Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Book Review: In Roswell Re-Abucted


Once again, I need to read the fine print. That's on me. In Roswell, Re-abducted is a short story or a long chapter in a book that's being serialized; it is not a novel. While the author has some nice plot twists in this little chapbook, the story is in desperate need of an editor. Way too many simple grammatical errors and story-telling issues for such a small story. There were a half-dozen missing or extraneous quotation marks, a he became a she, and it was difficult at times to follow the story due to some abrupt scene changes.

The author has some good dialogue and turn of phrases. The scene setting was okay, but it needed to be beefed-up so readers who haven't been to Roswell could feel like they are there. The author brought up some the kooky places in the town, but stopped short of bringing us fully into the Roswell world and allowing us to accept the off-beat nature of the story. Cobbled together with the rest of the chap-books, I could probably get behind the twisty story with odd-ball characters and growing mystery about Cinnamon's mother.

But without stronger editorial guidance, this story is just another example of why the traditional publishing industry chuckles at self-published authors. This chapbook is average with strengths and weaknesses that cancel each other out. It is a 3. 

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