t o d d w a r n e r reviewed Verity by Amy Landon
ridiculous and fun
3 stars
A fellow writer handed me this book. She chuckled and said, "You only have to read the first chapter."
Well. I read the first chapter. Then the rest of the book. I know it was supposed to be clumsy and bad, but … I actually kinda liked it. Ha!
Is it often ridiculous? Oh yes. Like, Hallmark movie ridiculous, with enough melodrama to make a romance writer blush. The opening scene alone took WTF? to 11. Did the novel always make sense? Not a chance. Were there plot holes? Yup.
But ...
The writing at the line level mainly was pretty darn good. Zooming out, the structure was solid, and the pacing was on point. And the characters … at least some of them were interesting.
All this book needed was an editor with the power to say "No."
So. Fun read. Don't expect a lot and you may enjoy …
A fellow writer handed me this book. She chuckled and said, "You only have to read the first chapter."
Well. I read the first chapter. Then the rest of the book. I know it was supposed to be clumsy and bad, but … I actually kinda liked it. Ha!
Is it often ridiculous? Oh yes. Like, Hallmark movie ridiculous, with enough melodrama to make a romance writer blush. The opening scene alone took WTF? to 11. Did the novel always make sense? Not a chance. Were there plot holes? Yup.
But ...
The writing at the line level mainly was pretty darn good. Zooming out, the structure was solid, and the pacing was on point. And the characters … at least some of them were interesting.
All this book needed was an editor with the power to say "No."
So. Fun read. Don't expect a lot and you may enjoy it. Think of it as a romance writer attempting to write suspense, which should set the right expectations.
Happy reading, folks.
