Review: Disappointing 1st Installment
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 01 21, 2014
Author Olivia Newport is venturing into new waters in Christian publishing. ‘Hidden Falls’ is a series with 14 episodes. However, these episodes aren’t audio or visual- they’re written. Every week, another episode will be released. Currently, episode one of season one ‘Original Secrets’ is available for purchase. Several additional episodes are available for pre-order. They’re in eBook format only.In ‘Original Secrets’, we meet the town & the mystery begins. First to greet us are Sylvia Alexander, the town’s mayor, & Quinn, a beloved teacher. We join them as they’re readying for a party to honor Quinn for years of community service. Numerous guests will be in attendance from across the years of Quinn’s time teaching in Hidden Falls. Most of them are former students.Next, we find Liam Elliot & Jessica McCarthy. Engaged, they plan to attend the gala together. But, Liam’s shady business dealings are both clouding his mind & jeopardizing his life with Jessica. Liam is a former student of Quinn’s history class. Cooper, Liam’s brother & sheriff department employee, makes a brief appearance on his way to the event.Dr. Ethan Jordan has avoided opportunities to visit his hometown of Hidden Falls. When he received a special letter from Quinn requested to have a talk with him, he knows that he has to return. Unfortunately, he runs into former girlfriend, Nicole Sandquist. A nasty break-up between the two has left nothing but awkward silence & hurt feelings. She’d left town to become an investigative journalist. But in order to celebrate Quinn, they’ll have no choice but to confront each other.The Parker family had to leave their home in Memphis due to business deals gone wrong. Jack & Gianna plus their three kids moved to Hidden Falls when Jack bought a law practice. Jack has completely lost touch with his family & is merely skating through his life. Hidden Falls may be just what they all need.Mayor Sylvia’s niece, Lauren, a high-strung Church director, & Dani, Liam & Cooper’s cousin, round out our community. Dani is the tom-boy loner of the town whom Quinn keeps an eye on. Lauren is trying to organize Church events, but is too focused on the details to enjoy her work.All the above & more gather together to honor their friend. Just as he’s ready to be introduced, Quinn, literally, disappears. What in the world is going on in the town & where is Quinn?Obviously, the end is supposed to remain a cliff-hanger in order to continue the series. I appreciate the effort that the author & publisher put into making this ground-breaking series. However, the only major selling point that I see is the character of Quinn. While each book is intended to be a quick read or short story, the plot seemed too rushed to me. I couldn’t rationalize any clues as to why the story went in the direction it did.Hopefully, the story will play out better with future installments. Personally, I won’t be continuing with it. ‘Original Secrets’ gets a 3 star rating from me. As always, read for yourself & draw your own conclusion. The series is on Amazon for $2.99 per episode.I received a copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.