Official Review: The Sex Offender

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Cecilia_L
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Official Review: The Sex Offender

Post by Cecilia_L »

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Sex Offender" by Rocky Taormina, pen name used, Dane Fowler.]
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1 out of 4 stars
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Dayne Fuller is a single father who treasures time with his teenage son, Anthony. When Anthony and his girlfriends want to go out and party, Dayne makes a snap decision to allow them to drink at home. He puts himself in a further compromising position by drinking with them. His worst nightmare begins a few weeks later when one of the girls accuses him of sexual abuse. The Sex Offender: Falsely Accused, Wrongly Convicted, Labeled for Life by Rocky Taormina is the fictional novel based on actual events of a father’s battle against the judicial system.

I’m a huge fan of legal thrillers and true-crime stories, so I was hooked when I read the book’s subtitle and intriguing synopsis. The foreword stated that all the characters and events are based on real people and real actions. However, rather than being signed by the author or his pen name, Dane Fowler, it was signed by the fictional name of the main character, Dayne Fuller. With the close resemblance of the two names, and because the author’s actual name was on the cover, it left me with the impression that there must have been a typo. Later in the book, I learned that the use of both names was intentional, though the reason was unclear to me. Unfortunately, similar inconsistencies were a constant throughout the book.

At first, the plot moves at a fast pace and is easy to follow. Even so, I was unable to relate to Dayne’s character whom the author portrays as a good-looking, cool dad that women of all ages seem to find irresistible. Even the court reporter is flirtatious with him during his criminal trial. His use of words like "babelicious" to describe female characters along with his constant emphasis on their physical appearance distanced me from the character even more.

When the plot seems to be winding down to a natural conclusion, the author changes voice and adapts his pen name, Dane Fowler. At this point, previous parts of the storyline are repeated resulting in over a hundred more pages. The extra length only adds confusion, and then to my frustration, the book ends abruptly.

I rate this book 1 out of 4 stars. It’s apparent the book wasn’t professionally edited based on the numerous editorial issues. I noted grammatical errors on almost every page. Furthermore, I’ve never read a book that contained so many misspelled words. The plot has great potential, but I honestly wouldn’t recommend it unless the editorial issues are corrected.

******
The Sex Offender
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Corhan2
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Post by Corhan2 »

This sounds like something I would have loved to read, but it is such a pity about the editorial issues. Thanks for the warning.
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Post by Cecilia_L »

Corhan2 wrote: 06 Aug 2018, 02:29 This sounds like something I would have loved to read, but it is such a pity about the editorial issues. Thanks for the warning.
You're welcome. Thanks for stopping by.
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Post by Bianka Walter »

I don't like that he's being accused of a sex offence, and then refers to women the way he does. I think a humble personality goes a long way to having people on your side, and he just seems egotistical and shallow. What a downer.
Great review :)
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Post by JR Mercier »

The editing and the way he describes women would have had me grinding my teeth. Like you, the premise sounds awesome but the execution is just not working.
As always, loved your awesome review.
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Post by Cecilia_L »

Bianka Walter wrote: 06 Aug 2018, 05:58 I don't like that he's being accused of a sex offence, and then refers to women the way he does. I think a humble personality goes a long way to having people on your side, and he just seems egotistical and shallow. What a downer.
Great review :)
Exactly. Though I don't believe he was guilty other than his significant lapse in judgment, I was disappointed by his complete lack of humility.
Thank you, Bianka.
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Post by Cecilia_L »

JR Mercier wrote: 06 Aug 2018, 06:54 The editing and the way he describes women would have had me grinding my teeth. Like you, the premise sounds awesome but the execution is just not working.
As always, loved your awesome review.
I agree! Thank you, JR.
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Post by kandscreeley »

I'm confused just from the review. Why would the author use a pen name if he's going to use the character's name as well? Then why repeat the story from the pen name? It definitely sounds like the author needs the help of an editor to really make this one readable. Thanks for persevering, but I'm going to pass until the issue are cleared up.
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Post by AmySmiles »

Wow, I'm stumped on this one. I don't get the pen name issue for sure. If I had only read your first paragraph I would have added this to my list to read, but I'm not interested in it after your honest review. Grammatical errors on almost every page is ridiculous. Plus it sounds like it just needs a whole revamping. I'm sorry you had to suffer through this one, but I thank you for the great review.
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Post by Cecilia_L »

kandscreeley wrote: 06 Aug 2018, 07:23 I'm confused just from the review. Why would the author use a pen name if he's going to use the character's name as well? Then why repeat the story from the pen name? It definitely sounds like the author needs the help of an editor to really make this one readable. Thanks for persevering, but I'm going to pass until the issue are cleared up.
That completely confused me too. I have to wonder if he misunderstood the purpose of a pen name. I was concerned that presenting the information in the review would be doubly confusing but really wanted to warn prospective readers. Thanks for your comment.
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Post by Cecilia_L »

AmySmiles wrote: 06 Aug 2018, 07:46 Wow, I'm stumped on this one. I don't get the pen name issue for sure. If I had only read your first paragraph I would have added this to my list to read, but I'm not interested in it after your honest review. Grammatical errors on almost every page is ridiculous. Plus it sounds like it just needs a whole revamping. I'm sorry you had to suffer through this one, but I thank you for the great review.
I don't blame you. Thanks for stopping by and for your comment, Amy.
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Post by Sahani Nimandra »

When I read the synopsis about this read I was like, Wow! But I was really pushed away by the errors, and I couldn't agree more with your frustration. This book seem to have a lot potential in attracting its audience, but too bad about the errors. Thank you for your detailed review!
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Post by Cecilia_L »

Sahani Nimandra wrote: 06 Aug 2018, 09:19 When I read the synopsis about this read I was like, Wow! But I was really pushed away by the errors, and I couldn't agree more with your frustration. This book seem to have a lot potential in attracting its audience, but too bad about the errors. Thank you for your detailed review!
Thank you, Sahani. :tiphat:
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Post by Ruba Abu Ali »

I was intrigued by the title of the book, but I changed my mind when I read your review. What a disappointment! Thank you for the honest review.
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Post by Cecilia_L »

Ruba Abu Ali wrote: 06 Aug 2018, 10:31 I was intrigued by the title of the book, but I changed my mind when I read your review. What a disappointment! Thank you for the honest review.
I understand. Thank you for your comment.
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