Yara Greathouse

I received a complimentary copy of this book for the purpose of this review.

This romantic thriller had the potential to be a really good book but was plagued by problems from the start. There are a number of things Ms. Greathouse gets right. The first few lines draw the reader into the story and there's a strong underlying plot. Unfortunately, its not enough to hold interest through most of the first half of the book. My biggest issue was first person present narration. The result is a clunky storytelling style that made the book very difficult to get into.

The characters never managed to come to life for me. I couldn't manage to really care about any of them. Colton and Brianna are one dimensional and had no real chemistry, while the supporting characters almost disappear into the background, conveniently emerging simply to advance the plot. It isn't that the characters weren't planned - they'll gladly tell you about themselves in long, uninspired monologues. And while we're on the subject of dialogue, there's something very awkward about the way the characters speak. It's overly formal and never takes on the level of comfort you'd expect between friends or lovers.

With that said, if you can push through to past the halfway mark, you're treated to a few good action scenes and story climax worthy of a Saturday afternoon Kung Fu movie. All in all, I didn't hate the book outright. With some reworking, it could really be quite good.… (altro)