04-26-2011, 12:27 PM
The dark of summer
by Deanna Dwyer (a.k.a. Dean Koontz)
The heroine, Gwyn Keller, age 20, is all alone in the world after the deaths of both her twin sister and her parents. She is happy when asked by an uncle to spend the summer at his mansion, hoping to find loving relatives. Of course, things aren't what they seem....
This was an enjoyable read. Earlier in his career the author wasn't as wordy as he is now. The book isn't in first person, which allows scenes to be shown without the heroine present. Thus the audience is told quite soon their suspicions are right in who the bad guys are. There's no surprise there, it's more about seeing how the heroine falls victim to the bad guys and letting us keep hoping she will get the better of them. For the most part of the book this seems hopeless as the heroine is a rather passive girl. Sweet and likeable but not someone you would want to trade places with.
There are a couple of scenes a female author wouldn't have written; they are decidedly aimed at male readers and I skipped over them quickly. I wonder, though, if men ever read a book like this. I'd say no, so these scenes felt wrong to me. They wouldn't have occurred in a first person book.
Gothic elements were hinted at, but weren't used fully.
There's just the teensiest bit of a possible romance in the book, which the author probably should have fleshed out more.
It seems it wasn't only a quick read, but also a quick write.
All in all, I've been amused for a few hours, so my verdict is a 6 out of 10.
by Deanna Dwyer (a.k.a. Dean Koontz)
The heroine, Gwyn Keller, age 20, is all alone in the world after the deaths of both her twin sister and her parents. She is happy when asked by an uncle to spend the summer at his mansion, hoping to find loving relatives. Of course, things aren't what they seem....
This was an enjoyable read. Earlier in his career the author wasn't as wordy as he is now. The book isn't in first person, which allows scenes to be shown without the heroine present. Thus the audience is told quite soon their suspicions are right in who the bad guys are. There's no surprise there, it's more about seeing how the heroine falls victim to the bad guys and letting us keep hoping she will get the better of them. For the most part of the book this seems hopeless as the heroine is a rather passive girl. Sweet and likeable but not someone you would want to trade places with.
There are a couple of scenes a female author wouldn't have written; they are decidedly aimed at male readers and I skipped over them quickly. I wonder, though, if men ever read a book like this. I'd say no, so these scenes felt wrong to me. They wouldn't have occurred in a first person book.
Gothic elements were hinted at, but weren't used fully.
There's just the teensiest bit of a possible romance in the book, which the author probably should have fleshed out more.
It seems it wasn't only a quick read, but also a quick write.
All in all, I've been amused for a few hours, so my verdict is a 6 out of 10.
