Dan LawtonRecensioni

(*I received this book in exchange for an honest review through LibraryThing's Early Reader Giveaway program.)

I received this book in audio book format from Audible, so I'll also comment on the narration.

Overall I found the book well-rounded from start to finish. There wasn't a lot of extra fluff that took away from the narrative or felt like the author was writing just to fill a page requirement. He did a great job about slowly revealing the mystery and how everyone was connected and what secrets the main characters had hidden.

I felt that Dan wrapped up the book in a fitting way. I was satisfied by the ending, which I always appreciate. I hate when books end poorly, on a weird note, or like it's not a finished book. Dan delivered on the ending, which I definitely appreciate. Everything was wrapped up and the questions that he had you thinking about during the read were answered.

I'm overly picky when it comes to audio books and prefer when they're narrated by a team of people as that changes the voices and keeps it interesting. I'm someone that's just attuned to different voices and am admittedly voice picky. There are some people I just can't stand listening to. So, I'm always apprehensive with a book on tape. However, the narrator of the audio book version did a great job. His voice was well paced and he did give each character a distinctive voice.

If you prefer audio books, I do have to say that this one is a good one to listen to. But, if you prefer to just read pages, I'd still say to pick it up. It's a worthwhile read.

If I had to pick an area that could be improved in this book is just the cover and title of the book. I understand why Amber Alert was chosen, but I think it could have had a different title that could draw in more readers, same with the background. It's a good book and I enjoyed it, I just feel like these elements, if changed, might draw more readers into this book to enjoy it as well.

A surprising book where the suspense is masterful and leads us into a story of senseless disappearance, bringing to the surface an old tragedy which is an unintentional accident, having caused incurable trauma.

The atmosphere of the story is oppressive, and we slip into the heart of the hero's vacillating psyche. The choice of words is fantastic and you can feel the gamut from fear to horror at times.

A fascinating story that we will not forget!

The sudden disappearance of his wife plunges her husband crescendo into a descent into hell very realistic, sometimes macabre, but unbearable so much the words strike us deep within us.
The enigma escalates further as a burnt and unidentifiable body is found in the couple's own car!

Captivating!

I absolutely could not put this book down. It's one of those reads where you try to figure out how it will end and then you just have to know if you were right. It starts out as two separate stories and the fun comes in finding out how they come together. I figured part of it out but never saw most of it. It was a blast reading this book.
The characters, if not loveable, are at least interesting. The author uses them well and has a plot compelling enough to justify late night reading. I now await the next book in this series.

From the supermarket explosion, this thriller novel develops many ‘personal ‘explosions. There are many twists and turns in the plot, convoluted and very strong but I cannot really say that I enjoyed it. The ending was sudden and disappointing. Is there a sequel?
I received this book from LibraryThing for an honest review and I award it 2 stars.

From the supermarket explosion, this thriller novel develops many ‘personal ‘explosions. There are many twists and turns in the plot, convoluted and very strong but I cannot really say that I enjoyed it. The ending was sudden and disappointing. Is there a sequel? 
I received this book from LibraryThing for an honest review and I award it 2 stars.

I gave this book 3 stars, which I rarely do, because of the writer's overuse of descriptive phrases. It was vomiting over-description of everything. And I hated the main character, aka, the chronic lying, gold-digging, fake con woman. I could not feel sorry for her one bit. The ending was over-the-top sugary sweet crap. I do think the writer has talent, but I did not like how this plot ended. Ll

This could have been ripped straight from the headlines. As a matter of fact we have seen stories like this in the news. We have the abuse of young children by their father. Bo and Rusty work long hours in the field. They have little food or water. They do everything they can to protect their youngest sister Ruby. Living next door are the family members who should do everything in their power to protect them but didn’t. I think as things got worse for the children and the mother and grandfather did nothing to help the children, I got angrier. No child should have to take matters into their own hands to protect themselves. I kept thinking the whole system had let them down. They were slipping through the cracks. This is not an easy book to read. The story of abuse will rip your heart out. What the children do to protect their sister will haunt you. The writing shows the strength of the characters and the love that bonds them together. Most importantly it shows that there is always hope. This is a wonderful book that I highly recommend.

THE GREEN HOUSE, by Dan Lawton

In The Green House, Dan Lawton turns out a poetic and pragmatic introspective character study of Girard, a man with a complicated, tragic past who is hit by a catastrophic loss that levels him. The circumstantial evidence surrounding the loss (that places him as suspect) is such that it creates doubts in Girard, and so his inner process is multi-layered and convoluted. In all his grief, Girard longs to fully experience his feelings, though psyciatric medication numbs him, and to physically weep, though one of his tear ducts was damaged in an accident years before.

"Confusing, right? That was how he felt - confused daily, unsure what was real and what was not. Was he permanently hardened to emotion after all he had been through that he physically could not get to the point of outwardly expressing it anymore? Or was he incapable of expressing it because his brain was tranquilized because of the medication? Or was it a combination of both, or neither? It was a daily struggle as he tried to navigate through the minefield of his impotent brain."

Girard finds comfort in solace in The Green House, his greenhouse, a haven and holder of secrets he painted green. Each flower has a symbolic meaning for Girard and his wife. Dan introduces the reader to parts of the man as he weaves each color and type of flower through Girard's narrative.

"The thing about the amaryllis, what made it unique, was it's shape. Florists commonly said its petals looked like a trumpet, the way they curled at the edges and formed a tunnel at the mouth. Girard was not so sure about that. He saw the center of the amaryllis as more of a black hole with banks that would inevitably cave in, yet never seemed to. Or maybe that was a metaphor for Girard's life, a way to symbolize the nightmare that was his existence. Either way, the irony was striking. Whether the amaryllis was a floral representation of Girard's life, or if it was the trumper of the garden, it had a profound effect on him."

Dan's suspenseful writing style drew me from the beginning. I found myself unable to put the book down. Here he describes Girard's relationship with Miriam, his wife with whom he counted on to help him navigate through each day. Now she has gone missing:

"The scent hit him then, and he closed his eyes. It was faint, the scent, like the way the house smelled when Miriam baked. Girard could tell when she was up to something, even from inside the green house. He would sometimes get the sense Miriam was busying herself in the kitchen, even if what he got a whiff of was phantom. It was love he smelled, and that was not something one could measure . But Girard could - he could tell when Miriam was having a good day. The good days were the best kind. They reminded him of what made the bad ones worth it."

Here, the author illustrates the struggle to function and move forward when steeped in grief:

"Girard almost smiled. He felt at peace. He was ready to continue living, to somehow start to rebuild after the biggest tragedy of his life - and that was significant. Girard went to the kitchen and did something he had not done in more than forty years: He made a meal. And it was not awful."

The book ends with a lifeview that differs from my own, yet the outstanding qualities of Dan's delicate descriptions of the complex human experience are what remain with me days after turning the last page. I plan to read more books by Dan Lawton, a master of intrigue.

An unhappy marriage, an explosion and everyone is on the run. This is That Was Before by Dan Lawton.

In a way, this book was very predicable and in another, full of surprises. The writing was good. The story starts out quite slow, but the author soon hooks you as the pace of the writing picks up, and you find you can’t stop reading until you reach the conclusion and by then, you want the story to keep going.

My review is voluntary and all comments and opinions expressed are my own.

Plum Springs is an intense, gritty, fast-moving thriller focused mainly on the perspectives of three young siblings. The innocence and humanity of the children are stark contrasts to the cruel, uncaring actions of all the adults in the novel. Brothers Bo and Rusty, ages 11 and 9, toil in their father's tobacco field with little water and few rations allowed by Lenny, a father in name only.

It is a hard scrabble life on the outskirts of the small Kentucky town of Plum Springs, the only one that they know. Until a violent act toward their younger sister compels them to free themselves from a tyranny even more debilitating because their grandfather and mother, living in a nearby trailer, do nothing to change the children's circumstances. As many adults as children on the property, but none of their relations provides the young ones any compassion or protection, certainly not any love.

The first half of the novel presents the brothers and their relationship with their father. Moving between the thoughts of Bo and Rusty, the narrative is rendered in simple language, the vocabulary consistent with the boys' age and (lack of) education. Across the pages we take in the details of their lives and their love and regard for each other and for their little sister. The second half of the novel introduces a boy living in the nearby forest who befriends the brothers when they run away and helps them plan the rescue of six year old Ruby.

The most compelling aspect of the novel, for me, is the clarity of the personalities illuminated by the extensive detail of the children's thoughts, as well as the adults'. The lack of any adult support or kindness may be upsetting to some readers, but Plum Springs is an immersive dive into the minds of deplorable adults and young people who struggle to sustain their innocence.

I thought it was a very good book and had some unexpected things happen towards the end.

Plum Springs is a tale of horrible abuse 3 siblings lived through at the hands of their father. Their grandfather and mother lived next door, but let it happen. When the father starts abusing the boys' little sister, Ruby, the boys feel that it must end now and take matters into their own hands as the only option they feel they have and kill their dad. In the end, everyone gets justice-- the children for what they went through, the grandfather and mother for their inaction, and JT, a boy the boys met in the woods who had helped them.

The Greenhouse is a story of loss, regret, and redemption. The protagonist, Girard, wakes one morning to find his wife, Miriam, missing, then receives the worst news a husband can get—that his wife's car has plunged off the highway and she is dead. As Girard tries to cope with this tremendous loss, he slowly reveals his less-than-perfect history with his family, riddled with betrayal and tragedy. Dan Lawton uniquely uses the colors and textures from the flowers grown in Girard's prized greenhouse to convey the many layers of grief, melancholy, and finally, depression. His excessive description of Girard's thoughts is somewhat distracting and takes the reader to a very dark place. Still, the ending brings the betrayal and loss to an unexpected and satisfying end.

This is a pretty dark book. The Green House deals with grief, regret and depression. Girard , the main character lives within a cycle of all three which makes for a life of sadness as well as a yearning for redemption. This book is also an intricate look at family dynamics and mental health. The pace is incredibly slow and small tidbits of information are added along the way but stick with it, the book wraps up nicely and gives more than a glimmer of hope and better times ahead.

Not the cheeriest of books! But a well crafted story of how the main character, Girard, copes with trauma, death, grief and love. Not have been in the particular circumstances myself, the narrative may be a very accurate portrayal of mental health struggles after a traumatic event. I found Girard’s ruminations a bit slow at times, but then this is probably realistic. The characters were clearly defined which helped embed them into the story quickly.

I found this book so distressing and upsetting that I simply couldn’t finish it. If I had realized what it was about I would never have read it at all.

Operation Salazar is about the search for a mysterious object to come to the aid of a father in prison who claims innocence. The story unfolds at a good pace that keeps you guessing throughout the book. It's full of intrigue, high stakes and complications. Yet the situations and entanglements aren't always what they seem between the family, friends, criminal associates, innocent victims, and police. How will it all end... or will it? Occasional language and references are more suitable for adult readers. Otherwise I would have rated the book with an additional star.

It is a strange story which Dan Lawton tells here. You get to know piece by piece what happened long ago. Every time Girard thinks about it, the reader learns something new.
In the beginning of the book, Girard is at home, alone. He does not understand where his wife is, but he does not go to the police either. Step by step the reader will come to understand why he reacts like that.
Then the police comes. The story gets even stranger. The police is as baffled as the reader is by Girards passiveness.

Slowly, a beginning of understanding for Girard is dawning.

There are beautiful poetic sentences in the story.

There is a lot to be happy about in this book. The way the writer tantalizes us with information, the poetic sentences, the abrupt turns...
But the pace is slow, far too slow.
That is why I give this book only three stars.

I could not connect with the main female character-- the mother of the abducted child. I could not feel sympathy towards her at all. Otherwise, the book was ok.

Twisting and turning through to the ending, Operation Salazar is an engaging story. The characters show a strong loyalty which is tested throughout. The first half of the story drags a bit but picks up at about midpoint. Overall it's an interesting read - I recommend it.½

The story itself was good. It had some suspense along with some twists and turns. I had a hard time connecting with the characters. But all in all a good story.

I can usually tell if I'm going to like a book from the first couple of paragraphs. From the beginning, "Deception" reads like a man's book, a thriller that is plot-driven. It's well-written and has a good storyline. The timeline jumps back and forth to make you feel like you're never really sure what's going to happen next.
The only problem is, I'm a woman and I like reading stories that are more character-driven. I don't have to like the characters, but I have to be able to relate to them. When I finish the story and close the book I want to miss the characters. I did not miss George or Alicia.
If you like a thriller that is more of an edgy read, I think you'll enjoy "Deception".

*I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

George is a total push-over, way too mild-mannered and trusting for his own good. When he gets picked up, in a surprisingly weird manner, by a stunning young woman, the alert reader immediately thinks: Honeytrap. George never even figures this out after having been kidnapped (by a Creepy White Van, no less) and cannot believe it when he is being told outright. He's so clueless he keeps expecting his girlfriends pregnancy of, supposedly, 6 weeks’ standing to “show” and to “feel the baby kick”. Plus, during the course of his abduction, he repeatedly gets into close contact with the actual police force, and what does he do? Does he come forward? Shout for help? Anything? Naw, he plays along. . Definitely no genius, this.

Frank is suffering from some kind of BPD coming across as a bit slow, but that may just be due to his medication. His brother Billy, on the other hand, definitely is not the brightest candle on this cake He’s a bad cop (bad as in: not good at his job) as he knows full well himself, so he decides to blow it all and concocts the worst revenge-cum-heist plan ever. For the which he must needs involve a couple of total strangers whom he has to bully and threaten into following his not-very-well-thought-out orders. Predictably, it all goes downhill from the get-go, and it ends … equally predictably. By that time, all this obtuseness thrown around had gotten rather exasperating – although the characters were quite well-drawn and, despite their obvious flaws, strangely relatable, I for my part was glad to have finally done with this sad lot.

Not exactly your fast-paced action thriller, partly due to everything being told twice over, both from Billy’s and George’s point of view and in a non-linear way at that. Which, in principle, is fine with me, however it added to the severe confusion already created by the two alternating 1st person povs , I cannot help feeling this might have been handled better. The writing style is a bit dragging and repetitive. Overall, some tightening and editing and proofreading to eliminate typos, weird word choices, superfluous and missing words, might turn this into an OK read.

I was provided a copy of this novel by the author for reviewing purposes.

I found the actual story here was good, the idea of a police officer going outside of the law to extract revenge on a gang member who had killed his father is a solid basis for a novel. Add in the idea of forcing an unrelated party to be involved in the dirty work and teaming up with a woman from the county office to get said unrelated party on the hook also provided plenty of material for tension and suspense.

I was not so keen however on the way the narrative was formatted switching between the viewpoint of Billy & George, in some areas it worked well, yet in others it just seemed like the story being told again from a different, but not different enough to be worthwhile, perspective.

There's some good twists and turns as things unfold and overall it is an enjoyable story, I just found the formatting hobbled my enjoyment of it somewhat.

NOTE: I received an eBook copy from the author, in exchange for my honest review.

I could partially identify with the young protagonists in this story, having experienced a five-year period during my childhood where my mother and I were subjected to much the same type of treatment as the boys were, under the abusive hand of an alcoholic stepfather. I felt connection to, as well as sympathy for the lads, and Mr. Lawton fleshed out their characters efficiently, allowing us to feel their pain and isolation most personally.

The author really described the inner feelings of the younger boy, Rusty. By the second chapter, I felt quite connected to him and it was easy to invest myself in his life and story.

I had a few small problems with minute details of the story, though, such as, how could these two boys have lived in this much isolation, especially from school? The laws in Kentucky are similar to other states, whereby children must attend school until (at least) age 16, but there's hardly any reference to a school experience in the book.

Sheriff Cletus is meant to be, I suppose, a complicated character, but I thought he needed a bit more explanation and backstory - I really felt no connection at all with his enigmatic character in the story.

I would have given the book a full five stars, but it felt a bit 'cluttered' in a couple of parts, and I had trouble fully following the action.

Final Verdict: Quite affecting story, even if the reader has no experience with childhood abuse. Suitable for middle-teens to adult.