Review: Love thrillers?  You'll 'Love Evol'
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 03 25, 2013
*This review may not be copied in part or in whole without the permission of the Author. Thank you.*'Evol' by Jess Wygle is a thrill ride of a story about Venna Caldwell, an actor with a penchant for musical theatre on the cusp of the role of her life as the beautiful and talented Christine Daae in Phantom of the Opera.  But her world gets turned upside down when she is kidnapped and held prisoner by a crazed stalker who wants her all for himself.  After weeks of captivity she's rescued from the Hell she's been through and even though her family and fiancé assure her she is safe Venna knows her captor will come after her again.  She also knows that his warped sense of love and devotion will do nothing but put the people she loves dearly in great harm.  Eventually her worst fears come true and Venna has to flee her home and friends in London, England.  The only person she can turn to is her half-brother, Dorian, in the United States with whom she's shared very little time.  It was a risky move, as Venna doesn't know whether he'll even want to help her.  But he does.  And so, too, does his best friend, Lane.  Within hours of her arrival, her kidnapper finds her and now she, Dorian, and Lane have to run.  This story is filled with enough ups, downs, twists, and turns to keep a reader turning the pages to find out what happens in this harrowing tale of obsession turned deadly by a man whose 'love' is pure 'evol'. -- L. Avery Brown1. Book Title  10 of 10It's simple and yet deep.  The title, Evol, not only involves nifty stylistic word play in turning 'Love' into 'Evol' but it also gives the reader an immediate sense that there is something off, twisted, and discomforting about the way the 'love' is perceived.2. Book Cover  10 of 10We've all heard the phrase 'don't judge a book by its cover'.  But for this book it would be perfectly fine because the cover is so telling.  The jagged heavily outlined red lettering for the word Evol with the 'E' flipped and the large male hand angrily gripping the much smaller female hand that is outstretched as if desperately searching for a way to get free - notice the way the middle finger is bent like she's willing to claw her way beyond the door or the wall upon which it is placed.  Put all those things together and the image alone is disturbing and yet intriguing as it leads the reader to wonder who is it3. First 500... 8 of 10I can't exactly put my finger on it but for some reason this is, perhaps, the one thing about Evol I wasn't 'in love with'.  I'm not sure if it's because the intensity of the opening wherein the reader gets a peek into the twisted mind of a man obsessed with a woman in the first half is a complete 180 from the very sedate somewhat generic introduction of the woman who, it's safe to assume is the unnamed her/she about whom he is obsessed, is presented.  It felt sort of like running to the edge of a cliff looking down and then sitting down with your back turned away from the abyss.Maybe it has something to do with the fact that the her/she isn't actually named in either the 'intense' crazy guy POV first half OR until well beyond the first 500 words.  As a reader, I don't want to be told who the bad guy is right up front but as far as the woman with whom he is obsessed, I want to know who she is straight away.  I want to know right away that the her/she is a woman named Venna.  I want to read that 2nd part and know in my bones, even though the identity of the her/she hasn't been technically revealed, that she's Venna because when she's 'properly introduced' I'll feel that little tug in my heart knowing Oh, no.  It IS her!4.  Is the age recommendation right?  10 of 10Evol is listed as being appropriate for ages 16+ and I think that's a spot on assessment.  Any younger and the intensity of some of the scenes could easily turn from thrilling to terrifying.  As the mother of a 15 year old girl who's very bright and well-read, I know this is the sort of story that she is not yet emotionally ready to deal with the severity of the things that were done to the character Venna while she was imprisoned and which are discussed in flashbacks throughout the story.5. Presentation and Format.  (8 of 10)I'd like to start this off by saying that I read this book, in its entirety, on my iPhone which has a rather small screen.  That having been said, when I first started reading the book I kept waiting for a chapter break so I could not only stop but also so I could shift gears.  But that didn't happen.  Instead, I felt like I was constantly stuck in 2nd gear (almost like being on a roller coaster that goes up-up-up without ever really going down...after a while, the mounting tension becomes laborious as one wonders where's the heart pounding drop?)I will say there were 4 or 5 'section breaks' that were somewhat randomly interrupted by a series of asterisks set apart from the body of the text.  Likewise, there are asterisks used at the very beginning of some paragraphs (though not set apart from the body) which I eventually figured out meant there was a shift in momentum, location, character, etc.  I've a feeling this was a stylistic choice Wygle made so call me a traditionalist but I honestly think that a book with so much action needs 'set in stone' breaks via chapters OR a change in font so the brain can digest what's really going on.  Essentially, as a reader I want the up-up-up sensation followed by a powerful, thrilling fall or corkscrew or dark tunnel followed by a slow point (chapter break) where I can catch my breath and wonder what's next.6. Theme and originality.  10 of 10Evol is one of those stories where the concept has 'been done' (i.e., crazed fan abducts the person with whom they are obsessed) HOWEVER, it must be noted that it goes beyond the typical story line in that there aren't police/agents 'hot on the trail' of the assailant.  Nor does the victim return to their everyday life only to have it thrown into upheaval later on.  Rather, Evol is a story wherein the antagonist gets away and never stops pursuing his obsession.  He literally follows her from one continent to another.  He's not a sloppy nut job either.  He's meticulous and terrifying.  In fact, there isn't one redeeming quality about him.  What's more, Venna never gave in to him unlike what most victims will do in the name of self-preservation.  She's stubborn and no matter what he did to her she never gave up that part of her that made her want to stay alive.  Which is exactly what the nut job whose obsessed with her thinks will happen.  (Essentially, I think he thinks Venna will suddenly see what he's willing to do 'in the name of love for her' and will sympathize with him but Venna doesn't strike me as the type of woman to fall into the Stockholm Syndrome classification of abduction victims)7.  Description and Enhancement.  10 of 10Is clear to see that Jess Wygle took a great deal of care to create believable characters, locations, and situations.  Sure some of the stuff is a bit 'out there' (for instance the 'trac...'  WAIT!  I can't tell you about it because it would spoil something pretty nifty during the climax!)  But what's a good thriller without a few 'holy cow' moments thrown in?  Wygle also took great care to describe the more violent moments of Venna's imprisonment without being so graphic that it's a turn off to readers but graphic enough that it conjures mental images and emotions that can move readers.  By the way, I'd like to point out that there's also love...real honest to gosh love...in the book too which I feel was very carefully sprinkled into the story so that it's not 'about the romance' rather it's about the fact that even amid so much chaos and disturbing moments - it's still possible to find a silver lining amid the darkness.8. Intrigue.  10 of 10This story is definitely intriguing.  It's also harsh.  For some people it might be too harsh because of the subject matter.  But it's important to keep in mind that this is one of those 'on the edge of too much to handle' stories that Wygle could have taken too far with just a few words here or there but she's done a terrific job of weaving a tale with just enough thrills that there's an air of reality to it.9.  Mechanics 8 of 10For the most part, Evol is a sound story so far as it comes to the mechanics behind the way the words are strung together.  There are a few spots where commas are missing, he's that should be she's, and some rather oddly worded sentences.  But those are truly minor things.  Although there was one major glaring mechanical issue on page 225 - or there about depending on which reader you're using wherein a word/phrase I assume was supposed to be either in bold or italics wasn't properly coded and instead of seeing something like this or this or even this, I read What to say, what to say...  Unfortunately, I don't know if this can be fixed as the book is already on the market - but I do believe there's a 4 month grace period for making edits so maybe Jess can fix that one boo boo!10. Overall Impression 10 of 10When it comes down to brass tacks, Evol by Jess Wygle is a delightfully thrilling read.  It's one of those 'take it to the beach' (or by the pool, or wherever you like to relax and read) sort of books that's a real page turner especially if you like suspenseful stories.  So, the next time you're looking for something exciting to read check out Evol available today on your eReader priced between $3.69 and $3.99 depending on the service you use!*The reviewer was given a free copy of this book specifically for review purposes. Thank you.*