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Martin Xiong's Reviews > The Devil of Pinesville
The Devil of Pinesville (Critter Catchers, #4)
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One star for fulfilling the role of qualifying for the Libby genre-audience filters that found their way to landing on my library shelf. Second-star for at least trying.
The story of unequal parts murder and mystery, jarringly sloppy tangents of romance (although the best scenes involved bouts of amorous, shared bodily interactions), and a slight bit of rural-horror was altogether a tight outfit. A majority of the very intentional standing-in for what is obviously the author's form of prose is incisively interrupted by the author themself lacking a general sense of awareness for the when and where of critically unnecessary third-person, disembodied narrations in the midst of their story; it isn't necessary and keeps chopping through whatever narrative flow they're building.
It is a regular occurrence within each chapter and nearly every other page. The reader cannot escape the author inserting themselves into every scenario, breaking the fourth-wall.
In short, the author frequently interrupts themselves in lieu of being unable to show what their cast of characters are able to emit in emotion, or action to forward the story alone on either/or; and instead, the reader is constantly flamed with a masque of narration meant more so to supply something for the sore absence of complete suspense, or fluidly romantic tension.
You might well be reading about obvious body language translating the primary love interest's troubles in proverbial paradise, when quite suddenly the author will consistently insert a follow-up font of text literally telling you that there's possible strife in domesticity; if you couldn't already tell--but you obviously can just from reading about 'the shifting of eyes' or 'turning your back to so-and-so'.
Other than that complaint, I found the mystery aspect very charming indeed. The rapport between the pseudo-detectives helps progress the story, where all of the severe authorial intent is blatantly in your face every other page. Good story though and I hope to read more of the author's works.
The story of unequal parts murder and mystery, jarringly sloppy tangents of romance (although the best scenes involved bouts of amorous, shared bodily interactions), and a slight bit of rural-horror was altogether a tight outfit. A majority of the very intentional standing-in for what is obviously the author's form of prose is incisively interrupted by the author themself lacking a general sense of awareness for the when and where of critically unnecessary third-person, disembodied narrations in the midst of their story; it isn't necessary and keeps chopping through whatever narrative flow they're building.
It is a regular occurrence within each chapter and nearly every other page. The reader cannot escape the author inserting themselves into every scenario, breaking the fourth-wall.
In short, the author frequently interrupts themselves in lieu of being unable to show what their cast of characters are able to emit in emotion, or action to forward the story alone on either/or; and instead, the reader is constantly flamed with a masque of narration meant more so to supply something for the sore absence of complete suspense, or fluidly romantic tension.
You might well be reading about obvious body language translating the primary love interest's troubles in proverbial paradise, when quite suddenly the author will consistently insert a follow-up font of text literally telling you that there's possible strife in domesticity; if you couldn't already tell--but you obviously can just from reading about 'the shifting of eyes' or 'turning your back to so-and-so'.
Other than that complaint, I found the mystery aspect very charming indeed. The rapport between the pseudo-detectives helps progress the story, where all of the severe authorial intent is blatantly in your face every other page. Good story though and I hope to read more of the author's works.
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Reading Progress
June 12, 2022
–
Started Reading
June 12, 2022
– Shelved
June 12, 2022
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Finished Reading
