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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Didn't love it or hate it. I'm not a fan of the thriller genre in general because the story tends to get really corny really quick. This book was no exception, with quite a bit of eye rolling at some of the dialogue and action scenes. Although I was really intrigued at the idea of the plot, the execution could have been better. I think I would have loved this book if it had't been presented as a traditional thriller novel, and instead focused on the psychology of the situation. I'm sure there are people out there with similar beliefs as the men of Forty Acres, which is why the idea of a place like this existing is an intriguing and horrifying concept. I just wanted something deeper.
One thing that really bugged me was how minor the female characters are in this book. The men of Forty Acres are sadists in their treatment of white women, and borderline misogynists in their treatment of black women. The female characters serve little purpose. Juanita and the other wives are so minimally developed. It would have been nice to see more complexity to their facade of cluelessness. We get a bit with Juanita, but not nearly enough. Even Anna's character felt unimportant. I feel like her sole purpose was to force Martin to make a difficult choice. Except for that, if her character had been cut from the book, the story would be unchanged. We saw more of Alice in a few chapters than we saw of Anna in two-thirds of the book. And their names. Betty? Margaret? Anna? I kept wanting them to be black women from the 1930s rather than from modern times.
Overall, A+ for concept, C- for execution.
One thing that really bugged me was how minor the female characters are in this book. The men of Forty Acres are sadists in their treatment of white women, and borderline misogynists in their treatment of black women. The female characters serve little purpose. Juanita and the other wives are so minimally developed. It would have been nice to see more complexity to their facade of cluelessness. We get a bit with Juanita, but not nearly enough. Even Anna's character felt unimportant. I feel like her sole purpose was to force Martin to make a difficult choice. Except for that, if her character had been cut from the book, the story would be unchanged. We saw more of Alice in a few chapters than we saw of Anna in two-thirds of the book. And their names. Betty? Margaret? Anna? I kept wanting them to be black women from the 1930s rather than from modern times.
Overall, A+ for concept, C- for execution.
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
medium-paced
I don’t really know where to start, but once I reached the middle of the book I couldn’t put it down.
Money, power and influence were driving factors here in this thriller. The biggest theme in the novel was seeing the characters following their gut feelings.
Morals over everything or Just fall in line?
This story shows how a little power can alter the mind of others, no matter how you look at it.
But is Forty Acres enough? Was it really worth the trouble? The secrets? The lies?
This is a book to remember!
Money, power and influence were driving factors here in this thriller. The biggest theme in the novel was seeing the characters following their gut feelings.
Morals over everything or Just fall in line?
This story shows how a little power can alter the mind of others, no matter how you look at it.
But is Forty Acres enough? Was it really worth the trouble? The secrets? The lies?
This is a book to remember!
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
My biggest issue about this book unrelated to the plot was how it talked about women. Every sentence felt like it was written by a fratboy looking for shock value. Even before the book went into Forty Acres it talked about women in a vulgar way. It grated on my nerves.
The story was interesting. When is revenge no longer revenge but outright harm? I think not mentioning much about the logistics of how Forty Acres came to be made the story sound so unbelievable, yet it was still a thrilling scary read.
The ending was a little rushed as well, but I think the book as a whole was more good than bad.
The story was interesting. When is revenge no longer revenge but outright harm? I think not mentioning much about the logistics of how Forty Acres came to be made the story sound so unbelievable, yet it was still a thrilling scary read.
The ending was a little rushed as well, but I think the book as a whole was more good than bad.
Solid 4.5 stars!! This book… I simply was NOT ready. A word of advice, DO NOT read the synopsis of this book because it gives the entire book away!
Why this book is not being talked about, I have no idea. This book takes the phrase “the sins of the father shall be visited upon the sons” to a whole other level! This book is a thriller unlike any other thriller I've read before. It was fictional but thought-provoking as it relates to race and the have and have nots.
This book was really good and I could not put it down!
Why this book is not being talked about, I have no idea. This book takes the phrase “the sins of the father shall be visited upon the sons” to a whole other level! This book is a thriller unlike any other thriller I've read before. It was fictional but thought-provoking as it relates to race and the have and have nots.
This book was really good and I could not put it down!
I absolutely loved FORTY ACRES. The novel made me think a lot about race, power, money, and history. I could NOT put the book down to save my life! I found myself reading when I woke up, while brushing my teeth, during breakfast, as I walked to the bus stop, on the bus, walking to work, during my lunch break! I was even reading during worship time at my church's watch night service!!!! Dwayne Alexander Smith's writing kept me so intrigued. The plot is interesting, the subject matter is thought provoking, the characters are special. I hate to be premature with my assessments, but I will say that I foresee myself becoming a fan of Smith's writing. I can't wait to explore his other work.