Official Review: Six Months (Second Edition)

[spencermack]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Six Months (Second Edition)" by Joshua Spencer.]

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1 out of 4 stars

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Six Months (Second Edition) by Joshua Spencer tells the story of a young couple, Jo and Joline, who struggle to settle family disputes in order to live a life of happiness. Jo and Joline have reconnected through social media and have begun a relationship. However, Jo is a good friend of Joline’s former husband. Joline’s former in-laws, lead by Aunt Jay, begin to spread nasty rumours about Jo in hopes that Joline will end this relationship.

Spencer deals with many themes in this book, such as family drama, controversial love, and the blend of imagination and reality. Through the use of Aunt Jay as the antagonist, new love is impossible to find for Joline. She is bound to her old family regardless of her desires. The author also tries to play with the idea of dreams vs reality. Many events are described as reality, but in the last second, it is a dream - or is it? There is a lot of confusion about actual events in the narrative and what the characters dream about. The characters and the audience are never given a clear answer about if moments in the book are real or if it is simply Joline going crazy and thinking she is living in a dream world.

I like that the author uses the experience from their past and brings them into the narrative. Spencer explains that he has dual citizenship with Canada and Jamaica. Jamaica is the setting for the majority of this book. However, the author does not use the natural beauty of the country in the story. I think this is a missed opportunity to bring culture and land into a personified role of the story. I strongly disliked how the author organized their ideas for the book. The plot is confusing and has no real flow or logical order. The sentence structure was choppy and often had to be re-read for clarification. The author attempts grand and artsy descriptions, but they come off as clumsy and unnecessary. These over the top metaphors and similes often distract from the main point of the sentence. I also found copious amounts of grammatical errors that interfered with the meaning of the text.

Due to the above reasons, I am rating Six Months (Second Edition) by Joshua Spencer 1 out of 4 stars. I appreciate the author trying to bring their past into the story. However, the plot is wildly confusing and the writing is sloppy. I hope the author can go back into their work and improve the main ideas and practice new writing techniques that offer flow to the prose.

At the moment I would not recommend this book to any reader. That being said, the author has begun to work with strong themes in this book. I think Joshua Spencer could be an author for romance fans to look out for in the near future.

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Six Months (Second Edition)
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[Harty Muli]

I like the family oriented theme amidst turmoil explored by the author. Thanks for the insightful and honest review.

[Elvis Best]

It seems there is a strong concept behind this book, but the author failed to execute it well. Thanks for the honest review.

[Yere123]

I like the family oriented theme amidst turmoil explored by the author. Thanks for the insightful and honest review.

I also admire that theme that was included but I still hope for future improvements to the book because the novel has such a strong idea.

[Miss_chiege]

I really loved the idea of the couple meeting on the social media but the story is not coordinated as the reviewer had said.

[Dayodiola]

"Hate is stronger where there has been Love" Will Jo survive the issues. Would be a great read if not for the numerous dents. Nice review

[Carennkemdiala]

I love your honest review. For me, the mere fact that the author was unable to address which events were real (actual) or just wild dreams by the characters (especially Joline) is a total turn off for me.

I think the ploy to keep the reader in suspect without leaving certain clues for better understanding is unnecessary.

[Usma Khann]

The plot had great potential but looks like the author lacked in the execution. Appreciate the honest review.

[spencermack]

I like the family oriented theme amidst turmoil explored by the author. Thanks for the insightful and honest review.

I agree, thanks for commenting!

[spencermack]

It seems there is a strong concept behind this book, but the author failed to execute it well. Thanks for the honest review.

100% correct. Decent idea, poor writing. Thanks for your honest comment!

[spencermack]

I like the family oriented theme amidst turmoil explored by the author. Thanks for the insightful and honest review.

I also admire that theme that was included but I still hope for future improvements to the book because the novel has such a strong idea.

Improvements are needed immediately. Thanks for commenting!

[spencermack]

I really loved the idea of the couple meeting on the social media but the story is not coordinated as the reviewer had said.

Ya, they meet on social media, but they knew each other in the past. It's a clunky meet-cute. Thanks for commenting!

[spencermack]

"Hate is stronger where there has been Love" Will Jo survive the issues. Would be a great read if not for the numerous dents. Nice review

I'm not sure about great, but most certainly better.

[spencermack]

I love your honest review. For me, the mere fact that the author was unable to address which events were real (actual) or just wild dreams by the characters (especially Joline) is a total turn off for me.

I think the ploy to keep the reader in suspect without leaving certain clues for better understanding is unnecessary.

Just a poorly executed book from start to finish. Thanks for commenting!

[spencermack]

The plot had great potential but looks like the author lacked in the execution. Appreciate the honest review.

I appreciate the honest comment!