Review: 3 & 1/2 stars from Kota for Kota's Book Kollection
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 04 22, 2014
Number Thirteen…  this story is an interesting take on the human slave trade.  In this story we meet Master William and his thirteen girls.  This story is told predominantly from Thirteen’s point of view, but we certainly get insights into William and how he sees things unfolding.William is a wealthy man, who is outcast from his family, either by their doing, or his – depending on which family member you are talking about.  The prologue of this story paints an introduction to William’s story that breaks your heart.The synopsis introduces the reader to the knowledge that the girls do not know the agenda of Master William or his intent.  They do however quickly learn that there are lessons to be taught.Bella Jewel is a writer whose style engages the reader, she tells a really good story.  There was a definite connection with Thirteen in this story.  This story reminded me of a combination of the Phantom of the Opera and Tears of Tess…  the lonely reclusive man who perceives himself as a beast, damaged who finds love mixed with a man of wealth and a skewed perception of reality who is driven to save broken women who are being used and abused by others.This story is not sexually dark.  It is not about fetishes or BDSM lifestyle.  Ultimately it is a story about trust, love and compassion.Did this story deliver for me…  not really.  Was it a great story – not for me. Was it a bad story – in and of itself – No. It had the potential to be extremely complex, but I felt the delivery missed the mark.  It had the potential to be extremely emotive, and after the feelings the prologue evoked I thought it would be, but again it just missed the mark for me.  It was easy to read, it flowed reasonably well, and it was a ‘good’ book.  I have often thought that the brevity of a book takes away from the capacity to tell complex stories in enough detail that they don’t seem abbreviated.  I think that was the case in Number Thirteen, it lacked depth to match the complexities of the story.  Life for William could have been explained in more detail, his relationship with his brother could have been unpacked more, which would have endeared William to me as the reader more.  As for Thirteen, we got her story in the end, and her reasons for her behaviour and choices.  As a character she was strong and caring however there were still elements that required further exploration to truly gain my empathy as a reader – don’t get me wrong, her story was tragic – but I just didn’t feel that deeply.I am rating Number Thirteen 3 &  hearts – on our scale that makes it a good book.  I know there are those out there that will absolutely love this story – and that makes me happy…[...]l