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So I read Kimberly Holt-Whitlock’s book, Fading Illusions yesterday.

Here’s the blurb:

My Verdict


The good thing about this book was that I was able to keep reading it, although it was bloody hard work. At least it didn’t make me want to stab myself in the eye. With a rusty fork. Much.

I’m not sure I was overly fond of Holt-Whitlock’s voice. It seemed to drain the energy right out of me. There are some stories that seem to do that, and unfortunately, Fading Illusions was one of them.

If I was to categorise this book, I’d probably find it quite hard to do so. I couldn’t figure out whether it was a romance or not. The story was told from two points of views, Laynee’s and Mike’s, rather than Laynee’s and Cole’s, thus I got the impression that this was a book without an actual traditional hero. Plus with all the cheating that Mike was doing, I couldn’t possibly see him as a hero.

I wasn’t keen on Laynee, she was too passive aggressive for my taste. I loathe heroines who aren’t able to take control of their lives, and are happy to let things happen to them, rather than making decisions for themselves.

My other problem with Laynee was that she was dull as dishwater, and I spent most of the book willing her to grow a backbone, and tell both Mike and Cole to fuck off. Neither of them deserved to get her as far as I was concerned.

Mike was a selfish, cheating bastard, who seemed to blame his failures on his wife. He’d connived and engineered the whole misunderstanding that had ocurred between Laynee and Cole years ago, but didn’t seem to want to bear any responsibility for the way that things had turned out.

The fact that he went out and cheated on Laynee with that skanky ho, Becca, after promising her that he would stay faithful, fully justified my feelings towards him. He was a rat bastard louse.

Laynee and Mike were basically two people who should have never had sex, much less got married. Even Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have more of a chance of making things work than these two people. OK, maybe a slight exaggeration.

Cole Henderson was ok, if a little petulant, but so blahh, that I wished something would happen to bring him out of his seemingly semi-comatosed state. The man was D.U.L.L duuuuuull! Not hero material at all.

The book was littered with legions of secondary characters, including the self-serving conniving Becca, whom Mike cheated with, Laynee’s sister, whose name I’ve forgotten, Mike’s parents, and Cole’s entire family, including his father who was dying of cancer. (Erm… I think it was cancer, I can’t be arsed going back to check) I must admit, I didn’t understand the whole cancer plotline as I felt it was totally extraneous to the story.

This book was about very ordinary people, experiencing very ordinary, 21st Century problems, but quite frankly, if I wanted to read about ordinary people, I’d visit our neighbour Betty, who has a dog that barks all fucking day.

If you’re looking for a pacy, well constructed story, with vibrant, colourful characters, then I’m afraid that this isn’t it. It was all over the place, seemed to lack any particular direction, and drifted along at a pace that would have put a tortoise to shame.

Sorry Kimberly, this book just wasn’t for me. Maybe next time? *Passes over the ice-cream tub*

Oh by the way, I also hated the cover. Dull. Dull. Dull. Seriously, whoever thought this cover was a good idea needs stringing up. Until they say sorry at least.

You can learn more about Kimberly Holt-Whitlock here, and buy Fading Illusions, here.

6 Comments »


  • Sam
    May 21
    4:34 pm

    Somebody SAaaaave me…
    from the old ‘misunderstanding’ plot and the pregnancy misunderstanding (hello? Didn’t she ever think to contact the father?)
    I hate it when there is no communication between characters. I think that would bother me more than anything. I remember reading ‘Hoping for Hope’ and wanting to scream at the characters (when that happens I usually skip a whole chapter – it makes painful reading easier to bear…)

    ReplyReply


  • sybil
    May 21
    9:59 pm

    Just email me and tell me who she ends up with 😉

    Was that the real blurb? If so, ick.

    I would think this is more women’s fic ::ick:: than romance.

    ReplyReply


  • Wendy
    May 22
    1:41 am

    What Sybil said.

    ReplyReply


  • Kimberly
    May 22
    3:11 pm

    Karen…

    Ice cream, ack, more like tequila. It’s really too bad I don’t drink.

    Well, ick, what can be said except I still really do appreciate your willingness to read the book in the first place.

    Congrats on giving me my first ass kicking 🙂

    Best,
    Kim

    ReplyReply


  • Karen Scott
    May 22
    6:31 pm

    Hi Kimberly, I’m sorry I didn’t appreciate the book, but you know, it’s all subjective right? No doubt there will be others who will love it!

    ReplyReply


  • M.E Ellis
    May 23
    11:41 am

    Ouch! Harsh!

    I quite liked it myself. Was an easy read, no fluffy or complicated wording, just a good, snuggle down read.

    Each to their own!

    :o)

    ReplyReply

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