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A review by jakewritesbooks
Windhall by Ava Barry
3.0
Sigh. Why can’t books like this be easier to review?
There’s so much to like about Ava Barry’s debut novel Windhall…and so much that grated on my nerves. I really wanted to push this to a charity first-book-4-star review and I just couldn’t.
The book kind of feels like the version of the decaying mansion at the center of the story: beautiful and glamorous but uninhabitable and far past its prime.
Probably easier with this one to pull out the old good/bad formula:
Good:
-The book definitely brings old Hollywood to life in a real and interesting way.
-It has a solid knowledge of Los Angeles neighborhoods and deftly highlights the perpetual contrast between past and present in the city.
-Parts of the mystery were well-written and unpredictable.
-It definitely gets the nuances of the crumbling indie journalism industry.
-Has all the makings of a classic LA mystery tale, which is absolutely my bag.
Bad:
-Absolutely could not connect with the lead character. He wasn’t good or bad, he was just…present. It’s a glaring weakness of the whole book.
-The dialogue was wooden and uninspired.
-While the mystery had many twists, the ending was overdone.
-I can usually suspend my believability radar for any fiction but this one really pushed me hard.
I guess overall, I really liked the setting but couldn’t connect with the story…except when I could…but then I didn’t. Seriously, if Barry had a more interesting lead, I could overlook the other flaws but I just don’t really know what Max’s deal was or why I should care. Check this out if you like Old Hollywood tales and don’t mind them fictionalized.
There’s so much to like about Ava Barry’s debut novel Windhall…and so much that grated on my nerves. I really wanted to push this to a charity first-book-4-star review and I just couldn’t.
The book kind of feels like the version of the decaying mansion at the center of the story: beautiful and glamorous but uninhabitable and far past its prime.
Probably easier with this one to pull out the old good/bad formula:
Good:
-The book definitely brings old Hollywood to life in a real and interesting way.
-It has a solid knowledge of Los Angeles neighborhoods and deftly highlights the perpetual contrast between past and present in the city.
-Parts of the mystery were well-written and unpredictable.
-It definitely gets the nuances of the crumbling indie journalism industry.
-Has all the makings of a classic LA mystery tale, which is absolutely my bag.
Bad:
-Absolutely could not connect with the lead character. He wasn’t good or bad, he was just…present. It’s a glaring weakness of the whole book.
-The dialogue was wooden and uninspired.
-While the mystery had many twists, the ending was overdone.
-I can usually suspend my believability radar for any fiction but this one really pushed me hard.
I guess overall, I really liked the setting but couldn’t connect with the story…except when I could…but then I didn’t. Seriously, if Barry had a more interesting lead, I could overlook the other flaws but I just don’t really know what Max’s deal was or why I should care. Check this out if you like Old Hollywood tales and don’t mind them fictionalized.