Book Review: Captive in the Dark by C.J Roberts

 

+Amazing and thrilling climax

-Weak narrative techniques

-underdeveloped main characters

+Shifting perspectives

+Attached to minor character–Tiny

-Not that well written; missing active voice and other errors pertinent throughout the book.

+Tragic: strong idea, fails overall on the delivery.

6/10

To summarize, this book is average. Rape and bondage is not a topic that is saturated (yet). Though this book does offer a lot of potential at face value, it fails to follow through. It was too quick in some parts, and slow in others that dried the content.

An undeveloped protagonist is written by the author at best. Roberts chose to rush the exposition of the story, creating gaps in the development of the captive. As a reader, this strategy failed to attach me to the main character. The protagonist reads flat, and rushed; other than an unknown relationship with her mother, she has nothing out of the ordinary stemming from her life during the exposition of this book. More details about Livvie past are revealed later in the book.

It is not until later (the last 90% of the book), where readers learn something “shocking” about Livvie. Advice to Roberts would be to put this information at the start of the text, in order to continue developing Livvie and make readers feel attached. When dark and sinister events start to rain down on our hero, I don’t feel a bit attached to her; I don’t care at all about Livvie.

More pointedly, Robert’s technique and strategy to develop Livvie fails. The author attempts to use dreams to develop the protagonist. A great idea in theory, but Robert’s writing style is far too rudimentary to attempt such a vast task to develop a character, the issue her is a technical one: I cannot understand due to Robert’s poor writing of the inner dialogue. It skips steps, but it makes me miss important pieces of the character’s life.

Ironically, Roberts does an excellent job of developing a minor character– Tiny. I honestly felt more attached to Tiny than I did to any other character in the book. The reason Tiny was developed is because Roberts applies simple story techniques, which suit Robert’s simple writing style. Tiny is developed through his actions, emotions, and adjectives. I believe this is a simple and useful way to develop characters in story telling.

Roberts is not a fantastic writer, she’s not even a great writer. I would say her writing is average. Her adjectives are too many, and she tells more than showing. Its a typical technique that many emerging (including myself) writers struggle with. At times, I felt like Roberts was story telling, not story showing.  At times, the book reads as if she is expositing and not narrating.

Captive in the Dark is not worthy of a failing grade; in fact, the most tragic part about this book is not its sinister message, or the themes of rape and violence. The tragedy stems from the concept that Roberts has a strong idea here with potential, but she fails to deliver. As a reader, I see snippets of brilliance, but it does not shine through all the time. Although this review mentions where Robert’s technique of developing a character fails, she does a magnificent job expositing her story through different perspectives.

Roberts tells the story through two perspectives. An applauding audience would meet Roberts on this technique, it works well to inner dialogue each character’s internal struggle. Especially during important  conflict moments, it was interesting  to read a perspective from the other character and note their internal and external conflicts as the story went forward. It was double interesting when internal dialogue reflected on past conflicts in a previous chapter to show a character’s internal struggle, and then a reader can compare how one character felt towards a certain conflict  with the other characte . I loved this technique used in the story, and Roberts writes it well.

An amazing climax meets the reader in this book! Truly, Robert’s expositive writing style really paints the climatic moment(s) in this story. Not only that, the climax will make even the boldest readers feel a sense of sick and twist in them for reading this book.

Upon purchase, I was thrilled to read this book: bondage and rape is a new genre I hoped to dapple in. Unfortunately, Roberts fails to deliver. Her plot outline is amazing. Her perspective shift is brilliant. Her sick and sinister idea is great (at some parts). However, poor character development of the protagonist, and poor writing makes this book tiresome. It is not a narrative, but reads more like it explains. I do not care about any of the characters, except a minor one. Roberts is an excellent story teller, she is not a strong story shower.

As a result of this review, the next novel in Dark Duet will not find a megabit on my Kindle.

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2018 Reading Goal:Updated Book List

Recalling from the last post, I intend to read at least 40 books this year. 4 more books need to be selected and added to the list below. The reason is that it allows me some wiggle room to include a friend’s suggested book on the reading list. Any books that are added to my Trello, must be read, no matter how terrible or brutal they might be.

Below you will find a revised list of the books that I will read before the end of 2018. As of today, I feel slightly ahead of schedule, though it is difficult to keep pace with such a large reading book (remember, readers, I only read 10 books last year. This goal calls for quadruple the amount).

 

 

Book Review: Among the Betrayed

+Wonderful development of the main character

-Minor character is named Bonner. Really?

+Gripping action, readers will not be able to put it down

+Excellent use of sensory details to make the settings come alive

9/10

After finishing the second book in the series, Among the Imposters, I was apprehensive to start reading the third book– Among the Betrayed. An agreement was formed in my head: if Among the Betrayed fails to deliver a suspenseful, power punch of a story, than I will put the series down entirely.

Readers will be hooked from the first few pages, pacing of this novel is strong, it feels progressive, and I connect to the characters because I feel the realism. On a consistent basis, I wonder what the main character is going to do next.

Development of the main character is the strongest suit for this novel. An attachment to the main character means readers are inclined to buy into the story, to continue page turning, and write glowing reviews like this one. There are many instances in the story where the main character is doing something to progress the story, and these doings all relate to her character. Sensory details also aid with the character’s development, the settings assist with making readers feel attached to her, as she faces a woman vs society conflict. Here’s a memorable quotation taken from the text:

“Everything that had happened to Nina was real. She had real handcuffs on her wrists, real scars on her back, real fear flooding her mind.”

There was a character named Bonner in this book, but I kept reading him as a Boner. I am sure the author could have created another name for this minor character.

In terms of pacing, this book was difficult to put down. I read until 12:50am on a school night. Many of the chapters end with a few lines of prose that make me want to read further. Not only was the story itself engaging, but I felt immersed into the settings the characters trudged through.

Sensory details evoke several images in this book for me, which makes me present in Haddix’s dystopia. Details were appropriate, and did not influence the pacing of the text at all.

Overall, Among the Betrayed has rekindled the Shadow Children Series for me. It keeps a stronger pace than its predecessor, Among the Imposters.

 

Book Review: The Five Love Languages the Secret to Love that Lasts

9.5/10

+Reveals and delivers on the “secret” to nurturing love in a marriage.

+Direct and to the point.

+Written from a Christian perspective with cited scripture.

+Slim volume that does not take days to shuffle through.

-Somewhat pigeon holes men.

+Quiz at the end of the novel, with surprising and thought provoking results.

Earning a 9 from me as a reader is difficult; this book almost earned a 10! It is written from the perspective of a professional marriage counselor, who has found a solid relationship with God.

This book is a must have for almost all couples who wish to maintain a healthy relationship. Even if your marriage or relationship is progressing swimmingly, I still recommenced this book with 9.5 fingers. It will change the way you interact with your spouse. The author promises to reveal the secrets to having a loving, long lasting marriage. And he does just that!

Not sure if I ever read a self help book that was not written with filler. Exposition usually gets in the way, or elongated historical references cloud the direct message an author is trying to say. Nope, not in this book!

Filler is in the text, there is some exposition, some personal anecdotes, and direct quotations from marriage sessions from Chapman’s work. Impressively, these sections make the book even more interesting. The filler is just short enough to engage, and not too long where a reader starts to feel like they are waiting for the point to be delivered. Now onto a memorable quotation (which was very difficult to choose):

“We are talking about love, and love is something you do for someone else, not something you do for yourself.” Without revealing too much of Chapman’s succinct message, he definitely affirms that love is a choice; we have the instinct and control to choose to love our spouse or not. This message, for me, is powerful. It flips the “love is not rationale” point upside down, and perhaps even agrees with it, by saying, yes, “you can choose to be irrationally in love if you want!”

Chapman also cites Bible verse to heighten his message: “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For the measure you use, it will be measured to you” Luke 6:38.

I did not like how Chapman claimed that men were easy to pick the physical love category as their love language.  He then goes onto say that men are more sexually aroused than women, and make the mistake of selecting the wrong love language. In my opinion, this statement pigeon holes men as more sexually aroused beings than woman– I did not enjoy reading that section at all!

Despite the quirk in sexual arousal, Chapman’s quiz created at the end of the book really is thought provoking. I was sold that I was one particular love language, but the quiz revealed a different result. The questions are very specific (which I think is important if the purpose of the assessment is to place the taker into a certain category).

Overall, this book will change your love life (in an amazing, God-idea way). Chapman writes clean, clear, and coherent prose that delivers a powerful message; this message should be read by all couples that are either married or are thinking about embarking on the life-long journey of a lovely marriage.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Book Review: Ender’s Game

6.5/10

+Excellent fighting scenes that are described well

-Formations are very poorly written, making it difficult to visualize

-Mixture of short and long chapters

+Strong character development

+Several themes are present

A confession is in order before I delve into the review: this marks my third time reading Ender’s Game, and I am actually teaching this novel to my grade 7 class. Upon a first reading, I immensely enjoyed the book.  The second time leveled off to a “meh,” and now that I am teaching it (for the second time), I am struggling to stay engaged with the writer’s words. Does reading a book three times constitute a sudden shift in interest? I thought I loved this book (at some point)!

Ender develops as a character through all the conflicts he faces. The most moving section of the book, for me, occurs in chapter 1. After an event, Ender struggles against himself. He believes that “I am just like Peter. Take away my monitor, and I am just like Peter.” If you want to know who Peter is, and what a Monitor is, you’ll have to read the book!

Without spoiling, I can safely say that the fighting scenes in this book are very well written. Orson Scott Card engages my senses as reader, and isn’t afraid to splatter blood on the wall! My type of book; very riveting. The problem is that the fight scenes are far and deeply separated by pages of exposition, and other confusing wordings that make journeying through this book seem like a job.

Any time Card tries to describe null gravity, or the formations that take place in the battle room, I find my mind swimming with confusion. It is impossible for me to decipher how the soldiers are formatting themselves in null gravity. Here’s a section that leaves me boggled:

“Ender motioned for them all to back away from the door. Then he pulled foreward a few of the taller boys, including crazy Tom, and made them kneel, not squatting back to sit on their heels, but fully upright, so they formed an L with their bodies.”

This section gave me a headache! Card was trying to illustrate an image in my cogs, but fails.

Themes are prevalent in this book, making it–somewhat– a useful tool to teach literature to middle school students. Bullying, leadership, creativity/innovation, strategy, justification of violence, and humanity vs inhumanity are all themes that slap this book on it’s pages.At face value, these themes ring true to the bare bone, but some are easier to decipher than others. Bullying is definitely more prevalent in this text, than, lets say, the justification of violence. Card’s Ender’s Game did not lose points for weighing themes more heavily.

Card certainly flexes his ability to develop a character; this is a facet where I commend his writing. Ender develops as a character through all the conflicts he faces. The most moving section of the book, for me, occurs in chapter 1. After an event, Ender struggles against himself. He believes that “I am just like Peter. Take away my monitor, and I am just like Peter.” If you want to know who Peter is, and what a Monitor is, you’ll have to read the book! The character development saved this book from a scathing review.

Structurally, chapters in this book start off short, but become longer, longer, and then even longer. Lines are plopped in logical positions to help divide elongated chapters, but, at times, chapters seem to drag on and on. One particular chapter, Locke and Demethesis, was dry to no end.

I feel strongly that Scott Orson Card crammed too much into a single book. He could have focused on Ender’s life in Battle school, and forgone the happenings on earth in this volume. Several subplots, combined with Card’s confusing writing style, make this title a tiresome and elongated read. Speaker for the Dead (the second book in the series) will not be downloaded on my Kindle. Unfortunately, I will be removing it from my reading list; I don’t like reading a sci-fi that struggles to put images in my head.

 

 

Book Review: Among the Hidden

Among the Hidden is the first book in the Shadow Children Series. It was written by Margaret Peterson Haddix. This book deserves a spot on everyone’s Kindle or book shelf, it is the first book I have ever read in one day.

 

In terms of readability, many should find it engaging right from the start. It is a slim novel, packing a Taekwondo kick to a head! What a wonderful book, and here’s why:

This was the first novel I had ever read that was about hiding; the author does a wonderful job engaging the reader’s senses, connecting us the dystopian world, and makes hiding seem like garlic fingers are running down a spine. Each chapter ends with an “o crap” moment, prompting the reader to continue.

The protagonists character is developed, and his hopelessness is somewhat frustrating. For me, the suspense was somewhat dialed back when the main character suffered internal conflicts about making certain decisions.  At certain points, his internal conflict lost its “spice, ” and seemed to stall the progression of the plot. Despite this setback, Among the Hidden is a literary nugget!

With my English educator hat on, this book is well flecked with literature that could be analyzed within a classroom. Loneliness, oppression, poverty, knowledge, and relationships are all themes that stem from this text. Many of these themes relate to a middle school students. Don’t get me wrong, this book deserves a place with an adult readership as well.

Haddix should be commended for her ability to write unexpected turns. It was difficult to predict what was coming next in this book, which is what grabbed my throat to keep me reading. I was lost in wonderment throughout the entire process of chewing on the literary nugget.

Here’s another fact: I will be using this book to teach my 7th grade English class!

9/10

+ Easy read, still thought provoking, possible to read it in a single day.

-Protoganist’s internal conflict is overbearing at times, which ultimately stalls the progression of the plot.

+Strong piece of literature that could be annualized in a middle school classroom.

+Chapters are not boring! Each one ends with a punch line that prompts further reading

+First book I have ever read in a single day, hats off to Haddix

+Unexpected plot turns that make this text a thrilling ride!

Care to read a review of the second book in the Shadow Children series? Read the Among the Imposters book review here.