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A review by mystereity
Death in Bloom by Jess Dylan
adventurous
challenging
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
This was our pick for the April Cozy Mystery Book Club read, and the beginning of the second series out of 4 we're going to tackle. For the first book in a new series, it was pretty solid. I think it will shape up into a great series.
I liked Sierra, her reactions and thought processes as she tried to sort out everything going on felt very true to life. While the plot kept me guessing (I had a suspect in mind early on, and second guessed myself more than once!) in the middle, it felt like it was just shuffling along until around 2/3 of the way through the book when it picked up again. Along with that, it felt like a lot of the detail was only there as filler and yet there was very little in the way of character development beyond Sierra. Mostly, the reader is just "shown" the characters, mostly superficially and for some, a little generically. The suspects, the family, even the victim realy didn't have enough meat to help me "get to know" the characters. Although the rich detail set the scene very well, I think the characters could've used a bit more, to add dimension to the story. That's something I'll be looking at as the series goes on.
Hmm, this review makes it seem like that was more I didn't like about the book than what I did like and that's really not the case. I love the small town of Aerieville (even the name is evocative!) and I'm looking forward to watch it come to life as the series goes on. So as the first in a series, it was pretty good, although it could be better.
I liked Sierra, her reactions and thought processes as she tried to sort out everything going on felt very true to life. While the plot kept me guessing (I had a suspect in mind early on, and second guessed myself more than once!) in the middle, it felt like it was just shuffling along until around 2/3 of the way through the book when it picked up again. Along with that, it felt like a lot of the detail was only there as filler and yet there was very little in the way of character development beyond Sierra. Mostly, the reader is just "shown" the characters, mostly superficially and for some, a little generically. The suspects, the family, even the victim realy didn't have enough meat to help me "get to know" the characters. Although the rich detail set the scene very well, I think the characters could've used a bit more, to add dimension to the story. That's something I'll be looking at as the series goes on.
Hmm, this review makes it seem like that was more I didn't like about the book than what I did like and that's really not the case. I love the small town of Aerieville (even the name is evocative!) and I'm looking forward to watch it come to life as the series goes on. So as the first in a series, it was pretty good, although it could be better.