Review: A Brewing Storm

A Brewing Storm by Richard Castle

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



First, let's start with the fact that I gave this book 3 stars. That is not an indictment of the book itself, it's just that the book was not one of my favorites. I liked it, but I didn't "really like" it (which would be 4 stars) or "love" it (which would have been 5 stars). I liked it. It was a solid read.

Spy fiction is not my thing. Private Detective's are. This was a little of both.

Short Fiction is also not my thing. This was a novella, which made it just long enough for my taste.

The book was solidly written by a ghost writer. It is not fine literature, but it was a fun read. I applaud that. I'm a fan of fun. I think that if all of the books in the world were fine literature, the world would be a beautiful but boring place.

Most of the negative reviews of this book were complaints that the book was "part of a book" or "unfinished" or "a trick to get you to buy the next book." But those things don't worry me. I'll address each of them in kind.

First, the book is not "part of a book". It is a stand-alone novella in a novella trilogy. That means that the book should have some resolution at the end, while still leaving enough loose ends for it to run into the next book.

I'm going to use one of my favorite trilogies as an example* (and, mind you, this trilogy is no LOTR): In "Lord of the Rings", Frodo does not reach Mordor at the end of the first book (because one does not simply walk into Mordor). There is resolution in the first book on some of the smaller plot points, but the final objective carries forward into the next book. I don't think that anyone would complain that "The Fellowship of the Rings" is not a complete work of fiction. But it is part of a trilogy, and was designed as such, so therefore the most central plot point carries further into the following books.

So it is with "A Brewing Storm". The first book's mystery is solved (what happened to the money and why). But the overlapping myth arc is not solved (who is the source of the "conspiracy", if it should actually BE a conspiracy.

The novel is designed to be a stand-alone novella in a larger trilogy, and is successful in doing so.

The novella is NOT unfinished. See my points above. It RESOLVES the current mystery, while giving a hook for the overall arc.

And finally, the book is NOT A TRICK to get you to buy the next book. It's DESIGNED to be part of a trilogy. Just like a TV series is designed to be a series. So, when you watch a series, it not resolving EVERYTHING in EVERY episode is NOT A TRICK, it's the nature of writing for a series. It's WHY you make it as a series, and not as a stand-alone film. My example for this is "The X-Files"*. In this series, each episode (or couple if they are two-parters) resolved the current case, but we still don't know who is behind the conspiracy. We still don't know what the Cigarette-Smoking-Man is up to or all about. That doesn't make it "A TRICK", it makes it writing for a series.

That is what this book does.

The book is a fun read, if you take it for what it is supposed to be: Light Fiction and a part of a series (specifically a trilogy). If you like spy-craft (of which there is a little) and detective fiction, you will likely like this novella. Be prepared to read all three, if you want to know the final answers.

*I realize that comparing this book to LOTR or The X-Files is near-sacrilege in some circles. I fully recognize this. PLEASE DON'T REVOKE MY NERD-CARD.



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Review: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



I realize that the trend is always towards a series of books. And this is a trend that I fully support. This book is part of a larger series, which was obviously intended at the time of its writing. I have no issue with any of that.

This book is a complete story, that is strong enough to stand all on its own. It is clever and well-written. I find the dialogue, both in the present and in the past, both in America and in Britain, to ring true. I find this to be quite a feat. It is often difficult for an adult writer to accomplish believable teen dialogue. The fact that this writer was able to do so over two centuries and two continents is really impressive.

The only issue that I have with the novel (and it is what keeps it at 4-stars instead of 5) is that it feels, throughout to be expository. Throughout the reading, I kept thinking, well, now, if the story doesn't start soon, we'll have no book in this book.

And, yet, the book IS there. The story DOES progress. It does have rising action, it does have a climax, it does have brief falling action, and even more brief denouement. All of the elements are there, and in the proper order. All are well-written and entertaining.

Yet, for some reason, I continued to feel that this book was the mere exposition for a much longer book. I recognize that the first book in any series is heavy on expository data for the rest of the series, but this one just felt, although it is fully a stand-alone novel, like it was not part of a series, but part of a larger book.

I can't explain this feeling. And I can't describe in any way how the author could have avoided this issue or altered the book to correct the issue. It's just a feeling I had during reading, and it is a feeling that I can't pin down.

Also, I felt that the photographs were formatted well for Kindle.  I was able to view them easily on my Kindle Paperwhite.



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