Review: Good Raw Story
Rating: 2 out of 5
Date: 01 3, 2013
This story is good in the raw, but it reads much like a first draft, or perhaps a writing that a stage play author would write.  The story revolves around the inheritance of a young adopted woman, who receives the entire fortune of her thus-far unknown biological grandfather.  While the mystery and paranormal premise ideas are good, the story telling is somewhat disjointed and at times a bit discrepant.  For instance, as the novel begins, Alexis (a name the young woman must accept in order to receive her inheritance) is struggling to pay off student debt after her teaching job is terminated due to lay-offs.  However, as she learns of her inheritance, there is an explanation of how the scholarship she received to pay for her education was truly earned by merit.  There is also a large portrait of Alexis' mother that seems to be staring at a specific book--but, not knowing where that painting would be positioned in future times, and not having a clue that a book her mother had in college, never having returned to the home after leaving college, there is absolutely no explanation of how that book came to be in the home or how the portrait would be in a position so that the eyes are directed toward that book.  Perhaps that is intended to be part of the paranormal elements, but it is so far out of the realm of reality that this particular situation is very unlikely to actually happen.  Then, if Alexis had received a scholarship, then any student debt she may have accumulated should have been nominal, at most.  But, such discrepancies are minor in the final reading, which tries to put to rest all the questions and even throws in a twist that few would expect.While the story ideas are good, the events and thought patterns do not flow as seamlessly as a more developed writing would present. At times, the reader is presented with the characters' internal thoughts (such as Alexis reviewing whether Drew could possibly be responsible for the strange events), and other times, the reader is simply told that an event happens as if it were a fait accompli (such as the letters that Austern provides, with no explanation of why he took them from the safe).  Beyond all this, there is really no substantial explanation for the discrepancies in the grandfather's apparent good will toward his heretofore-unacknowledged granddaughter and the enmity he presented in most other dealings.  While there is a weak explannation by Alexis that she figured her grandfather wanted to be able to control things after he died, there are far too many discrepancies in his actions to be explained by Alexis' musings.The story is a good begining, and this reader cannot determine whether the discrepancies are a basis for anticipated sequels that might explain those discrepancies, whether the discrepancies were created by an author that was given an assignment to write a story with a given story line and the author didn't feel the need to put a great deal of thought into the work, or whether the author is relatively inexperienced in this genre and will be using this good raw storytelling experience to gain experience and write future novels more in keeping with an experienced reader's expectations.  Whatever the cause, those discrepances detract from the decent story line and characters that seem to live in the real world.This is a good story for a reader that wants to be able to put the book down and come back later.  It is a great story for young adults dreaming of inheriting a great sum of money.  It's also a good story for young adults wanting to believe that they are not the only ones out there struggling with debt and limited resources.  It is a good story for someone wanting to believe that good overcomes evil, and even a good story to read for when a person wants to feel that all is well that ends well.