Review: OMG, what a tedious read
Rating: 1 out of 5
Date: 02 1, 2014
The dust jacket claims: "Note that this is a newly edited version." Not. As one reviewer so succinctly summed it up: "Good story in desperate need of a proofreader. The sheer quantity of spelling, grammatical, syntax and just poor proofreading errors detracts to the point of overwhelming the story." Has this so-called San Francisco writer (Cassie Page is a pseudonym, like the story) ever heard of proofreading? Stupid punctuation: "And what do the Blackman's have against you?" to "She was as interesting as a chain-link fence..." was used and then revised, leaving both sentences to rub shoulders side by side, as if one horrific assault on simile wasn't enough. The story is marred with tedious, shallow characters, and some undergo name changes mid-story: Gotrocks becomes Gotshalks (a department store?) Ohhh kay.Did said "San Francisco author" even bother venture across the Golden Gate to Marin County in order to become familiar with locale and story setting? Or did she just Google it from a trendy coffee shop on Melrose Avenue or Via Rodeo, and then call it quits? After too many geographic North Bay assaults, I gave up. I'd love to see someone try and attend junior college in San Rafael, or find Marin's answer to Rodeo Drive in Mill Valley, or Tiburon, or find a viable reservoir to sail on, unless of course, Novato is her fictitious Darling Valley with a coastal view and Tudor houses. I don't think so. Since when is Marin City the workingman's Marin? About the only thing she got right location-wise, was the Buckeye Roadhouse. I don't think I can bring myself finish this story, and I rarely put down any book until I finish it.Farcical sleuthing aside, OMG, it was a tediously boring material girl read. An insult to intelligence. Not even a good story. I don't care whodunit. And the author, food writer, Helen Cassidy Page, claims to teach creative writing? OMG! Minus one star.Note bene: if you can brazen through the first half of the story, the storyline picks up. First third of book needs major revision.