Review: Review: Last Kiss In Venice (Legend of the White Snake #1) by Martin Chu Shui
Rating: 2 out of 5
Date: 11 30, 2012
Last Kiss in Venice is the first novel of Martin Chu Shui's new Legend of the White Snake series. The series is actually based on one of China's most famous love stories `Legend of the White Snake'.In Last Kiss in Venice we meet Charlie a man who has come to Venice on vacation and to help protest global warming.A day or so after he arrives he meets Caitlin beside a bridge over a canal and is captured by her beauty. Caitlin's friend Alice `Ali' is also there on the bridge with her, not that Charlie notices at first.The point at where they meet is very important to this novel as Caitlin and Ali have been looking/waiting for Charlie for a long time.Long ago they met in a different life and time, since that day Caitlin has been looking for Charlie who she knows is `the one', her one true love.After they meet on the bridge things progress very fast and it is not long before Caitlin and Ali accompanies Charlie back to his home in Perth, Western Australia, married.Before they left Venice however we learn a few very important details 1.) Caitlin and Ali are not human and 2.) they are wanted by the inter-continent supernatural council (a supernatural council) and after 10 long years of being invisible, they have become aware of Caitlin and Ali once again and begin to hunt for them.Overall this book was okay. I have to admit that I found myself fighting with parts of it that frustrated me.Mostly the characters themselves, a really big thing has to be Caitlin. I understand that she was supposed to be strong and take care of her family, make sacrifices, etc. But I think she should have told Charlie the truth about what she was from the beginning. To me it makes no sense that she did not and only caused more problems that it kept away.In this book Charlie, though a six foot+ man is always being protected by his wife and her friend, there is nothing wrong with this. I just found it odd and I am a huge lover of bossy, dominate men in books, even if the woman never does what the man tells her to do and take's care of herself and fight's him tooth and nail, the fact that the man is strong, can take care of himself, etc. is what I like. To me Charlie seemed, just, wimpy. His character over all did nothing for me.It may seem silly and it might not bother other people, I think my sister would love the book as she hates bossy/dominate men in books.Alice `Ali', the friend who is like Caitlin's sister, was mean. That is the only way I can describe her. She hated Charlie from the very beginning and never really likes him at any point in the book. I am not even sure why she did not like him in the first place but she ties her best more than 5+ times throughout the book to make Caitlin forget about him and for them to leave the human world back to their home.To be blunt, the characters just did not do it for me. At all. Charlie, Caitlin and Ali, to me they just were not that likable for various reasons, and not just the main characters but the supporting characters as well.I am huge on characters in books. If I cannot find some way to empathize with them, or something I like about them, then I cannot really immerse myself in the book.Other people may not feel like I did about the characters though, the plot is interesting and I would not want to discourage anyone from picking up this book if it sounds interesting to you. You may love the characters and book.Overall, I think the premise for this book, and series in general, is great and that this could have been an amazing book. The basis of the story on the Chinese love stories `Legend of the White Snake' is really interesting to me and I will be reading the second book in this series if only for curiosity sake. We are left with a pretty big cliffhanger and I would like to know what happens next after everything that transpired in this novel.*I received a hardcover/paperback/eBook copy/ARC of this book for free to review from the author/publisher/tour site; this in no way influenced my review, all opinions are 100% honest and my own.