Martha
I received this through Goodreads First Reads. The opinions are my own and I am uncompensated for them.
First the cons:
It needs serious editing for comma usage and sentence structure.
The integration between different aspects (science vs religion, past vs present, etc) is choppy and artificial.
The almost-ending is very poorly explained. I know it's still supposed to be a mystery, but really it's just confusing.
The very end is quite abrupt and doesn't tie up the story even enough for the first book in a series. Even another chapter or a few more pages would have helped, depending what was on those pages...
Pros:
The concept is interesting, and the plot is reasonably believable.
The characters are a bit flat but have definite potential.
The author managed a fairly good balance between “explain future science” and “who knows/cares how it works, just tell the story.”
I do want to know what happens next... hint, hint.
What I like about this book is that it doesn't claim that all natural remedies are better than modern medicine, it says which old wives' cures work and which don't (and frequently why), it warns you of dangerous remedies while informing you of useful or harmless ones, and it tells you when your situation has gone too far and you need to go see a doctor. Basically, while it has lots & lots of useful and effective home remedies, it is safer and more realistic than some home remedy books I've seen.
On the one hand, I liked the realism of marriage in this book. (No, it isn't easy! Who told you it would be easy?? What were they thinking?!) I like Nina & Elliot (except when I want to smack them). I appreciated the look at semi-recent history. Spoiler alert–I liked that Nina & Elliot decided to give themselves another chance–end spoiler.
On the other hand, the book had too much emotional distance. (I'd like to care, I ought to care, but somehow, I just don't. I never really got into either main character's emotions.) Both sets of in-laws drive me insane. And if I were Elliott, Pam's post-break-up behavior would have turned me off a lot sooner. (If Pam had any integrity or self-worth, she wouldn't be making moves on a still-married man!) Some of the teachers (you'll be able to tell who) are over the top, even for the story. Please notice that most of these are minor points, not major writing flaws (I'd love to have the emotional distance fixed, though).
All in all, I did enjoy the book. I'd love to discuss it with my spouse. Three stars from me is a decent score (it really does mean I liked the book).
I got the book in a Goodreads giveaway, but I have not been compensated for my review. My opinions, as always, are my own.
Encyclopedia Brown is a lot better. Forsooth mostly relies on more specialized knowledge (Where exactly is the state line? How does Little League baseball differ?). Just not as fun.
I read an advance copy of this book. I liked the Russian setting and the tie-ins to the Mongols and various fairy tales, but the MC spent so much time alone that I had a hard time enjoying the story. She worried about her mother–but didn't stay with her. She wanted to be with her boyfriend–but he left for the army. She was “adopted” by new grandparents–but we barely saw them, either. She dreamed of her dead father–but, obviously, since he was dead, we didn't see that much of him, either. I think she might have spent more time with her enemies than she did with her friends, and it didn't appeal to me.
Started at 4 stars for the writing. Slid to 3 when the MC knowingly dangled two good men instead of choosing one, and kept doing it forever. Slid to 2 stars when the promised missionary lessons passed in a few paragraphs, and “the only thing keeping me from making a decision” was resolved but no decision appeared. Hit one for the ridiculous last-minute ending. Finally decided two was an average.
I almost didn't finish this one because I didn't like the heroine. I'm not sure I would have missed anything.
In some ways, this book is a nice overview of self-publishing, including some business setup discussion, some nitty-gritty how-to details, and some mindset tips. But I found some glaring holes.
1) The only major retailers discussed are Amazon and Kobo, and Kobo gets only a brief mention. What about Draft2Digital, Apple, Barnes & Noble, or even Smashwords, PublishDrive, or Streetlib? There are even more, depending on your genre and format, but the basics would be a good start.
2) There is no mention of the business philosophy behind ISBNs to help authors decide if they want to use the free ones or buy their own.
3) No easy DIY book formatting options are mentioned, like Reedsy, D2D, Vellum, Atticus, or others. Sure, they have their different pros and cons and vary price points (including free), but that's why they deserve a discussion.
4) No mention of how to set up a business bank account (or even that you SHOULD).
5) There is no discussion of KU vs wide (which means “not KU and available a lot of places”). And yes, it's an important question.
So, do I recommend it? Sure, as a starting point before you research more, this is a great book. But if you're only going to read one self-publishing business book, this should not be it.
I'd forgotten how much I love Liz's characters until I picked up this book. Real people with real problems, dumped in a situation they have to deal with, like it or not. And though there's a drop of magic in this book (tee hee), most of the solution comes from plain old human ingenuity and stubbornness. Actually, the same could be said of the problems, too... Though the book is easy to read because it's so well-written, it's not simplistic. Liz is a master. Don't be thrown by my stars— I save 5 stars for books that change my life, but 4 still means I'd happily recommend this to you in a heartbeat. In fact, I'm doing just that right now...
Lots of ideas about sharing your collected family history with your family, though not much about teaching them how to DO family history. It was easy to read and entertaining.
Would have gotten 3 stars if the grammar was better. I suspect this is either a translation or a non-native-English writer, which is fine, but it needed editing. No, I don't normally subtract stars for grammar, but I had to struggle to understand this.
Disappointing
Loved the concept but not the execution. Didn't like half the povs, didn't spend enough time in the half I liked, and the plot was weak. For a book about king Arthur, it had remarkably little Arthur.
Good info, lots to ponder. Only one chapter, though, so make sure you buy at an appropriate price.
Unlike Write a Novel in 10 Days, this book actually gives ideas on how to improve (physical ones, like ergonomics, and mental ones, like attitude), and admits that it's a learned skill and you'll need to work up to it. Much more helpful than 10 Days!
The theory and layout of this book are fine. My biggest problem is applicability. Not that I don't think it's applicable, because it is very useful in theory, but because I haven't quite figure out how to put it into practice. Lots of ideas, but how do I choose which one will work for my purposes? Maybe it's just my problem...
I picked up this ARC because it sounded cute. And it is. But it's also well-written, with realistic, funny characters and a believable story. Even the secondary characters feel real (and funny). The dialogue is real, motivations are believable (even for the semi-villainous beautician, poor lady), and the romance grows from positive interactions and a dash of attraction. My only big beefs are that I wanted more of the heroine's backstory sooner (not just in the big reveal at the end), and I wanted in on her thoughts just before the final confrontation/discussion (not just when she's telling the hero why she was stupid). Still plenty good enough to keep in my collection instead of deleting. My opinions are my own and left freely.
I really wanted to like this one, but it just left too many questions unanswered and took the easy/predictable way too often.
I think it's a cheap trick of the author to say “we'll test you during your regular day” and then never say what the tests were.
I thought the overarching dilemma was too one-sided. Of course Logan will make the choices that he did, because his parents' side is never presented as being the right/attractive one. When one side is lying and evil and the other side is misunderstood and noble, there's not much conflict left for a decision.
The chronology was confusing. “We only have a week of school left,” but then they keep going to school and going to school and going to school...
Frankly, Reina is a pain. It's not enough that Logan, new to the whole situation, is doing the right thing, but he has to do it “for the right reasons.” eye roll Give him time, chica! And then abandoning him to the police was cruel.
Every obstacle was overcome so easily, except Jonas. And I'm pretty sure I know what happened to him...
And seriously, hiding in the open because “they won't expect it” is not intelligent. Expected or not, if someone sees them, they're discovered.
And so many questions... If the chipped people are being tracked by their chips, how are the unchipped people tracked? If they can be tracked even without a chip, then why doesn't the army already wipe them out? How can Reina hide her blip from other people, and why does she let Logan see it? Or what allows Logan to see it when other people can't? How can Reina tell what all the stolen medicines are without a label? I mean, have you ever TRIED to identify all the different meds when your elderly parent drops them on the floor?? If Anyone can't even afford food and meds, how did they get a rocket launcher? And then there are questions that might be answered in the next book but really should have been answered here. Like, who keeps waking up Logan??
Fairly standard YA romance. It was fine. My biggest problem is that after so many pictures-gone-wrong, I don't understand why she would go anywhere NEAR the ex.
Would have gotten three stars if I hadn't had a better one recently with which to compare.