Review: Promising piece suffers from bouncy plot!
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 01 24, 2014
The story opens with a young man facing new beginnings.  The loss of his sister (and parents, though it’s not clear when they died) lands him under the guardianship of his Uncle Daniel.  The young man is mature for his age, and a bit cynical, so his enthusiasm for relocating to Spain doesn’t match the typical 15 year old’s response.  He’s not likeable, but you get the impression that maybe there’s more to him.The youth goes through (what seems to be the next few months, or a year) seizing the day without considering the consequences of his actions.  He befriends a young expat named Royce who offers an oasis where he can play some adult games.  Soon, the young ward connects with a teenaged girl who makes his transition to European life a little more pleasant.  As with many romances, this one has a tragic ending that seems to steer the youth, Valentine Fitzcannon, into becoming the sociopath that he’s, well, almost genetically predisposed to be.This story had potential.  Unfortunately, there were many issues that really kept it from being a great novel.  I considered the story to be bouncy.  There were so many times when the plot jumped from one point to another with no rhyme or reason.  Or, something major happened, and it seemed like a paragraph or two was missing in between the before and after.  It was abrupt.  I never really understood why Val was so unbalanced.  I noticed editing issues, but those were really insignificant compared to the story and character development.There’s a supernatural twist, and a pinch of sci-fi that all just comes out of nowhere.  Surprisingly, the ending isn’t bad.  In fact, it was a great ending.  I just had a problem with almost everything in between.Overall, this book reads more like a work in progress.  It’s a puzzle that is missing some pieces.  With some help, the author could expand this into something notable.