Book Review ~ Broken Bones by Deja Black
Title: Broken Bones
Author: Deja Black
Pages: 206
Blurb:
Dan Tolliver, the adopted son of alpha pack leader Jeremiah Tolliver, has suffered his last moment of abuse by his lover Keith Mulligan and finds himself in the hospital. There he meets dark and sharp-tongued Dr. Aiden Kavanaugh, who believes Dan needs some of his straightforward kind of medicine. Still, there is something different about the doctor.
Aiden is a sandman, a weaver of dreams, and has been on earth far longer than even he knows. He's at the end of his time, ready to transition, and needs a human mate to keep him connected to the world he’s grown to love. Only he hasn’t found a special person who makes him want to stay. He doesn’t despair, because not every sandman has the chance to choose, but he knows if he doesn’t find a partner, he will soon lose his physical form and exist only in dreams.
When Aiden realizes Keith is a far greater monster than Dan has any idea, they grow and work together using the support of the pack—and Dan’s inner strength—to overcome impossible odds.
3 Stars!
What I Loved: The premise was very intriguing and I loved the idea of Dan being the son of an Alpha Wolf Shifter. Alpha Tolliver who’d married Dan’s mother was a formidable yet warm and loving man. Despite not being a Shifter, Dan was treated as if he were his son right alongside the Alpha’s biological son Conner. Dan was loved and protected by both men and the pack even after his mother passed away.
I also really enjoyed the concept of the Sandmen/Dreamwalkers. I found it all interesting yet a bit complicated, however, I’d love to read more about beings like this. I can think of some fun story ideas.
What I Liked: I liked the dreams we get to see throughout the story. I always have been fascinated by dreams and meanings behind them and so I always pay particular attention to how authors write them into their stories. Unfortunately, I find too many times that they fell unauthentic or just too out there. But Deja does a great job creating dream sequences that feel real and flow seamlessly with the story.
Shelly and Conner were fun and I enjoyed both of their characters. I wasn’t sure what to make of Shelly in the very beginning but she was definitely a force to reckon with when it came to Dan and how much she cared about him.
The Epilogue was nice but the glimpse of the future characters of “The Basketball Game” was even better. I got a tiny bit lost a few times because there are so many characters speaking and being pulled into the conversations but overall it left me wanting to get their stories. I’m anxious to see what happens to most of them but especially Darren, Luc and Samuel. I’d already read Remi’s story so I had an idea about him but it was interesting nonetheless to see him interacting with everyone.
What I Didn’t Like:
I’m going to be honest here, this is definitely not my favorite Deja Black book by far. However, since this is actually her first book, I can immediately see why. She has grown leaps and bounds since writing this particular story and I thoroughly enjoy reading what she writes. I loved They Called Him Nightmare, Broken Pieces and Stumbling in the Dark, they were great. I'd definitely recommend her, especially if you like paranormal.
Unfortunately, quite a few things didn’t work for me. The biggest being that there was just way too much description/inner dialogue compared to actual dialogue and conversation. I love to see what characters are thinking but I need to see them actually speaking, too. It dragged a bit because it just didn’t flow right. Dan would be asked a question and I’d have to read through multiple paragraphs of him describing everything going on in his head before I actually got his answer. It took much too long for a conversation to take place.
Secondly, it was too formal throughout most of the story. There was a major lack of contractions and it made me feel like the story should be set in the early 1900’s or something. It just didn’t feel realistic to me and I wanted to be able to connect to the characters.
Last but not least, I know it’s horrible to say but I just didn’t care for Aiden. I thought he was too aloof, too standoffish and rude. I was pretty much appalled by his bedside manner at the beginning of the book and I’m sorry, there is no excuse for treating Dan, the victim of abuse and assault, the way he did. I couldn’t completely get over that and found his explanations for his behavior a bit lacking.
Overall, Broken Bones was okay. It had great potential and I love Deja Black, it just didn’t do it for me like so many of her other stories.
*** Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie for my reading pleasure, a review wasn't a requirement. ***
No comments:
Post a Comment