Review of Obsidian Tomorrow
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Shanna Meaders
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Review of Obsidian Tomorrow
[Following is a volunteer review of "Obsidian Tomorrow" by Chad Wannamaker.]
Obsidian Tomorrow: The Storm centers on three friends who, after witnessing an attack, become entangled in the investigation along with other characters including two detectives. It takes readers through individual perspectives of the mystery as it unfolds and as the detectives and the three friends work to uncover the truths behind this and other attacks. Some of the characters are thrown together while some are forced apart. Each holds pieces of the puzzle, and they all must work to find out what roles they play in solving it.
On a scale of one to five, I give this book a one. The reasons for this rating include clunky and inconsistent use of punctuation, syntax, and grammar that distracted me from the story; the lack of character development; insufficient world/scene building; poor pacing; poor writing style/tone; and finally a poor story arc.
This book would benefit from some professional editing along with proofreading for style, punctuation choice and usage, and word use that may make reading less cumbersome.
The characters could all use more depth. They aren’t developed enough emotionally or physically, which makes me not care about them or what happens to them. This book is dialogue-heavy, and most of the time the character voices are so much alike that distinguishing individual personalities becomes difficult. The character dialogues also tend to have the same voice as the narrator.
The story would be more interesting and likely draw readers in more if the setting details were richer and deeper. This is a character-driven book, but it’s difficult to connect to a story, to be immersed in it, without being able to visualize the scenes. The author gives the reader just enough description for the reader to understand the weather and basic surroundings, but not enough to imagine them.
The overall pacing is flat and monotone for the most part. It’s as simple as one thing happens and then another thing happens and then another. Nothing pulls or pushes. There were no points in the book where I felt excited to see what happened next nor where I felt satisfied with a resolution.
The writing style is passive and unsure. This book is an example of how telling instead of showing can flatten a story. Cliché and nonsensical metaphors and similes take the place of smart visuals throughout the book. Where the author had many opportunities to show the reader the action with vibrant writing, instead I found weak phrases such as, “indicating that” and “appeared to be,” which did not allow me to envision the story.
In the end, the book left me with more questions and little resolution. It is an unfulfilling book from beginning to end.
******
Obsidian Tomorrow
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Obsidian Tomorrow: The Storm centers on three friends who, after witnessing an attack, become entangled in the investigation along with other characters including two detectives. It takes readers through individual perspectives of the mystery as it unfolds and as the detectives and the three friends work to uncover the truths behind this and other attacks. Some of the characters are thrown together while some are forced apart. Each holds pieces of the puzzle, and they all must work to find out what roles they play in solving it.
On a scale of one to five, I give this book a one. The reasons for this rating include clunky and inconsistent use of punctuation, syntax, and grammar that distracted me from the story; the lack of character development; insufficient world/scene building; poor pacing; poor writing style/tone; and finally a poor story arc.
This book would benefit from some professional editing along with proofreading for style, punctuation choice and usage, and word use that may make reading less cumbersome.
The characters could all use more depth. They aren’t developed enough emotionally or physically, which makes me not care about them or what happens to them. This book is dialogue-heavy, and most of the time the character voices are so much alike that distinguishing individual personalities becomes difficult. The character dialogues also tend to have the same voice as the narrator.
The story would be more interesting and likely draw readers in more if the setting details were richer and deeper. This is a character-driven book, but it’s difficult to connect to a story, to be immersed in it, without being able to visualize the scenes. The author gives the reader just enough description for the reader to understand the weather and basic surroundings, but not enough to imagine them.
The overall pacing is flat and monotone for the most part. It’s as simple as one thing happens and then another thing happens and then another. Nothing pulls or pushes. There were no points in the book where I felt excited to see what happened next nor where I felt satisfied with a resolution.
The writing style is passive and unsure. This book is an example of how telling instead of showing can flatten a story. Cliché and nonsensical metaphors and similes take the place of smart visuals throughout the book. Where the author had many opportunities to show the reader the action with vibrant writing, instead I found weak phrases such as, “indicating that” and “appeared to be,” which did not allow me to envision the story.
In the end, the book left me with more questions and little resolution. It is an unfulfilling book from beginning to end.
******
Obsidian Tomorrow
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Odyssey of High Hopes by Cyrus A. Ansary
