right buttons when she describes how an institution can negatively influence a large group of people. This is a much-needed theme in today’s world.

As I reviewed my comments on this novel, I noticed that the majority had to do with Danny’s friend Hannah Gad. Hannah was a hoot in Blaze, a true bright spot, and while the level of humor doesn’t quite reach the first novel, she says some very interesting things in this novel. Not to say Hannah isn’t hilarious in Den—couldn’t stop laughing at a comment about Hannah and scissors—but certain things she says, especially near the end of the book, shows her depth. More Hannah in book three, please.

I enjoyed this novel right up to the end. I anticipated the ending “type” after reading Blaze but still was disappointed. Keep in mind that Blaze and Den are the first and second parts of what I call a true trilogy and the middle book often has the hardest job. The reader isn’t introduced to a brand new world with shiny new characters like in book one, nor is everything concluded, for better or worse, as in book three. Poor book two. Den has that heavy burden to bear.

Overall, Den stands out in my mind as a YA novel that doesn’t talk down to its readers. Many of the adult situations depicted in this novel face that age group today. The book doesn’t flinch when taking on serious issues. Hope Bolinger’s story introduces a timely allegorical tale to the YA crowd.

On Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1645262669

September 2, 2020September 2, 2020Everything Else

Review of Reformed

H. L. Burke’s Reformed, the first in a superhero series, imagines a world of super enabled people, called sables, mixing with normal people, named normies, where superheroes are monitored by the government agency called the Department of Super-Abled (DOSA). In the first installment, sable Prism is revitalizing the supervillain reformation project, a project her father invented. The first villain she wants to reform is Fade, a former villain-turned-superhero-turned-villain-again. Fade has some blood on his hands for his last act of treachery. Will Prism be able to reform Fade, or is it his destiny to be a criminal?

Most of the novel takes place in the community of Oceanside, California and involves Prism’s superhero team. The group has a list of super-abilities that compliment each other, but they need someone with Fade’s powers to give them an extra edge. The early part of the novel, told from both Prism and Fade’s perspectives, detail whether Fade will be able to overcome his past and become the hero Prism believes him to be.

Reformed focuses on its villain redemption theme which differs from other superhero storylines. The novel has some of the tension of a villain in a superhero group ala Marissa Meyer’s Renegades series, but the heroes here know Fade’s past. Reformed uses a tragic backstory for its primary heroes (Fade’s past and Prism’s parents) that Marvel superheroes have capitalized on for years. But Reformed is its own novel. The idea of whether or not a person who did unforgivable acts can be redeemed has a spiritual aspect to it normally not explored in cape-and-tights narratives. While not a religious novel, the book isn’t afraid to shy away from the subject.

After reading Renegades, Vicious, and some indie-published novels like the Arca series, the cover of Reformed led me to believe it would end up in the YA world. However the novel deals head-on with quite a few adult topics. While the characters have super powers, this book has a contemporary feel to it. A number of times I was surprised where the novel went to make its point. It wasn’t afraid to take chances.

The plot is fast-moving, leaving the reader wanting more at the end of each chapter making it hard to put down. The action scenes are described with enough detail to view the comic panels in the reader’s head. I enjoyed the humor too. Any book that succeeds in making the word squicky work not once but twice has a lot going for it.

While the action and the humor propel it in the second and third acts, I did struggle connecting with the characters at the beginning. The superhero genre is loaded with stories right now from the movies to television to graphic novels and now to books. It’s a real challenge to come up with super-powered people that are unique and harder still to name them. Reformed struggles a bit here at the starting line, however, the use of the name Fade and the fact that memory plays a big role in his arc (i.e. memory fades), was an inspired moniker for this character. In addition, in the middle of the novel, two characters engage in a “battle of the mind” of sorts. This has never worked visually in my opinion. Squiggly lines coming out of a superhero’s head only goes so far. The choice to put this in a novel which can describe abstract concepts like a mind battle is very clever.

Reformed has heart, faith, humor, and action. Effective little moments weave around larger scenes in a consistently gripping narrative. So when I finished this book, I checked out the next novel in the series and plopped it into my TBR list.

Postscript: The novel is dedicated to the Marines. As a son of a Marine, this glowing review wasn’t influenced in any way by the dedication or the honorable depiction of the Marines in this novel…mostly.

Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B085X8N8FL

August 22, 2020Everything Else

Review of Hotcakes and Holly

The Bells Pass Christmas series by Kattie Mettner has a formula it follows closely. Take two people who are secretly in love, start at the beginning of the holiday season, have one character be a person with disabilities, and mix them together with a Christmas conclusion. So if you’ve read one, you’ve read them all, right? Not at all. Ms. Mettner likes to take her Christmas novels to some interesting and unique places, and Hotcakes and Holly is no different.

Hotcakes and Holly follows the first in the series of Mistletoe and Meatloaf to focus on two new characters of Bells Pass. We met them briefly in the first novel, and the novel catches up with them again one year later. (Note: It isn’t necessary to read the first novel to enjoy this one.) Melissa (Mel) Murano is a waitress at the Nightingale Diner and Mason Hadley is a cook at the same establishment. They’ve worked together for four years and everyone in town has noticed the looks the two give each other. Right at the start, a tragedy forces Mel to move and she accepts Mason’s charity for the season. From there, the ups-and-downs of the plot play out all the way to the very last chapter.

Hotcakes and Holly is a vignette sort of novel meaning it details the lives and times of its main character and narrator, Mel, from Thanksgiving to Christmas. A lot happens to Mel in this timeframe, more than would happen to most people in a year. The reader slowly discovers her mysterious past as one event leads to another. As a time-bound novel, don’t expect the book to build around one plot point. And what most people would guess would happen at the end of the novel occurs much earlier.

Some exciting plot twists exist within the 237 pages of Hotcakes and Holly. As I alluded to before, one of the characters has health problems and the author describes it in a graceful manner. In fact, much of the darkness is handled in the same way—respectfully—and it elevates the book. A lot of complex, serious topics are introduced in this relatively short narrative. These plot points are all balanced in terms of time and character development to give the reader a lot to reflect on after putting the novel down.

Research is evident in nearly every page in this book. Whether it’s geography, healthcare, or Mel dealing with her past, Mettner has done her homework and put a lot of thought into the passages. I felt confident I was reading an accurate depiction of whatever subject the book delved into. And as far as the setting goes, though it’s fictional, it could easily be an actual small town in Michigan. As a native Midwesterner, the town of Bells Pass passed the authenticity test.

While I think Mason was a little too agreeable and there are a few passages of stilted dialog, these things didn’t detract from the story. The last few chapters have a major reveal which will make this entry in the series stick out in my head. Though I guessed it was coming, it happened in a believable and wonderful way.

Filled with solid research, good local detail, and warm characters you can root for, this book is a delightful read. Humor, heart, and humanity are wrapped in a Christmas package disguised as an unassuming novel entitled Hotcakes and Holly. One thing’s for sure—I’ll be visiting Bells Pass again.

On Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1726835189

August 9, 2020June 22, 2021Everything Else

The Arca Short Stories

I enjoy when authors write short stories exploring the worlds they’ve built in their novels. This is common in epic fantasy, detective fiction, and science fiction. In the same spirit, Karen Diem writes and distributes short stories for her Arca series in between her novels. These stories help to flesh out her superhero world. The following isn’t a review per se, but more of a notification that these stories exist and a little bit about each one.

Note: These stories are found in either a free flash fiction series (Octopus) or from links the author sends out after you join her email list. They aren’t free for the casual reader to download. However, Diem’s emails are usually a hilarious read so it’s well worth joining her list.

Washout – This short story occurs between two chapters in Diem’s initial novel in the Arca series —Super. This is one of Diem’s shorter stories that introduces the reader to her main character Zita Garcia and her friend Andy. It’s a fun segment that, if you read it outside of the novel, serves its purpose admirably. Washout shows off Diem’s talent for action writing and Arca’s character motivations. It has a good dose of humor too.

Octopus – This is flash fiction so it’s extremely short. It serves as an introduction to Arca’s main character Zita, and it captures her personality well. An action-packed, weird little story, it could be summed up as “Zita goes to lunch when everything goes wrong.” You won’t believe the results.

To find it on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LZIUFIW

Tourists – A longer short story with Zita, Wyn, and Andy, along with another character, fighting what might be aliens that have landed on the Las Vegas strip. But all is not what it appears to be. This is an action-heavy sequence so professionally done that it could start of a novel. Like Octopus, I found this short story exploring the esoteric side of the Arca world. Up to this point, the novels seem more realistic to me than the short stories. If you’re interested in Diem’s work but haven’t taken the plunge of reading her novels yet, Tourists is a good place to start.

Pie – A more character-driven, down-to-earth tale than Octopus and Tourists, this story revolves around Zita en route home for Thanksgiving. “Travel home” stories are a personal favorite. I’ve always felt there’s so much you can do with them. Diem doesn’t waste the excellent premise and gives us a story about community and love, the very things Thanksgiving should symbolize. Oh, and pie. Her literal set piece becomes an important element in the story in multiple ways. Taking place after the novel Power, the last novel I read (so far!), it’s fun to catch up with Zita and see that a hero isn’t a hero simply because they’re the ones who can punch the hardest or fly. It’s who they are inside.

Roses in December – As the short stories continue, Diem’s writing increases in character and plot complexity. Roses in December stars Wyn instead of Zita and puts our favorite witch (Wyn) in a situation where Zita would normally excel. Unfortunately, it’s Wyn who has to deal with the situation. It also details some of Wyn’s world from her perspective and not Zita’s—a welcome change. This short story zipped by and is a wonderful holiday companion piece to Pie (Thanksgiving and December holidays). Finally, I stood in reader awe of the clever device Wyn uses to get out of a literal cliffhanger. Truly inspired! A very touching, as well as exciting, short tale.

Quarry – An interesting side adventure between Zita and her mysterious, athletic superfriend starts with the two of them competing in a rock climbing contest. When they’re interrupted by a group of less-than-lawful people, Zita has to go it alone to save the day. An interesting take on how Zita uses strategy to her advantage rather than busting in and knocking heads, this short story extends the Arca world with an amazing adventure.

Concrete – The stories were getting longer until this one. A short, action-packed ditty in between Monster and Toga, this is a blind date gone horribly wrong (like most of Zita’s dates, unfortunately). The hook with this one is Zita has to be a hero without revealing her identity, and the way she does it is most of the fun. While I’m still debating the title, the story is a fun self-contained romp.

Tough Love – Included in the Beneath the Mask anthology. A story where Andy is the main star is my type of story. I’ve always liked that Andy is both “Superman” and “Clark Kent” at the same time. Andy is waiting for his secret lover and their date doesn’t start off well when…I’ll let you read the rest. The main plot extends another one of the short stories and I have to wonder if this is leading to a novel in the future. Action, romance, witty banter are all here in this short offering—one well worth reading.

Pick it up here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08TGG7ZWB

Breaking the Ice – I was delighted to see another Andy story. In this short, he’s focused on starting a new job with a renown Physicist who might be a little eccentric. After first meeting the professor, the reader finds out people have been missing in his new boss’ neighborhood, including the last assistant. Does this spell doom for Andy’s chances of working in his field? This story is a barrel of goofy fun while having an Andy vibe all its own. The final confrontation is choreographed well. Another solid Arca story. (Available via Karen’s newsletter).

July 26, 2020Everything Else

Parable of the Sower: A Reflection

In light of recent events, I tried to think of a way I could reflect and listen to the plight of the black men and women of the United States. One way to listen is to read because you can’t interrupt the author of a book to provide a counterpoint. I decided to look up a classic in science fiction or fantasy by a black author and ended up buying and reading the science fiction classic Earthseed: Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler.

I don’t know if I chose a representative novel to reflect racial injustice, but I certainly chose a powerful book. Instead of black versus white, Sower’s conflict is mostly about poor versus rich. Accurately depicted in the novel, most of the poor are black characters although all races are represented. Published in 1993 with one sequel that won the Nebula Award, the novel starts on July 20, 2024, not too far in the future at all, in the small walled community in Robledo which is 20 miles from L.A. Unlike many dystopian novels, anarchy, not a dictatorship, has overrun the United States. Crime, poverty, drugs run rampant while governments fail. Cops are at best useless and at worst just as bad as the thugs killing people. Imagine the worst part of the worst city in the U.S. and then extend that across the country.

The world Butler creates is frighteningly and (quite frankly) embarrassingly true to modern life. Yes, this is science fiction but much of this novel feels all too real. Good sci-fi novels reflect present times, great sci-fi novels reflect all times. While crime ebbs and flows, Sower reminds us we live on the edge of a knife where one day it could flow too far.

The main character, Lauren Oya Olamina, is fifteen, oldest daughter of a Baptist minister, living with her stepmother and four brothers, and is losing her father’s faith. Much of the novel explores the idea of the nature of God and Lauren starts to form a new religion named Earthseed. Her ideas are big and goals quite impressive. She knows she can’t stay safe in her walled community so she prepares for a journey and to live in an outside world of chaos.

After establishing Lauren’s family and community, events occur that set Lauren on her journey. As she travels, she meets a number of interesting people who join her. Her trek north is a modern-day odyssey of survival where she gains (and sometimes loses) more and more followers. This book is not for the squeamish, especially the sequences outside the walls. All society structures that make one feel “safe” are demolished. No traditional families exist, money exists for survival and no one has enough of it, law enforcement is corrupt, criminals have no boundaries, children are victimized, the list goes on. The novel won’t let you look away from the automobile accident happening before your eyes.

And yet, even though all prospects look grim, the building of a community and the (sometimes forced) heroics of the characters give hope to the reader that the ending will be worth it. When the end comes, it’s satisfying and provides a lasting image.

What does this tell us about life in the United States in 2020? Ms. Butler died in 2006. We’re edging ever closer to the year her novel starts. While it may be fun to compare the years depicted in 1984 or Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep (2019) to the real year, the year’s not as significant as the ideas the novel portends: what makes a community, what is the nature of God in a cruel world, what is humankind’s real destiny? Surprisingly, a lot of racial harmony exists in Sower, but Butler is interested in getting the reader to feel the plight of the oppressed. The feeling you cannot escape crime and poverty is shared by many young black men today. Lauren’s brother Keith is lured to this dangerous life. There’s no science fiction here, this is the tale of a poor, young man succumbing to the siren call of gangs.

On this level, Sower succeeds exceedingly well. Do you want to understand why people are protesting around this country? Read this book. This is the world they inherited, but it’s the not the world they want to continue. They want to plant different seeds for a better United States.

They’re the modern-day Lauren Oya Olamina.

July 9, 2020July 9, 2020Everything Else

Review of Heart of the Curiosity

H. L. Burke’s Heart of the Curiosity is a steampunk fantasy adventure of exceptional quality and entertainment. Heart starts with two sisters, Leodora (Leo) and Musette (Muse), who make their way to a legendary theater called the Curiosity. Leo is there to help Muse obtain a position among the ballet dancers. In order to do so, Leo agrees to work for the theater using her own personal magic in a way she’d rather not.

The girls have a friend in Paxton Genuent, part of the family that owns and runs the theater. Paxton has his own secrets, starting with a mechanical hand that doubles as a set of tools (e.g. flashlight, screwdriver). He advocates for the girls at first and soon becomes best friends with Leo. He explains the Curiosity’s power is generated by something called the Heart, hidden within the theater. When tragedy strikes, finding the Heart is the only thing that will save the theater and their home as well.

The list of what works in this story is so long it’s hard to keep this review to a reasonable length. The magic system in this world, known as someone’s knack, is inspired, and the reader is introduced to it by Leo employing it in the first few pages. The way her knack in particular is described is very clever. The setting of the city of Versia and the Curiosity feel like sets for a play, ingeniously incorporating style with theme. The steampunk elements are fun and creative, especially the methods of transportation.

There aren’t many characters in Heart, but each one is described vividly, usually with a prop, again playing into theme. The stagemistresses’ item, in particular, is quite an ingenious item. In addition, all the people have a unique knack, giving the reader a little something extra to discover about each one.

The description of the book gives the impression that the majority of the story will take place looking for the Heart. While the hunt for the Heart occurs over many chapters, the earlier parts of the book have characterization in mind. When Leo has to face a dark secret in her past, it’s such a striking and heartfelt scene that I forgot I was in the middle of a steampunk adventure. Burke handles this sensitive subject matter with adept expertise that only comes with an accomplished author.

Leo is such a well-rounded character and an odd choice for the heroine of the novel. She’s not the most pretty or the most talented. She’s accused of doing things she hasn’t done and makes poor decisions. In a word, she’s a great avatar for the reader.

So many other elements of this story achieve their objective, including the Paxton character. While he starts off too agreeable and a bit perfect, at a critical juncture he delivers an honest confession which elevates him above most YA single-dimension, male hero fare.

Heart of the Curiosity is one of the novels that I truly didn’t want to end. If you’re a fan of steampunk, riddle-mysteries, fantasy, coming-of-age, or any combination of the above, you’re going to find yourself lost in this novel and happier for it

Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1948896184

July 1, 2020July 1, 2020Everything Else

Review of The First Time I Fell

Jo Macgregor’s The First Time I Fell is the second of the Garnet McGee series of a psychology student who has a knack for landing in the middle of a mystery. In the first novel, Garnet gained certain abilities after dying and coming back to life, leaving her with not only two eyes of different color but a little more insight than the rest of the world. The review of this first exciting novel in this series is here. If you haven’t read the first book, then please stop here as some of this review may spoil it.

For this second outing, Garnet is back in Pitchford, Vermont three months later in March. She’s here to babysit a neighbor’s house and take care of their dogs as she works on her master’s thesis. While out on a walk, she finds the body of a young woman and receives visions of what occurred, telling her the fallen woman was murdered despite all evidence pointing to suicide.

Garnet doesn’t completely trust her psychic abilities at the start of the book. This novel revels in her starting to flex her supernatural muscles. These sequences remind me of reading a supernatural person’s origin story. They’re fun because the hero is reluctant at this point, not quite sure where their newfound powers will take them. Garnet decides to look into the mystery with the help of Pitchford’s sheriff and lets him in on her secret.

The story takes surprising twists and turns, has an interesting subplot involving a potential ghost haunting Garnet’s house, and ultimately arrives at an exciting climax. This novel, like the first, was well-researched, and details which seem unconnected to the plot become relevant at the end. A technical mystery lives and dies by its research and its ability to convey to the reader its details in common language. This novel does a great job of doing just that.

A sequel, or second in a series, always has the challenge of where to take a character if it has successfully completed an arc in the first book. If the author doesn’t complete the arc in the first novel, the reader feels cheated. But if the author does, then where to go next? The First Time I Fell also handles this problem superbly. Garnet really feels like she’s growing and going somewhere in this book, and to this extent, I enjoyed it more than the first. Garnet feels like she’s finding a direction in her life through this entire novel.

The rest of the characters, new and old, continue to delight the reader. As in the first novel, her mother remains the standout character. Some key people from the first are given short shrift here, but that’s to be expected. In their place are new, potential suspects of the murder. When Garnet decides to investigate the mystery on her own, she meets with others’ expected resistance, and her discussions with the victim’s friends and coworkers make for some great sequences.

Is there humor in this novel? In spades. Garnet’s point-of-view is perfect for injecting some levity into a serious, dark theme. (I laughed out loud at references to quorns, yams, and quarks.) And action? Not as much as I recall in the first novel, but when it happens, it pulls the reader in. No one will set this book aside in the middle of those passages.

Macgregor’s writing here is as skillful as in the first novel. Her description of extraction of maple syrup from the trees “like the maples were hooked up to intravenous lines, only these tubes were drawing the lifeblood from the trees” conjures up exactly the right image. The author does a great job bringing winter in Vermont alive.

Overall, the second book in this series succeeds at a level equal to or exceeding the first novel. It builds upon the premier novel in character and suspense. I don’t know exactly if the third in the series will be what was hinted at at the end of the novel, but I hope there are plenty more “Garnet McGee, Psychic Detective” (said cheekily) to come in the series.

Purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0639810969

June 23, 2020Everything Else

Review of Abundance

Abundance is an adult, cowboy romance with a serious, contemporary plot, or as author Shanna Swenson says “Romance with a touch of reality.” It’s the first in a series of romances set in a fictional town of Abundance, Texas where each book centers on two different main characters. The premier story tells the story of divorced Natalie Cameron and her daughter Dallas returning home to her parent’s horse ranch in Abundance. Stranded, they are assisted by Jack Kinson who turns out to be the supervisor of the help at the family business. Sparks fly at their first meeting, but not the type readers would expect.

The main point-of-view is Natalie’s and Jack’s but the book occasionally slips into the head of one of the minor characters observing either the Nat-Jack pairing or one of the subplots. One of the ranch hands has an infatuation with Natalie which drives most of the tension in the first part of the novel. Again, not the tension the reader may be anticipating. The latter part of the novel concerns itself with both Natalie’s backstory and her future.

The “reality” part of Swenson’s tagline needs to be taken seriously. If you’re expecting a mostly light cowboy romance with a little steam, you’re going to get “abundantly” more. Don’t worry about having to wait for the romantic scenes, you’ll be rewarded. But be aware some graphic violence exists here and some very real-life consequences co-exist with the meet-cute passages. You’ll get the most out of this book if you happen to be a fan of both cowboy romances and modern suspense novels.

The writing never drags, and both Abundance and Natalie’s parent’s (the Butler’s) ranch, Starlight Valley Stables, conjure up vivid images in readers’ minds. Swenson describes in a few sentences the work required to train horses and brings it to life. Certain age-old cowboy traditions make an appearance here as well.

Natalie and Jack are described like sculpted greek gods—both swoon-worthy—with Jack’s sparkling emerald eyes and Natalie’s full, curly hair. In most other genres, this wouldn’t work but it’s perfectly natural here. Many minor characters also occupy the pages of Abundance with Dallas, or Dallie, being both innocent and precious.

There’s much to admire in Abundance, but while it’s well-crafted, it could have used one more proofreader pass. Also, Jack’s character is a bit too perfect, and might’ve worked better with some form of an Achilles heel. It’s a testimony to the writer that she keeps Jack interesting through the entire novel.

Minor quibbles aside, romance readers will fall in love with Jack and Natalie and root for them. While the novel depicts some very tense scenes, the reader is rewarded at the end for sticking with the main characters. One last point on the darker passages—they were exceptionally well done. If Swenson ever writes a thriller, I’ll add it to my to-read list immediately.
Abundance, while primarily a cowboy romance, works on other levels as well.

This novel is recommended for its depiction of a small Texan town, brief suspense, and sexy writing.

On Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HDRY4DR

June 18, 2020June 18, 2020Everything Else

Review of The Devouring Gray

The Devouring Gray, a YA supernatural thriller, was a highly anticipated novel published in 2019 by debut author Christine Lynn Herman. As summarized from the back cover, three teenagers in the town of Four Paths, Upstate NY are conflicted over changes in their lives. Violet is moving to Four Paths, her mother’s ancestral home, after the death of her sister. Justin struggles with living a lie and knows he must run from his responsibilities one day. And Harper bears the physical and emotional scars of a tragedy in her past. But something else threatens the people of Four Paths, and these three, plus a fourth not mentioned on the back cover, must come together to defend the town.

The intriguing premise grips the reader from its first pages. The book is told from the three characters’ viewpoint with a fourth character, Isaac, who is equally important. The town of Four Paths, surrounded by woods, feels quaint, old, and decaying. Unusual rituals like stone bells above the residents’ doors and a profound respect to the founders of the town strike an odd chord to newcomer Violet. The majority of the first half of the book describes one or two characters together, and how they interact. Secrets are hinted at but not revealed until the end of the book. Though it has a sequel, this book concludes satisfactorily, with only one real cliffhanger in an epilogue, which acts more like a teaser for book two.

The Devouring Gray has some inventive moments and interesting quirks that make it stand out. How one character uses a deck of cards to tell the future is particularly fascinating. Harper’s loss of one of her hands makes for an interesting twist on the tragic heroine trope. Even newcomer Violet with her love of performing classical music is slightly unusual. The idea of Four Paths, the history, the setting, and the premise are all top-notch. Ms. Herman does a remarkable job making the story come alive with a rich backstory.

While setting and worldbuilding are excellent, I struggled connecting with the characters. Outwardly, they are all distinct and recognizable: Violet is a musician; Isaac, a reader; Justin, a track star; and Harper, a swordswoman. On the inside, though, the girls are a lot alike. It’s hard to find an adjective that distinguishes Violet’s personality from Harper’s. Justin and Isaac fare better, but the viewpoint is never Isaac’s until the end. While the interactions between the four are solid, the book misses opportunities. The perfunctory way the four interact with each other misses out on potential magical moments, though I did admire one of the character’s loyalty to another after failing her in the past.

Ms. Herman’s pacing and style were evident on every page, and I breezed through this book without having to double back. She’s a talented writer and knows how to end a chapter so that the reader wants to continue. I’m surprised by other reviews that couldn’t finish this book. Not me! I knew from the onset I wouldn’t have a problem. Being a debut novel only doubles my admiration of Ms. Herman’s skills. The book’s cover is wonderful (look closely) and the interior illustrations are rewardingly creepy. Kudos to all the artists.

A lot has been said about the boldness of the book to include bisexual characters. Overall, I thought it was handled well though I agree that the romantic elements, no matter what the orientation, were lacking. I think this is a set up for book two, and will reserve judgment until I read the complete narrative.

Possibly the element that needs the most attention is what I call BATHSS (“Because the AuTH Said So”). BATHSS is a decision by an author to have characters do something illogical in order to make a plot point work or to reveal a big secret. This occurred a few times in The Devouring Gray. Without giving too much away, BATHSS is most evident in the characters’ abilities. Powers are kept hidden from family members or even the characters themselves which makes no sense in a town threatened by a monster of immense power.

Despite BATHSS, the novel was a pleasurable read. Eerie, gothic, imaginative are all words I’d describe for The Devouring Gray. The novel builds a solid foundation upon which the second can build something even better.