The First Ten Focus Group Feedback for Practice the Jealous Arts: Ross Agency Mystery Series (Book 2)
Because Practice the Jealous Arts was Book of the Day, some of our most trusted members have carefully looked over the cover, the description, and other aspects of this book as a part of purchase-intent focus group. We then asked each participant in the focus group if they planned to buy and read the book, and why they planned to buy and read the book or not. Their answer to that question and reasons are displayed below. We call this awesome feature The First Ten Focus Group.
Keep in mind, the responses from the members are not reviews. This is purchase-intent focus group which means the participants are people who have NOT yet bought or read your book. A purchase-intent focus group is an important and extremely useful marketing tool for any product, not just books. For other products, you might walk on the street and show people an item in a package and poll them about whether they would buy if or $X or not. These kind of focus groups are one of the ways big marketing companies find the ideal price points for products and test the effectiveness of different packaging. The focus group can help you identify your market so you how to target ads of your book, and it can (but may not) provide you new useful info about your "packaging" (e.g. your book cover, your book synopsis on Amazon, etc.). The point of the focus group comments is to give you information from people who have not bought or read your book about why they plan to buy your book which will help you in marketing the book. These are not reviews or critiques of your book because they are not from people have read the book. This is a marketing tool, not reviews. The trick of book marketing and book advertising is that you have to convince people who have not read your book yet that your book is worth buying and reading. For marketing, it doesn't matter much if people love your book after reading it if you cannot convince potential buyers before they read it that they will love it.
IMPORTANT: Any score over 10% is considered very good. And any score above 0% is acceptable. This is because we only poll about 20 or so readers, and all readers have to say "no" to almost all books. Over a million books are published each year. Even a very active reader cannot come close to even reading 1% of books out there.
This is also why publishing books is such a tough industry.
briellejee
The cover looks like the book could be a techie story, involving artificial intelligence, which is actually not, based on the sample. Both the title and the cover didn't lure me in. I find no mystery in it or something that can tug at my curiosity. As for the first ten pages, I found it a bit dull. Old school teacher being murdered? It sounds like a dead-end, for me anyway. The introduction of the characters and the Ross agency was a bit out of place too. We have a dead body on the scene and the main character kept on giving history of his work and his friend Archie. With that said, I am not going to finish the book. I find no exciting scene in the first chapter and it disappoints me with this being a murder mystery at the first place. I've read the official OBC review and it sounds amazing but the first few pages didn't give me anything to look forward to. I was waiting for a deduction or a clue from the main character that will make the case complicated, but nothing. IT would have been great if they presented something that will make the case a little bit interesting other than the victim having a bad business with numbers. The OBC review praised the style of the author, which I also found as something good and new, but the story line didn't faze me. I found no noticeable errors in the first ten pages.
First Ten review added on September 11, 2018, at 3:56 am by briellejee.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Annelore Trujillo
I would not have sampled this book based mostly on the fact that it was the second book in the series. I have never read the first book, and I don't like to start a series in the middle. I do sometimes read C/T/M/H books, but the story of this one didn't interest me. After reading the first ten pages, I won't be finishing this book. After reading the first line, I didn't want to continue. I just couldn't see continuing a book that compared a dead person to a dead cat in the way this did. I did like the way that the Ross Agency was described. I really got a feel for it as a business, especially when it talked about how Norment told the widow he'd waive her debt to him. The book did seem to be professionally edited; it just didn't pull me in.
First Ten review added on September 11, 2018, at 2:05 am by Annelore Trujillo.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Sahani Nimandra
Practice the Jealous Arts by Delia C. Pitts consists of 7 chapters is a murder mystery case. The beginning of the story flows as the two protagonists examines a dead body beyond recognition. The read seems to have a smooth casual flow, but after you continue reading it becomes blunt. Even though the official OBC review seem interesting, when I read the book I fell out of interest. This point was so good, "That's what a gun was: an invitation to kill and be killed." I didn't encounter any hindrance while reading that would challenge this read. I will pass this read as it didn't stem my interest further.
First Ten review added on September 11, 2018, at 1:19 am by Sahani Nimandra.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
va2016
The title is not very indicative of the theme of the book. The cover is nice. The Amazon summary of the book that I went through gives a clear good overview of the story plot. There are only 2 Amazon customer reviews on the book. Based on the Amazon summary and the plot, I would have selected the book for sampling, even if not for the First Ten program. As I sampled through the book, I found the narration, especially the writing style, to be uninteresting. Although there is a tint of humor in the writing, the narration sounds like the protagonist is worn out because of his work, and does not look forward for solving mysteries anymore. It would be difficult to continue reading the book further with this kind of expression shown, so I got bored. I am not going to read this book in full. I found the book to be professionally edited, and I didn't find any mechanical or grammatical errors. The thing I most liked about the book is its nice plot. I could not find anything that can be improved with the book. Although I found one OBC review that gave 4 out of 4 stars rating for the book, my decision to not to read the book is based on my own sampling.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 11:46 pm by va2016.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Samantha Simoneau
Prior to reading the first 10 pages, I thought the cover art and the title were interesting. I like mysteries, but I'm more of the "cozy" mystery type. I try to avoid gritty, graphic crime novels. Since someone tried to divide the murder victim's head in two, as described in the blurb, I'm thinking this novel might be too violent/graphic for me. There are only 2 Amazon customer reviews, which would lead me to not even read them, as I would assume they're probably written by family or friends of the author. The premise is interesting and did catch my attention - I'm just nervous of disturbing content. I like the tone so far, with the main character private eye narrating, leaning a little on case-related metaphors (e.g. "Solving problems with death as the denominator"). It has a noir vibe that I actually enjoy. I want to know what's in the secret letter that Archie is holding over Rook's head. I definitely think this book is professionally edited. I haven't come across an error yet. It is, so far, absorbing and smoothly written. Maybe "poodle nappers" should be hyphenated. There should be a comma between "round" and "like." There are several instances where strings of adjectives preceding a noun do not have separating commas. I really enjoyed this sample. I like the style, it's not too graphic, it's private-eye-esque without being too heavy-handed. It made me laugh, it intrigued me, I developed an affection for Rook and Brina and their relationship. I would buy this, but I budget for everything and books are not on the shopping list this paycheck. Based on the sample, though, I think this book is really well written and would not disappoint. I'll be keeping my eye on this series and Pitts.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 5:30 pm by Samantha Simoneau.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
kfwilson6
I love a good detective novel, and was particularly intrigued by the theme of jealousy and the green cover art to highlight that theme. The OBC reviewer really sparked my interest with 4-star rating.
However, the sample fell a bit flat for me. It's a decent introduction, but I just wasn't relating to the characters and found them somewhat annoying. The conversation between Rook and Brina and Rook and Lin were so similar to dialogue I've read in other mysteries. The book does appear to be professionally edited; I didn't notice any errors. I just wasn't sucked into Practice the Jealous Arts like I anticipated. The only thing that really sparked my interest was the disappearance of Dreamie, and I wondered if her whereabouts would be discovered in this novel after so many years of no one knowing what happened to her. Since it started out somewhat mediocre, I think I will pass on this one.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 5:30 pm by kfwilson6.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
micoleon13
This is certainly an eye-catching cover page and I like the tie-in of the use of green to emphasize the word jealous. The OnlineBookClub review was very complementary and although I was put off by the fact that the book is made up of two novellas, the reviewer got my interest with the good characters and great writing. Jealousy is the base of a lot of crimes so I was interested in reading this book. The pages which I read were well written and edited and I liked the school imagery used through the case with the dead teacher. I was curious what jealousy had to do with an old lady's death. I would like to continue reading this book and I have no ideas for improvement.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 4:52 pm by micoleon13.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Bianka Walter
This seems like an interesting murder mystery book. I might have sampled it were it not for the first ten program, but after reading the Amazon blurb, I probably would have overlooked it. The Amazon blurb really doesn't share anything about what the book is about. Without the OBC review, I would have had no idea what to expect. The witty banter in the first ten pages of the book was my favourite part. I liked the characters of Rook and Brina and found myself rooting for their relationship, even though I hardly knew them. This leads me to believe the story has solid character development. The sample was also well edited; I found no errors. There was, however, nothing to set this book apart from the rest of the murder mysteries I've read. There was no real hook for me, and I found myself not wanting to read further for lack of any real interest. Because of this, I will not be reading this book.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 4:05 pm by Bianka Walter.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
JuliaKay
The cover of this book is only okay for me. The artistry is pretty good, and it looks professional, but lime green is actually a color that would steer me away, and the cityscape isn't that original. The title is interesting enough that I would want to know more. I think that the blurb and reviews were pretty good, and they did make me interested in the stories. I do wish there would two separate novels rather than two novellas. Archie is an NYC police detective who has called in his friend, a private investigator, to help with a case. There had been a murder of a teacher at a school in Harlem. It turns out the teacher was the mastermind of a Ponzi scheme, and somebody wanted her dead. Rook's job was to figure out who that was. They suspect it could be one of the parents. I do think that this story sounds interesting, and it captured my attention right away. I feel like there should be a little more mystery surrounding the case, however, like maybe they haven't dug up the teacher's past yet. I did not notice any technical errors in the first ten pages, and it does appear that this book has been professionally edited. It did not draw me in enough for me to want to finish reading the book.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 3:05 pm by JuliaKay.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
ashley_claire
The title and cover for this book don't really do much to help me know anything about what this book might be about, so I'd be pretty indifferent about it if I walked by it in a bookstore. The OBC review has me intrigued to learn more about the Ross Agency. I didn't find any obvious errors in the first ten pages and they seemed professionally edited. I enjoyed that the tone of the book was a little playful and not too serious, even though they were talking about a murder. Honestly there wasn't really anything about it that I didn't like. But at the same time nothing really stood out to me as being something that I just have to read. So I'm going to have to pass on reading the rest of this book.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 2:51 pm by ashley_claire.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Alice Heritage
The cover is intriguing. I could tell from the description that this is a detective story which isn't a genre I read a lot so I probably wouldn't have sampled this book without the program. I won't buy and read it today on the basis of the first ten pages because it seems a bit gory. It does appear professionally edited as the sample was error-free as far as I could tell. I liked the sharp, humorous tone best. An example is the reference to Sabrina's combination of being good with a gun and gorgeous to look at saving the agency. The gory description of the dribbles of blood was a negative for me, but this goes well with the genre and some readers probably wouldn't object. I didn't see an OnlineBookClub review, which didn't affect my decision.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 2:17 pm by Alice Heritage.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Sicily Joy
I would have read the sample because of the cover, genre and the positive official review because I enjoy dark murder mysteries. The official review praised the book for having well written Black and female characters which is definitely a positive
for me as a reader. After sampling the book, I knew I would be buying and reading it. Mostly, I want to read it for the dark noir theme and the diverse characters. An example of the dark theme that I liked is this description "The routine disconnections of urban life no longer shocked me; I’d seen enough misery from Texas to Iraq to Florida to be hardened to the human cost of dislocation. But cynicism only covered me so far. The anonymity of this city still could make my stomach flip".
I also liked the main character Rook who is a private detective in Harlem, ex-vet and in a relationship with his boss's daughter. There was a lot of complexities introduced about Rook in the first chapter which I enjoyed. I found no errors and I think the book seems professionally edited. I don't think anything needs to be improved.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 12:44 pm by Sicily Joy.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
bookowlie
I probably wouldn't have sampled this book without First Ten as I don't like reading the second installment in a series (without reading the first one). Also, while the book is highly rated, the OBC reviewer mentiones dark subject matter which put me off. That being said, the cover is very eye-catching and the Amazon plot summary is interesting and easy to understand. The Amazon blurb is free of grammatical and spelling errors. However, it's not formatted well as there are too many line breaks between paragraphs. I enjoyed the sample pages and didn't spot any errors. I particularly liked that the author introduced the main characters well and gave a backstory about the Ross Agency (a security firm) and each person's role in the firm. This made me less concerned about reading the book without first reading the first one in the series. The author has a nice, casual writing style and I liked the use of first-person point of view. Based on the sample and my preference for mysteries, I am interested in reading further.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 12:16 pm by bookowlie.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Bruin Dez
When I first glanced at the title, I assumed that the book might be a self-help book about how to manage jealousy. I was interested in finding out more about this book so I read the official review and the sample. After reading the sample, I realized that it is a murder mystery. I was not very interested in the story, because I don't like to read mystery novels. The book does seem professionally edited. There were no grammatical errors or typos. I did notice some slang such as, "helluva" which I thought added to the character dialogue. The characters are interesting and amusing. I was interested to know about the affair with the boss' daughter, Sabrina. I wondered if her dad ever noticed. I also wanted to know more about who murdered the math teacher. I thought the story would be about the rich school kids, but it is revealed that the teacher has a side job that might have gotten her in trouble. The review explained that the romance between Rook and Sabrina aren't talked about much. I also learned that there's another case in the story. Overall, this seems like a fast-paced mystery book, but I just am not personally interested in reading past the first ten pages. I was surprised to read, in the review, that this book is focus on other issues other than just piecing together the clues. I assumed that it was a murder mystery that is eventually solved by the detective, but I see that I am wrong about that. I do not plan to buy this book because I was not immediately hooked into the story.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 11:37 am by Bruin Dez.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
MsTri
Even though I wasn't really attracted to the cover of this book, the title caught my eye right away. The Amazon synopsis then increased my interest, and the OBC review tossed me back on the fence; the review mentioned that this book is NOT for those "who prefer mysteries that are resolved tidily after the culprit is found", and I AM one of those people. I'm also not too keen on reading the second book in a series without having read book one. I DID enjoy the sample though and was glad that it seems to be professionally edited. I also have no suggestions for changes, and my favorite part was the section where they were talking about the math teacher being the mastermind of a large Ponzi game. With that being said, I WILL read this book because I like the plot but only after reading the first one.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 10:22 am by MsTri.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
MarisaRose
After reading the book blurb and OBC review for 'Practice the Jealous Arts,' I was excited to sample this book. The reviewer had a lot of great things to say about the author's development of a unique atmosphere, and I'm a big fan of the mystery genre, so this one definitely piqued my interest and I would consider purchasing it blindly. After sampling the first ten pages, the first thing I noticed was the first person narrative perspective; this happens to be my least favorite perspective. However, based on the glowing OBC review, I continued to read the sample with an open mind, and I was pleasantly surprised. I ended up really enjoying the first-person narrative. The narrator is sarcastic, calling the dead body he first comes across a 'marshmallow-haired little lady,' and the narrative definitely had a old-style noir feel to it, which I appreciated. I was also intrigued by the murder - I was curious to know more about why an old school teacher was murdered and why she was previously investigated by the NYPD. Additionally, the sample was well written; I didn't notice any grammatical errors, and as stated, I really enjoyed Rook's first person narration, especially his banter with the character Archie. I look forward to reading more about the agents from this Harlem security agency!
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 9:58 am by MarisaRose.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
desantismt_17
This book’s title hooked my interest. I wondered what it meant. The description didn’t hook me as much. This didn’t sound like my kind of mystery. Before sampling, I wasn’t thinking about reading this. After sampling, though, I’ll give this a try. The book appears professionally edited. I noticed no errors. The story voice drew me right in. I often prefer mysteries written in the first-person, which this one is. The book starts out perfectly for this kind of mystery—a corpse, a bit of backstory, and the beginnings of an investigation. The author does an excellent job of putting a lot of information into a short period without making things confusing. I understood our POV character’s freelance status and where it came from with ease. I also like the humor. When our POV character sees the dead teacher, he notes her outfit is neat if not fashionable. The only thing that tripped me up was that I was unsure about the POV character’s gender for a couple of pages, but that’s a symptom of first-person. I have no improvements to suggest. I didn’t see an OnlineBookClub.org review, but I’ll give this a try regardless.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 9:02 am by desantismt_17.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
HRichards
Had I not sampled the first ten pages of Practice the Jealous Arts, I probably would not have read any of it. Neither the genre nor the cover really interest me and I probably won't read the book given I'm reading so many other things. That aside, the book appears to be well written with no typos that I noticed and only the use of the word "savvy" seemed odd. The plot seemed interesting, though the set up of the murder seemed rather sudden. The whole effort was a bit better than I was expecting based off the cover and blurb.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 7:01 am by HRichards.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Yoli García
I would not have sampled this book without this program because I do not read murder mysteries. The OBC review did not convince me to read this book. The story of two detectives, Rook and Brina, solving murders did not catch my interest. After I read the sample pages, I thought the book was professionally edited. I felt disgust when I read the scenes that describe the dead math teacher. I think that my visceral reaction means the author has a talent writing this genre. I liked that Rook and Brina have a romance going on behind her father, who is the boss. I usually like stories that involve forbidden love. I will not read the book because I am not a fan of detective and crime novels, but I think readers of this genre will like it.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 4:06 am by Yoli García.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Cristina Chifane
Had I come across this book without the first ten program, I would probably have checked it since I am an avid reader of crime/mystery fiction. Since this is the second book in a series, I would have started with the first book, Lost and Found in Harlem. With wonderful editorial reviews and two 5-star customer reviews, the book seems to be quite an interesting read. I loved the writer's style in the sample. Both the descriptions and the dialogues are very well written and there are humorous and ironical insertions pigmenting the narration. Rook is a good choice for both a private investigator and narrator of the events and the case of the math teacher's murder is exciting to read about. In addition, there were no editing errors in the sample. If I had any doubs left, the official OBC review definitely convinced me to read the novel.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 3:21 am by Cristina Chifane.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Julie Green
I would be tempted to read this book based on the title and cover; it is clearly a crime novel, one of my preferred genres. Having read the opening pages, I will read this book. It opens straight onto a dramatic crime scene - the death of a teacher in her classroom. There is immediate mystery as we learn that the unassuming sounding teacher had in fact been running a Ponzi scheme. The mystery deepens when the private detective learns that his girlfriend had attended this school but had declined to mention it when he told her about the case. All this in the opening pages! It is very easy reading and I already like the character of the private detective. I did not spot any grammatical errors.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 2:49 am by Julie Green.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Mercelle
Judging by the cover, I wasn't motivated to read this book, but the OBC review pulled me in the opposite direction when it mentioned that this is a murder mystery novel that's worth reading. When I read the first ten pages, I liked that Rook pointed out his dislike for death scenes and that he only stomached them when he had to. As I noticed no errors, I'll conclude that the text underwent professional editing, but I won't read the rest of the book because my to-read list is already overflowing. As it is, there's nothing I would change about the bit I read.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 1:54 am by Mercelle.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Scerakor
From the cover, blurb, and review of this book, I wouldn’t have read it. I'm not really into the crime-mystery genre and I get the impression that I wouldn't enjoy this one. After reading the first ten pages I didn’t change my mind and therefore will not be buying and reading the rest of this book. From the sample that I read, I really enjoyed the pedantic banter back and forth between Archie and Rook; it gave a light-hearted tone to the morose scene. The humour involved was amusing as well; I particularly enjoyed how when giving the run-down of scene, Rook essentially states that the victim was hated by everyone and that they all had access to the school and her when she was murdered - now what! That being said, as previously mentioned, I don't normally enjoy crime novels and, despite the banter, nothing really stood out for me with this sample to change my mind. I didn’t see anything specific that I would have wanted to change within the sample that I read, but it did seem well written and edited. The official review did not affect my decision at all.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 1:11 am by Scerakor.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Jesse Nicolas Presgraves
Had I not been part of this program, I would have not sampled the book. The cover didn't draw me in and the blurb didn't really have much information to pull me in like a usual thriller. Editorial and customer reviews were good, though. After sampling the book, I would read the rest of the book. Reading the first ten pages did change my mind about the book. This is because the characters are very real and you jump right into the plot of the story. My favorite part is the line "She seemed deader than any corpse I had met since becoming a private eye". I felt like the characters could have been real people in front of me instead of just two-dimensional beings like in other stories, plus the female characters were there with their own good traits, other than just being beautiful. I didn't notice any errors in the first ten pages, it did seem like it was professionally edited and it was very well written.
First Ten review added on September 10, 2018, at 12:46 am by Jesse Nicolas Presgraves.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
CataclysmicKnight
When I first saw the cover of this book I actually assumed it would be a romance novel since "Jealous" is a part of it, and as such I probably wouldn't have looked into it more. Some kind of mention that this is part of a mystery series would've been beneficial, and since I do enjoy mysteries that would've convinced me to check it out even if it wasn't the book of the day.
So far the writing is great, and I really like the main character. He's definitely reluctant about investigating this murder, and his reactions to the dead body are great. I also appreciate that there's clearly history here with him, and that the mystery itself has a BUNCH of potential suspects. The murdered person being part of a ponzi scheme AND being a teacher at a very strict, tough school means pretty much anyone is a potential suspect! I'm interested in seeing how that pool of suspects will get narrowed.
I did find a single error - “Nobody on the faculty around here have any clues" should use "has" instead of "have" - but otherwise everything is very well edited and written. I'm enjoying the book so far, and having won a free copy I can definitely see myself finishing it!
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 10:39 pm by CataclysmicKnight.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
LV2R
Just looking at the book cover and title did not make me want to read the book because I wasn’t sure what the book was about. After reading the Amazon Blurb, it was clearer that the book was about two mystery cases. The first case is the murder of an elderly math teacher in Harlem and the second case is about an artist requesting security on a farm. Reading the first ten pages helped me to decide to read the book because I could see the author’s writing style and was introduced to the Ross Agency detectives and to the first case. The book seems to be edited well. I like best how the main character, Rook seems to be a good detective since his friend Archie, an NYPD detective, asks him for help on cases when he gets stumped. It reminds me of Sherlock Holmes’ stories somewhat. The OBC review mentioned that the characters were interesting and varied and that the female characters were treated like real women and not just as props for the male characters. I want to read this book to find out who murdered the math teacher in the first case, and what will happen on the farm in the second case.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 9:34 pm by LV2R.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
ladycraic
I would not have chosen to sample Practice the Jealous Arts apart from First Ten due to my disinterest in the cover and title. I did not find the cover visibly appealing due to the "green and gray-scale" color scheme going on. Hence, on a normal day of book browsing, I would have looked over this one. The blurb caught my interest, seeing as it depicted thrilling mystery plots. I was most interested in the murdered math teacher scenario...who would kill a math teacher? A vengeful teacher, student, or parent? Over what? The sample didn't keep my interest aflame. I thought the in depth descriptions of the "crime scene" was a bit too much for me. Plus, Rook's and Brina's relationship rubbed me the wrong way. A healthy relationship doesn't consist of lifting a partner to a higher pedestal than the one you sit on. Overall, I could do without this story despite my fondness of mystery-themed books. This book seemed professionally edited and I didn't notice any grammatical errors.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 9:27 pm by ladycraic.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Catherine Hsu
If I had not read the sample I would not have read the book; I'm not sure this is my genre. After reading the sample, I have changed my mind. I really liked how the beginning of the book was formatted. It started off with some banter and casual dialogue, and then the author led into narration and told the background of the main character and Archie Lin. The writing was simply wonderful and descriptive, such as how the author described how Brina's father closed his eyes and "the room seemed to dim without their glow." It was professionally edited. I did not read the official review but that did not affect my decision.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 9:26 pm by Catherine Hsu.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
FictionLover
I don't think I would have picked up this book based on the cover, there is nothing that says that this is a mystery, or gives and indication of the genre. The bookclub review was very favorable and the Amazon description got my attention with its 'noir' feel. I looked forward to reading it, and the sample didn't disappoint. I enjoyed it and want to read this book. . . . The editing and formatting was professional, I didn't notice any errors. . . . I loved the dark tone and hard-boiled-PI-feel to it. I especially liked some of her phrases, like: "dribs and drabs as the eagle flew" "talk, and a generous dose of fists had worked out just fine." . . . . The only thing I would change is the font for the chapter titles. Even though it was quite large, I found it hard to read.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 9:25 pm by FictionLover.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Rafaella Michailidou
I'm glad I got the chance to read the first ten pages of this book. Mystery is one of my favorite genres and this one starts right away. I felt like I was watching a movie, the descriptions were detailed but not too long to make you bored. I especially loved the description of Harlem Select School. After reading from the review that this book includes two novellas with the same protagonists I just wanted to read it all the more for that. I'm curious to see how can a murder mystery fit in the length of a novella. I didn't find any grammatical error so far. The cover is eye-catching and the title makes you want to read the description of the book. With mystery books, it's very important to me that I won't guess the ending before it comes. I hope this one won't disappoint me because I'm definitely going to read it.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 8:27 pm by Rafaella Michailidou.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
revna01
The sample revealed a dead teacher that Archie had called in one of his best workers to investigate. The Ross Agency provides security in Harlem and this elderly woman's death is certainly a gruesome turn of events. I loved the author's witty writing style and ease in developing the back story. I found no errors and there was nothing I could think to improve upon. I really like the book's title and cover. The OnlineBookClub reviewer gave it four stars and mentioned the dark themes throughout the two stories in the book. For that reason, I will not be reading this book beyond the sample. I don't enjoy dark-themed crime/mystery books.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 8:00 pm by revna01.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Seraphia Bunny Sparks
After reading a sample of, Practice the Jealous Arts by Delia C. Pitts, I have decided that I will purchase this book. When I first saw the cover for this book, my interest was piqued. I am an avid reader of mystery novels, and this book sounded interesting. If I had not read a sample of this book, I would have picked it up. The blurb quickly piqued my interest. I appreciate that I don't have to read the first book in this series to know what is going on. As I read a few pages, I immediately laugh. I find myself appreciating the dark humor of the author and the characters. The author's humor is unexpected, but I enjoy it. For me, the humorous attempts are my favorite part. I appreciate how the author begins the story. We get the murder and a glimpse into the characters backgrounds. All of this pulls me into the story. Based on what I have read this book appears to be professionally edited. This book does have an official OnlineBookClub review. The reviewer speaks positively of this book and piques my interest. The reviewer made me want to read more. I am intending to finish reading this book. I'm eager to learn what happened to the math teacher!
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 7:56 pm by Seraphia Bunny Sparks.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Dolor
Looking at the cover, the blurb, and the high Amazon ratings, I would've chosen to read this book even without The First Ten program. CTMH genre is something I'd usually pick up after the romance genre. Reading the official OBC review made me decide to bypass reading this book. For me, a book with a cliffhanger ending is a turn-off. The first ten pages made me admire the author's descriptive narration. The book started with a murder mystery investigation. A female math teacher was murdered. Rook was a private investigator sent by Ross agency to investigate the crime. Here are the minor errors I found in the first ten pages:
Otherwise, I’d be anywhere instead of back in school, solving problems with death as the denominator. => being back
...destroy in the back of his desk drawer. => at the back
*fragmented sentences*
But it was early days.
Disrespectful, maybe.
Despite the errors, I still consider this book a professionally-edited one. I don't have any improvement suggestion other than having the ending wrapped-up. I mean to say, if possible, avoid cliffhanger endings. Practice the Jealous Arts by Delia C. Pitts is a crime fiction revolving around a string of murder mysteries at the prestigious Harlem Select School. It is a well-written book with realistic characters, a thrilling plot, and witty twists.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 7:41 pm by Dolor.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
sharkyjen998
Based on the cover, title and genre, this is the type of book I would be interested in reading because I love crime and mystery novels. After reading the sample, this probably isn’t a book that I would spend money on. The writing style was a bit confusing to me, and the introduction didn’t capture my interest. For example, the authors repeated use of the word “deader” in the first few paragraphs threw me for a loop. While the term is proper English, it’s just not a very common word. It was a bit off-putting. I didn’t notice any errors. My favorite part of the beginning was the author’s commentary about how the Ross Agency would charge by ability and need. He mentioned how some customers continued to pay off debts even after the owing party had passed away. He described it as either loyalty, honor, or deep foolishness. I did not read a review before writing this, but that didn’t change my decision.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 6:00 pm by sharkyjen998.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Mary WhiteFace
The bright green sky over the city was definitely an attention getter. It did tie-in with "Jealous" in the title. The cover and title were interesting enough for me to check out the synopsis, which showed it to be a basic detective story. It is actually two novellas in one book. The first case is a murder. In the second, the Ross Agency security firm is hired as security for a reclusive shoemaker's family. This type of narrative does not normally appeal to me, so I would not have wanted to sample this without the First 10 program.
I was mildly surprised that reading the original ten pages changed my mind. I liked that the author didn't focus on the gory details of the corpse. The body was seated and leaning on the desk. There was a wound. There was blood. To give the author credit, her descriptions were more colorful. "A shallow concave the size of a man’s fist dented the base of her head. Blood dribbled like red ribbons across her neck and beneath the collar of her stiff white blouse." (location 83). My point was that this was the extent of the 'goriness'.
One of the reasons I don't care for murder mysteries is that most authors tend to go for the shock factor. This was not the case with Delia C. Pitts' writing style. She also adds in a quirky sense of humor. '“Death schooled the math teacher" (location 33), and "solving problems with death as the denominator" (location 44) are only two examples. Her use of descriptives painted detailed pictures of the scenes. It was easy to envision each place and the characters. I could imagine that I was right there.
As I mentioned earlier, I don't normally go for murder mysteries, yet reading the sample and the Official OnlineBookClub review convinced me that this book should be a little different. It seemed to be professionally edited. I have no suggestions for improvements. I have decided to broaden my horizons and give this author a try. I like her style. I'm also intrigued by the title, "Practice the Jealous Arts." How does it tie-in with either of the cases? I will be reading this book to find out.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 5:07 pm by Mary WhiteFace.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Laura Ungureanu
"Practice the Jelous Arts" is a mystery crime book about the detectives at Ross Agency. The book starts with a teacher's murder at Harlem Select School, a prestigious institution. Archie Lin calls the agency to get help in this case. We are told about the romance between the detective and the boss's daughter. I like the cover, but I don't think I would have picked this one up without the program. Mystery crimes are not what I usually read. Because of that, I will say no to this book. I have nothing to change in what I read, and I found no grammar errors.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 4:56 pm by Laura Ungureanu.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Allyseria
The book cover and title is interesting and instantly drew my attention. I thought it was a young adult fiction, but found out from the blurb that it was a murder mystery. When I read the OnlineBookClub review, I realised that the book was divided into two cases. I became slightly interested when the reviewer mentioned that the mysteries were well-executed because it feels like nowadays, good mystery books are hard to come by. However, when I read the blurb on Amazon, I realised that the book was listed as having 164 pages. It worried me because I felt that there weren't enough pages for the plot to develop properly, especially as this book was split into two separate cases. When reading the sample, I liked that Rook was different from most of the detectives I read about. He says that he doesn't care if 'a hundred righteous victims took a swipe' at Edwina's head because she 'didn't deserve to die like that'. Most detective characters I read usually have a black and white view
whereas Rook has a more grey view. However, I will have to pass on this book because the book fails to engage me. I feel like the characters don't have their own distinctive voices and Rook, despite being written from his point of view, doesn't seem to come alive on the pages.
Note: This book was professionally edited.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 4:10 pm by Allyseria.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
lavellan
I probably would have read the sample of Practice the Jealous Arts even if it had not been a part of The First Ten program. The Book of the Day review was positive and left me interested in the novel. The book seemed like it was professionally edited and I did not notice any errors while reading. I enjoyed how the murder victim had contrasting aspects to her character. While she was an elderly math teacher, she also was running a Ponzi scheme. I didn't like how Rook's initial encounter with the dead body was repeated. I am going to finish reading the free copy of the book that I received from the giveaway.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 3:51 pm by lavellan.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
lesler
Looking at the cover, I was intrigued by the title, but not enough to continue reading. Upon sampling the book, I like the general storyline and connection between Rook and Brina, but not enough to continue reading. This book appears to be professionally edited, with no grammatical errors or typos that I noticed. I liked the first murder setting being in a school, and how the math classroom played into the puns used in investigating the murder. I did not like how dark this book seems to be-putting into light some serious murders. I do not plan to continue reading due to the dark nature of this book.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 3:19 pm by lesler.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
cpru68
Private eye Rook is summoned to the case of 62 year old math teacher Edwina Worthy who has been found murdered and laying face down at her desk atop math papers she was grading. Archie Lin, a New York police detective, is stumped so calls in Rook to help solve the crime. With Edwina comes a shady past and a Ponzi scheme where she took investment money from faculty and parents who lost out financially. I liked how the pace of this was written. A lot of dialogue was used to lay the foundation, and that is an effective way to catch the reader up quick to the plot at hand. I liked how Rook is in a relationship with Sabrina and later finds she attended the private school where the murdered math teacher was found. I thought that was a nice plot twist early on. It seems that the portion I read was professionally edited as I did not find any errors in punctuation, grammar or spelling. I won’t be reading this one further. I generally read non-fiction and my reading list is full at this time.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 3:14 pm by cpru68.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Sharill Rasowo
I would not have read the book without the sample. This is because the cover seemed dull to me and the Official OnlineBookClub review talked about the end being a bit messy. I have very many books to read and I will have to pass on this one. Reading the sample furthered this thought as the opening scene was not to my liking. We begin at the scene of a gruesome murder which is described well by the author. However, as I am a bit squemish, I was put off by the description. As I read the book I came across some words that I really liked, "That’s what a gun was: an invitation to kill and be killed." It aligned with my opinion of guns but did not manage to change my mind on reading it. I did not find any typos so the book looked professionally edited to me. Overall, it would be a good book for those who like murder mysteries but it is not my favorite genre.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 2:47 pm by Sharill Rasowo.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Kendra M Parker
I enjoy an occasional murder mystery, but I wasn’t really looking for something like that at this time. Reading the official review did pique my interest, though. I was intrigued by the reviewer’s comments on the author’s nuanced characters. As I read the first ten pages, I found it hard to stop. They were very well written and clearly well edited. I did not find any errors as I read these pages. I really enjoyed the decidedly noir feel of the book, and Rook’s statement that he refused the invitation to the gun party was a nice touch. It definitely helps him seem like an interesting character. The voice that Pitts gave to Rook was very enjoyable to read. I may come back to this one at some point, especially if it stays on the Kindle Ultimate offerings. I did note that this was the second book in the series, so I might have to check out the first one before I pick up this one again.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 2:41 pm by Kendra M Parker.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
ritah
Based on the cover and genre, I would have sampled the book because the cover appealed to me and I often read books in this genre. I read the official review and then sampled Practice the Jealous Arts. I liked the author's use of description in painting a picture of the murdered math teacher in her classroom, and in conveying Rook's resentment over Archie's casual assumption about how much information he is willing to share. I also like that the reviewer mentioned the first book as it aroused my curiosity (I usually like to read the first book in the series before others). I'll definitely be reading this novel as I'm intrigued by mysteries, and I love books that pose moral quandaries. The book also appeared to be professionally edited as I did not find any errors in the pages I read.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 2:28 pm by ritah.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
gali
As much as I love Noir mystery books, I probably wouldn't have sampled the book on my own as this is the second book in the series. I prefer reading a series in order. The cover isn't very appealing. While the blurb gives a good sense of the content, the double spacing between the paragraphs was rather distracting. The book follows the adventures of the Ross Agency's private investigators. The book opened with eye SJ Rook being recalled to a crime scene by his police detective friend, which I found a bit odd. Friends or not, it seems a bit irregular. I liked that the author gave a bit of background about the characters. It made it easier to get immersed into the story. If I didn't already have several books in this genre to read, I probably would have read it. As it is, the book didn't engage me enough to buy it. The official review further steered me away from the book by mentioning its dark themes and messy ending. The spoilers in the official review (regarding the motives ) was another turn-off. Half the fun in mystery books are the motives, and I don't like to know about them in advance. I won't buy the book for the reasons stated above.
First Ten review added on September 9, 2018, at 1:55 pm by gali.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Total ~ 41%
Practice the Jealous Arts earned a score of 41%.
In other words, out of the top-level reviewers who read at least the first 10 pages of this book, 41% plan to read the whole book.
IMPORTANT: Any score over 10% is considered very good. And any score above 0% is acceptable.
Over a million books are published each year. Any given person could not even read .0001% of the books out there. This means readers have to be very selective. Even taking the time to look over reviews and blurbs, let alone read samples, is more time than most readers can afford for most books. The First Ten is a powerful focus group that addresses those issues. It creates a helpful tool for authors, publishers, and other readers.
Go to main Bookshelves page for Practice the Jealous Arts
