Review: A perfect book for folks who really get into the 'ins & outs' of procedural crime thrillers.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 27, 2013
Please note: The review/critique of this book (which was donated to The Magnolia Blossom Review for the sole purpose of a review) was completed by John C. Laird based on a rubric designed by the site’s owner, L. Avery Brown. John has graciously allowed the owner of the site to post this review on her Amazon profile page. If you would like to read the entire review which includes an in depth author interview – please visit The Magnolia Blossom Review’s site online today! Thank you.And Now for the Review...Review prepared by John C. Laird1 Book Title –  5 of 5For the Reviewer: Did it grab your attention right away? (5) Was it ho hum? (3) Would you glance at it and then forget it? (1) What do you think the author might consider for future book titles?JCL: An obviously catchy title; 'Running Scared' could engender any number of scenarios for the reader--none of them appealing. In relation to this story it is also an appropriate title, and could apply to either the victim running from his pursuer, or the suspect running from the police.2. Book Cover – 5 of 5For the Reviewer: Did it grab your attention? (5) Was it ho hum? (3) Did it look like it was haphazardly thrown together? (1) What do you think the author might consider for future book covers? Did it help make the title more effective?JCL: A good cover, reflecting the story. Someone running down a deserted road at night--scared, running from someone? The picture is stark, the title 'Running Scared' is bold--white on dark--the font ragged, eye-catching and well placed. The author's name and the line 'Second Pete Clunane Mystery' is also positioned nicely.3. First 500... – 8 of 10For the Reviewer: Thinking of the first 500 (usually about 2 pages) words of the book, do you think the author provided enough incentive to urge the reader to continue? What stood out to you the most? Were you captivated after a couple of paragraphs? Did the 1st sentence grab you? Did you get to around the 500 word mark and didn't have a clue where the story was going?JCL: The book starts with a prologue. The victim believes that he is being watched and followed by someone, although he never sees his pursuer. But after the initial uptick in intrigue the author goes into too much back story and mental 'what-ifs', effectively bogging down the intro and failing to 'hook' the reader as much as the author could have.4. Blurb Effectiveness – 9 of 10For the Reviewer: Now that you've finished the book, please take a moment to look back over the blurb. How effective do you think the blurb will be to potential readers? Did the author write a blurb that was enticing and went along with the story? (10) Was the blurb lacking? (5) Was it entirely too long or too short? (1) Do you have any suggestions for the author to make it more effective?JCL: The blurb is okay. It initiates the dilemma for the victim, then switches to the police investigators and their efforts to determine whether they have an accident or a crime on their hands. After the victim's line 'For the first time in weeks, he relaxes', the author switches to the investigators and a traffic accident (we assume involving the victim). I believe adding a sentence after that line, something to suggest/hint at what happened to him when he relaxes, would have helped better hook the reader.5. Age Recommendation/Genre Classification – 8 of 10For the Reviewer: Age Recommendation - If the book is entirely too young/juvenile for the intended age group? Is it entirely too mature? (Please take into account swearing/sexual scenes/drug use, etc... Genre Classification - Was the book listed as a thrill ride of a read but was more of a bumper car ride (sort of all over the place)? Was it listed as a mystery and you simply had to turn the page to find out 'who did it'?JCL: Pretty tame for a police mystery. No gratuitous sex, no excessive violence, no swearing. I'd say 12+ could handle this. This is classified as a mystery, a criminal investigation by the police. An overabundance of details failed to make it a 'page turner' for me. More on that later.6. Presentation/Format – 10 of 10For the Reviewer: Did the 'innards' of the book follow a clear, concise, standard format throughout the book? Or did you have a hard time keeping up with paragraphs or dialogue? Were multiple fonts used? Were they distracting?JCL: The formatting and presentation of the book was impeccable. Paragraphing and dialogue were clear and concise. The author followed all the rules.7. Theme/Originality – 8 of 10For the Reviewer: Was this book similar to something you may have read before? If it was a retelling - did the author make it feel fresh and just different enough that it kept you involved? Or was it formulaic and a 'rehash' of a popular tale/current 'pop' genre? OR - is this the first time you can recall ever reading a book with theme/setup/etc of this particular title?JCL: This was a mystery involving a police investigation. And as such it conformed to the 'crime, investigation and resolution' parameters that normally define the genre. Other than the initial question of accident vs. crime, the author followed the normal formulaic treatment of the 'who-done-it'. Nothing really out of the ordinary.8. Description/Enhancement – 8 of 10For the Reviewer: Did the author use descriptive language and 'all those extra little things' to make it the best it could be? Did you feel it was too sparse in description? Did the author go OVER board with the description?JCL: The author did a good job in her description of environment and characters. When it came to the details of the investigation, it was too good...9. Intrigue - For the Reviewer: 8 of 10Did you want to turn the next page because it was SO good? (10) Was it interesting but you didn't quite have an urge to keep reading? (5) Did you think 'I wonder if we have Twinkies in the pantry? Mmmmm, Twinkies' while you read? (1)JCL: The intrigue was blunted by the overabundance in detail. It seemed to be 'too much of a good thing'. Too often I found myself wanting things to speed up, to move on.10. Grammar/Mechanics – 10 of 10For the Reviewer: Was the book pretty darn flawless? (10) Did you see more that 5 or 10 'jump out' at you mistakes in grammar or the actual mechanics (verb tense, noun/pronoun agreement, misused words) ? (5) Did you feel it was a chore to read because it was riddled with errors? (1)JCL: Perfect grammar and mechanics. Flawless. I couldn't find anything amiss. Whoever did the editing did a mighty fine job; the author should keep them on the payroll.11. Overall Impression – 7 of 10For the Reviewer: When all is said in done - did you enjoy the book? Would you recommend it to others?JCL: The author is an excellent writer. And having a 30-year career in law enforcement, I can attest to the fact that she faithfully did her homework and research on police procedure. She was meticulous, detailing all the steps of the police investigation, including wide ranging suspect/witness interviews and answering all the pro and con questions. Too much detailed description. This was one of several problems for me as a reader.Besides excessive investigative details bogging the pace down, the author included and named too many secondary characters--enough so that I had trouble keeping them all straight. Also, the primary characters, their relationships and histories did not seem to be developed adequately. Plus, there was no action, thrills or chills. The only real action scene was a foot chase involving a cop and an 18-year old high school suspect, and this near the end of the story.My personal suggestions would be: less prolonged investigative detailing, fewer secondary named characters, primary characters/relationships/histories developed more fully, and a little more action thrown in. Again, the author is an excellent writer, but I believe that this is a case of 'not seeing the forest because of the trees'. Obviously, this was not a 'page turner' for me because of the reasons I enumerated. But for readers that don't need a faster pace, in depth characters and the 'thrills and chills', but are looking for a mystery involving a detailed and convoluted police investigation--this book could be for you.The Bestowing of the Blossoms...Now that the review is in and all the numbers have been totaled, S.L. Smith's book Running Scared: A Pete Culnane Mystery (the 2nd in a series), has earned a total of 86 out of 100 points giving it a very solid 4.5 blossoms. However, as Amazon does not utilize a fractional system for rating books AND because the book scored closer to 5 blossoms than 4 blossoms…The MBR is pleased to give this S.L. Smith’s Running Scared 5 shiny stars! Way to go! We at The Magnolia Blossom Review wish every success in the world to S.L. Smith as she goes forward with her mystery series revolving around the character 'Pete Culnane' as well as any other books she might be penning, too!