Book Review: Sparkwood by Daria Defore

4/5 stars
Sparkwood promises magic, intrigue, and strong-willed bisexual men, and it definitely delivers on those promises. After a sluggish start, the book drew me in and demanded that I finish it. 
THE POSITIVES
My favourite aspect of this novella was the setting. I didn't connect with the characters immediately (I did by the end!), but thanks to the initial description of the small town of Sparkwood, I started to really engage with the writing. I also loved how much the author managed to convey about the 'other' Sparkwood (a different realm) with very few words. 
The enemies-to-lovers story-line that acts as a backdrop to the central mystery is handled very well. I, personally, don't tend to enjoy books where the romantic elements overpower and overshadow the genre tropes and/or genre conventions. As such, the fact that Sparkwood lets the romance develop as a result of the paranormal mystery, rather than using the mystery plot as a convenient way to force the characters together, was something I quite liked.
There is also a lovely comment being made about cultural differences, culture shock, and learning to accept others throughout the story (and it isn't too heavy-handed in how the theme is integrated). Finn's personal growth is great to witness, especially in the space of only 53,000 words. 
THE NOT-SO-POSITIVE
For the first chapter or two, I wasn't sure I would like 'Sparkwood'. Finn took me a while to warm up to, and it took a lot longer for me to be convinced that he felt much of anything about his brother's murder aside from general annoyance. Sure enough though, all of those doubts melted away as I delved further into the story. 
It isn't necessarily in the control of the author, but I was distracted by the multitude of typos. In one chapter closer to the end, there were about four or five mistakes in the space of two pages (though that was the biggest cluster...most of the others were just here-and-there). Another pass by a proofing editor would have helped the overall quality.
OVERALL...a fine and relaxing read. It isn't an overly 'literary' novel (and it wouldn't work if it was, because it's not in the nature of the main character to be especially descriptive), but there are some lovely passages that hint at the author's flair with language. The plot moves at a pretty good pace once it gets past the initial set-up of people, places, and events

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Author Interview: Matt Doyle

Image
This blog is starting to move into some exciting new territory with my first ever author Q&A. I'll be trying to do a few of these over time, hopefully they will compliment the book reviews I undertake and help us to engage more with both emerging and established writers. The first couple of author interviews will be for some fantastic writers being published through NineStar Press , given this is the same publisher my sci-fi novel will be released by in 2018.  I'd love to talk to some other writers soon though! _________________________________________________ For my fellow Australians, you can buy the Kindle edition here. _________________________________________________ What's one book you remember reading in high school? What stood out for you during or after reading it? I absolutely loved reading as a kid, both before and during high school. Honestly, it was one of my main go-to forms of entertainment growing up, and it was always the thing
Read more

WHY IT IS TIME TO BE MORE KIND TO THE CAST AND CREW OF THE 100

Image
SOCIETY'S ISSUES AND LESBIANS: WHY IT IS TIME TO BE MORE KIND TO THE CAST AND CREW OF THE 100           I have resisted the blogging universe for quite some time, despite having far too many opinions and a love of writing. The recent death of Lexa (played by Alycia Debnam-Carey) on The 100 , as well as the resulting backlash, has left me feeling as though I need to weigh in. So here I am, a 30 year old high school teacher who gets far too attached to fictional characters: writing my first blog. Like most of the other fans out there, I felt my heart break as Clarke kissed Lexa at the very moment that Lexa's last breath passed her lips. It was too soon. They had only been together for moments. It was Tara dying again. It was Xena dying again. It was a fifty other characters 'turning straight' or turning into rampaging stalkers. It was far too familiar. The characters have been so well written and so beautifully portrayed that I couldn't help but let t
Read more

Under Dark Sky Law by Tamara Boyens - A Review

Image
Thanks to the marvel that is Twitter , I have 'met' several wonderful writers in recent months. One of the most responsive of these has been Tamara Boyens . Her novel, Under Dark Sky Law , looked like something that I would enjoy reading.  It was a little bit tricky to find a hard copy in Australia (I don't own a Kindle....maybe I should), but the author herself helped me find a vendor.  Given that I would, ideally, love to finish a writing novel that's worth reading one day, it makes sense to share some of my reading adventures along the way. I don't get to read nearly as much as I would like (children + full time teaching), but it's one of the most important activities I engage in. It feeds my soul and helps me learn more about good writing.  The last book I read before this one was Kindred by Octavia Butler. Gorgeous! But I feel that because novels such as Kindred have received a lot of attention and reviews (as they should!), it's bette
Read more