Book #15: Pictures of You
Pictures of You by TJ Alexian/tedwords.
(Book received free for review from the author.)
Rating: 4/liked (1-5/hated-loved)
There were a number of elements in Pictures of You shouldn't have worked for me, but they did and I ended up really enjoying the book.
It's told in first person: With rare exception, that never works for me.
The POV is a teenage girl: That alone would have sent me running in the other direction; lately I've read so many painfully bad books with a teenage girl POV.
It has a [big spoiler]paranormal element (except not really), and usually that would make me uninterested in a book that is otherwise set in the normal world.
Also, while reading the book, I realized it was something I never read: A book set in the modern, normal world. I can't recall ever reading a fiction book set in our world with just normal, average people in it. I suppose I probably did as a teen or kid, but as an adult? I can't think of one.
So, that's a long list of things that I wouldn't usually like, but TJ Alexian made it work. All the characters, from the POV girl to the more minor ones, were believable as real people, and I was interested in knowing more about them.
The story was a mystery (with lots of other elements as well), and while I don't usually read those, I enjoyed it here. At one point I was sure I knew the ending and I didn't like it, but it turns out I was wrong. [Major plot spoiler.]For a while I thought it was in fact a ghost responsible, and I didn't like that. I don't believe in ghosts (or anything there's not proof of), so to have it come up in what was otherwise our world annoyed me. I'm happy I was wrong! Not only am I happy to have been wrong, I enjoyed that I was fooled!
Ashley (the main character) and her family were trying to cope with the loss of Daniel, Ashley's brother. On top of that, videos of Daniel were getting posted to Youtube and emailed to her directly. Who would have such videos? Why would they send them to her anonymously? And leave cryptic little messages from "Daniel"?
I hadn't expected the ending at all, but looking back on it once I was finished, it fit.
Recommended!
(Book received free for review from the author.)
Rating: 4/liked (1-5/hated-loved)
There were a number of elements in Pictures of You shouldn't have worked for me, but they did and I ended up really enjoying the book.
It's told in first person: With rare exception, that never works for me.
The POV is a teenage girl: That alone would have sent me running in the other direction; lately I've read so many painfully bad books with a teenage girl POV.
It has a [big spoiler]paranormal element (except not really), and usually that would make me uninterested in a book that is otherwise set in the normal world.
Also, while reading the book, I realized it was something I never read: A book set in the modern, normal world. I can't recall ever reading a fiction book set in our world with just normal, average people in it. I suppose I probably did as a teen or kid, but as an adult? I can't think of one.
So, that's a long list of things that I wouldn't usually like, but TJ Alexian made it work. All the characters, from the POV girl to the more minor ones, were believable as real people, and I was interested in knowing more about them.
The story was a mystery (with lots of other elements as well), and while I don't usually read those, I enjoyed it here. At one point I was sure I knew the ending and I didn't like it, but it turns out I was wrong. [Major plot spoiler.]For a while I thought it was in fact a ghost responsible, and I didn't like that. I don't believe in ghosts (or anything there's not proof of), so to have it come up in what was otherwise our world annoyed me. I'm happy I was wrong! Not only am I happy to have been wrong, I enjoyed that I was fooled!
Ashley (the main character) and her family were trying to cope with the loss of Daniel, Ashley's brother. On top of that, videos of Daniel were getting posted to Youtube and emailed to her directly. Who would have such videos? Why would they send them to her anonymously? And leave cryptic little messages from "Daniel"?
I hadn't expected the ending at all, but looking back on it once I was finished, it fit.
Recommended!