Review by nmbotela -- Waves Break (on Unknown Shores)

[nmbotela]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Waves Break (on Unknown Shores)" by Barry Litherland.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Waves Break (on Unknown Shores) by Barry Litherland follows the life of Philip Tyler, a local journalist in a small town in the UK. Philip narrates his journey of friendship with factory worker, Wayne Keech, a lower station character who's accustomed to adversity and misfortunes. The unlikely pair's friendship only comes about through a mutual childhood friend, Stevie, who tragically passes away when the trio were still kids. Now, as adults, a witness to a burglary alleges seeing Wayne leaving the scene. Wayne has no alibi, and therefore, becomes the central person of interest to law enforcement as well as other dangerous parties. Monsters and allies alike rear from the past to complicate the situation, including Wayne's deranged psycho brother, Tyrone. Philip's mission becomes getting to the truth, to not only defend Wayne but his own life as well, and things only get worse. Succeeding events spiral into a deep web of atrocious crimes of murder, kidnapping, and violence.

This first-person narration is a dual timeline novel that alternates between past and present, real-time events, aimed at explaining current predicaments. It touches on various societal themes such as corruption, criminal psychology, social and psychological impacts of child neglect, and, more prominently, personal relationships, particularly unlikely childhood friendships that morph into close adulthood relationships.

The novel is well written, with enough grip factor to have you hooked. I particularly enjoyed the timeline interweaving, which I feel was executed superbly, and it provided a somewhat sentimental value to some aspects of the story. It had me examining my own personal, odd friendships and how they've evolved over time. The cast was well-drawn, and the dynamics of Philp and Wayne's friendship was pleasant to follow. I connected more with Philip's character, his wit and use of dark humor as a coping mechanism in dangerous situations was relatable and humorous. Wayne's character development was also beautifully executed. He starts off as an apparent underdog, or maybe even the villain, depending on who you ask, whose eventual back story will have you, somewhat blindly, rooting for him. The antagonists were as despicable and as scary as they come, which helped paint the picture of danger that you'd demand in this type of genre.

Overall, I enjoyed this read. However, I felt that some parts were a bit rushed; therefore, I couldn't quite picture what was actually happening. For instance, the second last chapter, where it all comes to a head, I didn't feel fulfilled by how it all went down, and it was a bit of a cliché for someone like me who consumes a considerable amount of the crime/mystery
narrative.

The book contains a cocktail of obscene language, right from the first paragraph to the last page. However, I feel that it suits the characters, the situations, and the story. It’s not recommended to young readers or readers who are squeamish about filthy language or violence. I would recommend this book to adults looking for a short yet engaging crime novel. It would be especially interesting for people who haven't overdosed on crime narratives, as there'd be more of a shock factor to it.

I rate the book 3 out of 4 stars. It would have gotten the perfect score of 4 out of 4 stars if it was more descriptive, where it counts, and while the majority of the text is professionally edited, I picked up on more than 10 instances of grammar issues, missing or misspelled words, and punctuation issues, such as missing commas and incomplete quotation marks.

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Waves Break (on Unknown Shores)
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[Avonlea]

Great Review .

I have read this book too and am a fan of it. I am in agreement with lots of the points you have made in your review.

I also rated it 3 out of 4. I came very close to giving it 4!!

Like you, I really enjoyed the way the book was written, particularly the switching between past and present events. I too found it to be a gripping read that got me hooked from the first page.

I agree Phil’s character is great, especially his use of wit and humour at the darkest of times.

I gave 3 stars instead of 4 for much the same reason as you. The crime genre is very saturated and I too have read many crime novels and watched many crime dramas. I felt that this plot covered well-trodden themes and was not quite unique enough to stand out and gain the excellent rating of 4 stars. Other than that it is a great read.

Thanks for a great review an enjoyable read .

[derialist]

I really enjoyed reading your review, which was very elaborate. I'm not sure how the absence of the "shock factor" in the novel will impede the enjoyment of the book, especially in the later chapters, but I'm willing to give it a chance. Thank you so much!

[nmbotela]

I really enjoyed reading your review, which was very elaborate. I'm not sure how the absence of the "shock factor" in the novel will impede the enjoyment of the book, especially in the later chapters, but I'm willing to give it a chance. Thank you so much!

Thank you so much for the feedback. The main protagonist, Phil, makes up for any shortcomings that the book has. I definitely recommend you give it a try. It's also a light read, which you can pick up anytime in between other reads and not feel "lost." As I stated, my main issue is that I consume too many crime-based narratives that I expect all of them to have a dramatic twist. So I'd say give it a go

[nmbotela]

Great Review .

I have read this book too and am a fan of it. I am in agreement with lots of the points you have made in your review.

I also rated it 3 out of 4. I came very close to giving it 4!!

Like you, I really enjoyed the way the book was written, particularly the switching between past and present events. I too found it to be a gripping read that got me hooked from the first page.

I agree Phil’s character is great, especially his use of wit and humour at the darkest of times.

I gave 3 stars instead of 4 for much the same reason as you. The crime genre is very saturated and I too have read many crime novels and watched many crime dramas. I felt that this plot covered well-trodden themes and was not quite unique enough to stand out and gain the excellent rating of 4 stars. Other than that it is a great read.

Thanks for a great review an enjoyable read .

Thanks for the feedback!!! It's honestly a well-written book that I'm certainly recommending to friends. I just finished reading a book that had as much detail as I'd wanted this to have. I think that would have got it to a 4 out of 4 for me, and if the ending was intriguing.

I'm curious to know your top crime novels

[Avonlea]

Great Review .

I have read this book too and am a fan of it. I am in agreement with lots of the points you have made in your review.

I also rated it 3 out of 4. I came very close to giving it 4!!

Like you, I really enjoyed the way the book was written, particularly the switching between past and present events. I too found it to be a gripping read that got me hooked from the first page.

I agree Phil’s character is great, especially his use of wit and humour at the darkest of times.

I gave 3 stars instead of 4 for much the same reason as you. The crime genre is very saturated and I too have read many crime novels and watched many crime dramas. I felt that this plot covered well-trodden themes and was not quite unique enough to stand out and gain the excellent rating of 4 stars. Other than that it is a great read.

Thanks for a great review an enjoyable read .

Thanks for the feedback!!! It's honestly a well-written book that I'm certainly recommending to friends. I just finished reading a book that had as much detail as I'd wanted this to have. I think that would have got it to a 4 out of 4 for me, and if the ending was intriguing.

I'm curious to know your top crime novels

Thanks for your interest in what I enjoy reading .

I like to read UK based crime novels. That is one of the reasons why Barry Litherland’s book appealed to me. Waves Break (on Unknown Shores) fits very nicely into my preferred crime-reading category. I am, therefore, looking forward to reading another book I have found by Litherland, it is called Turbulence.

Other UK based authors of the same genre I have enjoyed are Colin Dexter (Morse), John Mortimer (Rumpole), Frances Fyfield (previously a Criminal Lawyer) and Ian Rankin (Rebus Novels).

I’m looking forward to reading the author Erin Kelly (she has adapted into a novel the Broadchurch screenplay originally written for a TV series screenplay).

I am keen to know if you have singled out any further books from Barry Litherland’s collection that you plan to read.

Are there any similar authors you enjoy?