Bloggin' 'bout Books: Despite Newbie Mistakes, Debut Novelist Shows Potential

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Despite Newbie Mistakes, Debut Novelist Shows Potential

5:11 AM

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

It's easy to become invisible in a city of 600,000 people. Olivia Tate should know. The 20-year-old floats through the streets of Seattle, so wrapped in grief and sorrow that she

feels hollow, empty, like a ghost drifting silently among the living. When her burden grows too heavy, she reaches for a bottle of Valium, hoping to dull the pain. Forever. She's shocked when she wakes up in a hospital, even more so when she meets her rescuer, a quiet 22-year-old named Jude West. Not only does Jude save Olivia's life, but he sticks around for weeks afterward, always making sure she has what she needs.

His presence makes all the difference for Olivia. Jude's friendship helps her heal, gives her hope. He's so good to her, makes her so happy, that she ignores all his weird little quirks—like how he never invites her over to his apartment or talks about his family or the fact that he has no real job, but always has plenty of money. It's only when Olivia begins to

remember disturbing details about the night of her suicide attempt that she realizes just how much Jude's been keeping from her. Her suspicions seem crazy, unbelievable, but what if they're true? Does she really know Jude? Does she really want to? If he is what she thinks he is, what does that mean for their growing relationship, the one that's rapidly turning into something that's much, much more than just friendship? Will the secret Jude keeps tear them apart forever?

It's difficult to describe Emerald City, a debut novel by Alicia K. Leppert, because, really, it has no plot. The main characters lack concrete story goals, which means the tale has no driving force behind it, no direction. It rambles here, there and everywhere, losing oomph with every purposeless turn. This is a newbie mistake, one I see often in first novels. Still, it makes a huge impact on the reader's enjoyment of a story, especially since the novel also suffers from lifeless prose, flat characters and some pretty big leaps in logic. My biggest issue (besides the no-plot thing) is with Olivia. I'm not sure I've ever met a more pitiful heroine. She's sympathetic, at least at first. But her wallowing gets old pretty darn quick, especially when it becomes apparent that that's all she ever does. Olivia's so self-centered that only once in the entire novel does she do something for anyone but herself—and that's to leave a paltry (35 cents!) tip for a street musician. Olivia's entire aim in the story is to make herself happier by focusing on, you guessed it, herself. This selfishness made me lose any sympathy or respect I had for her, which also stood in the way of my enjoyment of Emerald City.

Given all my complaints, you might think I detested every word of the story. Not so. The book's premise, while not all that original, has plenty of potential. As do the characters. In fact, most of what's wrong with Emerald City could have—and should have—been fixed through a session or two with a good, tenacious editor. Leppert has a lot to learn, for sure, but I did catch enough glimpses of capable writing throughout her debut to convince me that she will learn and she will improve with each book she writes. Maybe her next novel will do more for me than this one did. Let's hope.

(Readalikes: Reminded me a lot [too much] of the movie City of Angels, also of the book No Angel by Theresa Sneed and a little of Twilight by Stephenie Meyer)

Grade: C-

If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG for scenes of peril and sexual innuendo

To the FTC, with love: I received an ARC of Emerald City from its generous author and her publisher, Cedar Fort. Thank you!

1 comment:

Jenny29 March, 2012 13:16
Well, once again I'm glad there's reviews like this. This one sounded promising but the things you didn't like would drive me CRAZY! Now I don't have to risk it.
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Books Read in 2024 (asterisks denote favorites)

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8. God Spare the Girls by Kelsey McKinney [audio] (Jan)
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10. The Last One by Will Dean (Jan)
11. Last Word to the Wise by Ann Claire (Jan)
12. My Plain Jane by Brodi Ashton, Cynthia Hand, and Jodi Meadows* [audio] (Jan)
13. Hemlock Island by Kelley Armstrong (Jan)
14. Daughter of Mine by Megan Miranda* (Jan)
15. The Nature of Disappearing by Kimi Cunningham Grant (Jan)
16. Myrtle, Means, and Opportunity by Elizabeth C. Bunce* (Jan)
17. Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson* (Jan)
18. More Than a Body by Lindsay and Lexie Kite (Feb)
19. All That Is Mine I Carry With Me by William Landay (Feb)
20. Slayed on the Slopes by Kate Dyer-Seeley (Feb)
21. My Imaginary Mary by Brodi Ashton, Cynthia Hand, and Jodi Meadows* [audio] (Feb)
22. Kill Her Twice by Stacey Lee (Feb)
23. Artifice by Sharon Cameron* (Feb)
24. Something About Sophie by Mary Kay McComas (Feb)
25. Ill-Fated Fortune by Jennifer J. Chow (Feb)
26. My Lady Jane by Brodi Ashton, Cynthia Hand, and Jodi Meadows* [audio] (Feb)
27. Buffalo Flats by Martine Leavitt (Feb)
28. Midnight is the Darkest Hour by Ashley Winstead (Feb)
29. Murder on Millionaires' Row by Erin Lindsey (Feb)
30. Meet Me in the Margins by Melissa Ferguson (Mar)
31. End of Story by A.J. Finn (Mar)
32. None of This is True by Lisa Jewell (Mar)
33. My Contrary Mary by Brodi Ashton, Cynthia Hand, and Jodi Meadows* [audio] (Mar)
34. Where There's Smoke by E.B. Vickers (Mar)
35. Disturbing the Dead by Kelley Armstrong* (Mar)
36. The Kind to Kill by Tessa Wegert (Mar)
37. Lying in the Deep by Diana Urban (Apr)
38. Agony Hill by Sarah Stewart Taylor (Apr)
39. Swimming in a Sea of Stars by Julie Wright (Apr)
40. The Girl Who Wasn't There by Penny Joelson (Apr)
41. The Tobacco Wives by Adele Myers [audio] (Apr)
42. The Secret of Rainy Days by Leslie Hooton (Apr)
43. How to Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin (Apr)
44. The Nights the Lights Went Out by Karen White (Apr)
45. Flippin' Skaters by Teresa Richards (Apr)
46. Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch [audio] (Apr)
47. The Expectant Detectives by Kat Ailes* (Apr)
48. Dust by Dusti Bowling* (Apr)

49. Blood Sisters by Vanessa Lillie (Apr)

50. One Perfect Couple by Ruth Ware (Apr)

51. Grave Reservations by Cherie Priest (Apr)

52. The Hunter by Tana French (May)

53. Murder at Rough Point by Alyssa Maxwell (May)

54. The Hard Parts by Oksana Masters [audio] (May)

55. Watch It Burn by Kristen Bird (May)

56. Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson* (May)

57. No Matter What by K.M. Frost (May)

58. Death in the Details by Katie Tietjen (May)

59. The Silent Sister by Diane Chamberlain [audio] (May)

60. Candy Cane Crime by Amanda Flower [novella] (May)

61. An Improbable Season by Rosalyn Eves (May)

62. Fire and Bones by Kathy Reichs* (May)

63. Borrow My Heart by Kasie West (May)

64. Beauty Reborn by Elizabeth Lowham (May)

65. Thieves' Gambit by Kayvion Lewis (May)

66. The Weight of Everything by Marcia Argueta Mickelson (May)

67. Make the Fireflies Dance by Rachel Bateman (May)

68. The Lost Girls of Willow Brook by Ellen Marie Wiseman [audio] (May)

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70. Where They Lie by Claire Coughlan (Jun)

71. The Shift: 7 Powerful Mindset Changes for Lasting Weight Loss by Gary Foster [audio] (Jun)

72. The Underground Library by Jennifer Ryan (Jun)

73. A Deadly Endeavor by Jenny Adams (Jun)

74. The Mystery of Locked Rooms by Lindsay Currie (Jun)

75. Aggie Morton, Mystery Queen, and the Body Under the Piano by Marthe Jocelyn [audio] (Jun)

76. The Watchers by A.M. Shine (Jun)

77. Deep Water by Jamie Sumner (Jun)

78. First Victim by Debbie Babitt (Jun)

79. One Big Open Sky by Lesa Cline-Ransome* (Jun)

80. Running Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix [audio] (Jun)

81. When the Day Comes by Gabrielle Meyer (Jun)

82. Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth (Jun)

83. The Great Trouble: A Story of London, the Blue Death, and a Boy Called Eel by Deborah Hopkinson [audio] (Jun)

84. 49 Miles Alone by Natalie D. Richards (Jun)

85. Light and Air by Mindy Nichols Wendell (Jun)

86. Trouble Island by Sharon Short (Jun)

87. Trouble at the Tangerine by Gillian McDunn (Jun)

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89. Falling Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix (Jun)

90. Apple Cider Slaying by Julie Anne Lindsey (Jun)

91. First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly* (Jun)

92. Homecoming by Kate Morton* (Jul)

93. The Good Neighbor by Maxwell King* [audio] (Jul)

94. Middle of the Night by Riley Sager* (Jul)

95. The Secret Library by Kekla Magoon (Jul)

96. The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave (Jul)

97. Operation: Happy by Jenni L. Walsh* (Jul)

98. Shutter by Ramona Emerson (Jul)

99. Anywhere You Run by Wanda M. Morris (Jul)

100. The Luminous Life of Lucy Landry by Anna Rose Johnson (Jul)

101. The Monsters We Make by Kali White (Jul)

102. The Improbable Tales of Baskerville Hall by Ali Standish (Jul)

103. Mother-Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon [audio] (Jul)

104. Good Bad Girl by Alice Feeney* (Jul)

105. A Patchwork of Clues by Sally Goldenbaum (Jul)

106. Popcorn by Rob Harrell* (Jul)

107. Library Girl by Polly Horvath (Jul)

108. Such a Lovely Family by Aggie Blum Thompson (Jul)

109. Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty (Aug)

110. The Outlaw Noble Salt by Amy Harmon (Aug)

111. Basket Case by Nancy Haddock (Aug)

112. A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett* (Aug)

113. Front Country by Sara St. Antoine [audio] (Aug)

114. Stowaway by John David Anderson (Aug)

115. Consigned to Death by Jane K. Cleland (Aug)

116. We Solve Murders by Richard Osman* (Aug)

117. Louder Than Hunger by John Schu (Aug)

118. Wrong Alibi by Christina Dodd (Aug)

119. Peanut Butter Panic by Amanda Flower (Aug)

120. Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl (Aug)

121. Flight 171 by Amy Christine Parker (Aug)

122. Criminally Cocoa by Amanda Flower [novella] (Aug)

123. The Kaya Girl by Mamle Wolo (Aug)

124. The Last Word by Gerri Lewis (Aug)

125. The Last Kids On Earth by Max Brallier* (Aug)

126. Cruzita and the Mariacheros by Ashley Granillo (Aug)

127. It Could Be Anyone by Jaime Lynn Hendricks (Aug)

128. Return to Wyldcliffe Heights by Carol Goodman (Aug)

129. A Winter Grave by Peter May (Aug)

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146. Look in the Mirror by Catherine Steadman (Sep)

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149. All Her Little Secrets by Wanda M. Morris [audio] (Sep)

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156. The Boy Who Cried Bear by Kelley Armstrong* (Oct)

157. Silence for the Dead by Simone St. James* (Oct)

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194. The Haunting of Moscow House by Olesya Salnikova Gilmore (Nov)

195. The Midnight Hour by Eve Chase (Nov)

196. Uprising by Jennifer A. Nielsen (Nov)

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198. Everyone on This Train Is a Suspect by Benjamin Stevenson* (Nov)

199. Nothing More to Tell by Karen McManus [audio] (Nov)

200. Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret by Benjamin Stevenson* (Nov)

201. The Girl Who Fought Back: Vladka Meed and the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising by Joshua M. Greene (Nov)

202. Booked for Murder by P.J. Nelson (Nov)

203. They Saved the Stallions by Deborah Hopkinson (Nov)

204. Cece Rios and the Queen of Brujas by Kaela Rivera (Nov)

205. The Burning of Rosemont Abbey by Naomi Stephens* (Dec)

206. The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth* [audio] (Dec)

207. How to Stop Freaking Out: The Ultimate Guide to Keeping Cool When Life Feels Chaotic by Carla Naumburg (Dec)

208. Quantum Interstellar Sports League by J. Scott Savage (Dec)

209. A Window into the Ocean Twilight: Twenty-Four Days of Science at Sea by Michelle Cusolito (Dec)

210. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens* [audio] (Dec)

211. Under the Surface by Diana Urban (Dec)

212. Why We Need Vaccines: How Humans Beat Infectious Diseases by Rowena Rae (Dec)

213. The Last Room on the Left by Leah Konen (Dec)

214. The Act of Disappearing by Nathan Gower (Dec)

215. Let It Glow by Marissa Meyer (Dec)

216. The Haunting of Maddy Clare by Simone St. James [audio] (Dec)

217. The Longest Shot: How Larry Kwong Changed the Face of Hockey by Chad Soon (Dec)

218. Murder on the Christmas Express by Alexandra Benedict (Dec)

219. Spooky Lakes: 25 Strange and Mysterious Lakes that Dot Our Planet by Geo Rutherford (Dec)

220. Scar Dakota by Jason F. Wright (Dec)

221. The Lawnmonsters by Shannon Cooley (Dec)

222. Taffy Nackman's Guide on How to be a Star by Gaylene Wilson (Dec)

223. The Lonely Hearts Book Club by Lucy Gilmore [audio] (Dec)

224. Monster Tree by Sarah Allen (Dec)

225. The Buried Road by Katie Tallo (Dec)

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