Review: Engrossing Story, But Unrealistic Setting
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 26, 2013
The actual story behind "Eldorado" is engrossing and entertaining.  The adventure, tension, character development and dialogue are all very good.  I enjoyed reading this story; however, the setting--a futuristic time where the oil is gone and folks are struggling to get by--doesn't work as well for me as if this story were in another setting.  The future here doesn't seem like a future, but more of a present, and I had some issues with the concepts played out in the story.But I did really enjoy the character interactions, the development of Richard from a book-smart professor into a street-smart warrior, the goofy dog Zonk, the affable parental figure Keller--always ready for a new adventure, the strong, hardened Carrie, and the soft, innocent Lacy.  Danny, Richard's younger brother who causes all the ruckus in the first place, is well developed too--a restless youth intent on making his own way but getting way over his head in the process.  The characters, including the bad guys--vicious Crack with his writhing, octopus tattoo, and delusional, violent Swallow--are all well developed over the course of the book.  Storey has a gift for bringing out humanity in his characters, and this is the strength of the book.The book follows several characters, and sometimes I got confused by the sequence of time.  But the action and suspense is good, and I think the only down part of this book is that the future world is never developed--it seems exactly the same as the present world, except crumbling.  A little more development of this world would have made this story more solid.Nikki BennettNiks Picks Book Reviewswww.nikki-bennett.com