Review by Vlgski -- Betrayal of Justice by Mark M. Bello

[Vlgski]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Betrayal of Justice" by Mark M. Bello.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Marc M. Bello's Betrayal of Justice scores a three out of four. A fast paced thriller that drops you right in the middle of a hate crime that causes one young woman to risk her life and freedom, one cop to rethink his values, and two men to show their horrible true colors. The scarily plausible story line is gripping in a train wreck kind of way. You feel deplorable for looking, but can't seem to avert your eyes. I found myself torn between the need to know the depths of evil all around us and not having the stomach for the violence involved. At times, I had to put the book down to better absorb the shock of it but found myself picking it right back up to learn how the characters fared. I found myself reading faster sometimes, just to make sure that each character received their due just. I definitely sided with certain people and felt compelled to make sure the outcome was aligned with my expectations.

While overall the characters are relatable, I felt they could have benefited from more in depth conversations with one another. The format of introducing the each character all at one time felt a little like reading a resume. Their descriptions were adequate, even thorough, but their "feelings" seemed superficial and largely unexplored. It would be easier to understand them if the reader learned things about each throughout the story. I had to flip back and forth at times to remember certain things about each one. Zachary Blake, the recurring main character was not as prominent through the story as I expected. I liked the character and would like to see him play a bigger role. I was impressed with the concept of interfaith relationships and the strength with which they propped each other up. I enjoyed the bringing together of multiple types of people to conquer a problem that is not exclusive to one culture. The underlying message revealed through the gathering of numerous religious denominations was a clever way to prove that the approach to a problem may differ through various teachings, but the ultimate goal is still the same. As a society, we should learn to accept, respect and peaceably coexist with everyone; even those different from ourselves. Bello did a great job demonstrating how our world would be a better place if more people could practice a little more tolerance and exercise more forgiveness.

The book appeared to be professionally edited. The style of writing required an abundance of commas which sometimes confused the sentence structure and meaning. I liked the use of vocabulary that required further research and introduced words that added to the knowledge of other cultures. I only encountered three mistakes in the text. Location 959--the word "time" was omitted after the word "short". Location 1009--insert a comma after the word "possible". Location 3834--remove the word "to" after the word "planned".

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Betrayal of Justice
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[Dragonsend]

It's too bad that the character introductions were bland and parts of their stories unclear, especially while reading a larger volume book, however the book still sound intriguing and I am adding it to my bookshelves. Thank you for the review.