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3.22 AVERAGE
3.22 AVERAGE
2.5 rounded up for the positive message. The writing style was a bit simplistic and was probably written at about a 6th grade reading level, but at least that makes the book accessible. Interesting premise though: a camera shows what is hidden behind appearances.
The story of this book was good, but a little confusing. I couldn’t tell if it was supposed to be real life or fiction. But the moral of the story that the truth will set yo7 free is something that all people can stand to hear.
Overall I definitely did enjoy this and I would recommend it.
Overall I definitely did enjoy this and I would recommend it.
Coming from Thomas Nelson- a Christian publisher, I expected that The Camera Never Lies would be much more faith based with a supernatural twist. I was rather surprised that God was- to the best of my recollection- not mentioned at all. Nor was faith really. If they were, they were so little of the focus that I failed to remember those instances anyway. I say this not as a negative, just a surprise to me. Though I DO personally enjoy stories with more Christian content, I know that that is not the case for everyone. As such, I think that this story on the importance of truth in marriage and in life can reach a broader audience than what your typical Christian fiction story might. It is a story we can all enjoy, and can feel assured that there will not be any inappropriate content as well.
In The Camera Never Lies, we meet Daniel... a marriage counselor whose own marriage and family seems to be falling apart. When his grandfather leaves him an old camera, he learns that 'the camera never lies'. When he takes the film to be developed, he realizes that things aren't as they should be. The camera is not capturing the faces that we put on and present to the world, but rather the truths behind the mask.
Sounds fascinating, doesn't it? I love a good story with a magical/supernatural aspect to it myself. I don't read them as often as I would like as I try to stick to clean reads, which can be a little harder to find in that genre. Aside from that, I am a hobby-ist photographer so just the camera aspect appealed to me in that regards as well. Is this style going to be for everyone? Maybe not. I know many who generally enjoy Christian fiction might not enjoy the magical aspect of the story... but personally, I really enjoyed it. My only real complaint is that it was quite short! I read it in less than a day... admittedly I am a speed reader anyway but this was quick even for me! I would have loved a longer story to dig even deeper into the lives of these characters or perhaps the mysterious camera shop owner. Still, it was a great quick read and one that I would certainly recommend.
**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All thoughts are 100% my own.
In The Camera Never Lies, we meet Daniel... a marriage counselor whose own marriage and family seems to be falling apart. When his grandfather leaves him an old camera, he learns that 'the camera never lies'. When he takes the film to be developed, he realizes that things aren't as they should be. The camera is not capturing the faces that we put on and present to the world, but rather the truths behind the mask.
Sounds fascinating, doesn't it? I love a good story with a magical/supernatural aspect to it myself. I don't read them as often as I would like as I try to stick to clean reads, which can be a little harder to find in that genre. Aside from that, I am a hobby-ist photographer so just the camera aspect appealed to me in that regards as well. Is this style going to be for everyone? Maybe not. I know many who generally enjoy Christian fiction might not enjoy the magical aspect of the story... but personally, I really enjoyed it. My only real complaint is that it was quite short! I read it in less than a day... admittedly I am a speed reader anyway but this was quick even for me! I would have loved a longer story to dig even deeper into the lives of these characters or perhaps the mysterious camera shop owner. Still, it was a great quick read and one that I would certainly recommend.
**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All thoughts are 100% my own.
The Camera Never Lies by David Rawlings is a thought-provoking Inspirational novel.
Daniel Whitely's inheritance from his beloved Gramps is a vintage camera and a photo album he has never seen. Daniel is touched by the accompanying letter but confused by the photos. Nevertheless, he is eager to try out the camera but he is very perplexed by the pictures he receives after they are developed. The images capture his life as it really is, not how Daniel perceives it. Growing more disturbed with each set of prints, Daniel clings to the secrets he has been keeping but at what cost?
Daniel is a successful marriage counselor and author of a bestselling book. But his marriage to wife Kelly is in serious trouble and their twelve year old daughter Milly is also struggling. Daniel is frustrated by Kelly's continued conviction that he is having an affair in spite of his firm denials. He and Milly have always been quite close but she refuses to discuss what is troubling her. Daniel is extremely overdue turning in his second book and he is under immense pressure from his publisher to turn in his manuscript. He is also very alarmed by what the pictures are revealing to him. But will Daniel be willing to do what is necessary to change what could be a bleak future?
Kelly is working as a pharmaceutical saleswoman for a wonder drug for children. Due to her increasing concerns about Milly and the drug she is selling, Kelly would love to quit her increasingly stressful job. The delay in Daniel turning in the book means they are counting on her income to maintain their current lifestyle. Kelly's dissatisfaction with her marriage is also weighing very heavily as her suspicions that Daniel is being unfaithful continue to grow. Daniel's secrecy over his photographs leads her to take drastic steps to try to understand what is causing him such anxiety.
Milly is becoming more and more withdrawn from her family but she refuses to tell what is wrong. She grows even more apprehensive after a celebration with her parents and her father's co-workers at their home. As the situation continues to worsen, Milly is becoming more and more desperate. Will Daniel and Kelly be able help their daughter before it is too late?
The Camera Never Lies is a captivating novel with a powerful message. Daniel and Kelly are interesting characters who are well fleshed and grappling with life altering decisions. The storyline is quite unique and well executed. David Rawlings brings this clever novel to an uplifting, satisfying conclusion. I greatly enjoyed and highly recommend this interesting novel.
Daniel Whitely's inheritance from his beloved Gramps is a vintage camera and a photo album he has never seen. Daniel is touched by the accompanying letter but confused by the photos. Nevertheless, he is eager to try out the camera but he is very perplexed by the pictures he receives after they are developed. The images capture his life as it really is, not how Daniel perceives it. Growing more disturbed with each set of prints, Daniel clings to the secrets he has been keeping but at what cost?
Daniel is a successful marriage counselor and author of a bestselling book. But his marriage to wife Kelly is in serious trouble and their twelve year old daughter Milly is also struggling. Daniel is frustrated by Kelly's continued conviction that he is having an affair in spite of his firm denials. He and Milly have always been quite close but she refuses to discuss what is troubling her. Daniel is extremely overdue turning in his second book and he is under immense pressure from his publisher to turn in his manuscript. He is also very alarmed by what the pictures are revealing to him. But will Daniel be willing to do what is necessary to change what could be a bleak future?
Kelly is working as a pharmaceutical saleswoman for a wonder drug for children. Due to her increasing concerns about Milly and the drug she is selling, Kelly would love to quit her increasingly stressful job. The delay in Daniel turning in the book means they are counting on her income to maintain their current lifestyle. Kelly's dissatisfaction with her marriage is also weighing very heavily as her suspicions that Daniel is being unfaithful continue to grow. Daniel's secrecy over his photographs leads her to take drastic steps to try to understand what is causing him such anxiety.
Milly is becoming more and more withdrawn from her family but she refuses to tell what is wrong. She grows even more apprehensive after a celebration with her parents and her father's co-workers at their home. As the situation continues to worsen, Milly is becoming more and more desperate. Will Daniel and Kelly be able help their daughter before it is too late?
The Camera Never Lies is a captivating novel with a powerful message. Daniel and Kelly are interesting characters who are well fleshed and grappling with life altering decisions. The storyline is quite unique and well executed. David Rawlings brings this clever novel to an uplifting, satisfying conclusion. I greatly enjoyed and highly recommend this interesting novel.
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I picked this up at a library book sale because the cover really caught my eye.
"The Camera Never Lies" follows one married couple who are currently facing the biggest challenges their marriage has ever seen. Daniel is a successful marriage counselor with a widely popular book and his wife, Kelly, is a successful pharmaceutical sales rep. But, they both have secrets about their careers. Following Daniel's grandfather's death, Daniel receives a special camera from the will. As Daniel starts to use the camera and develops the pictures, he begins seeing things that cannot be real, or maybe he is finally seeing what has been in front of him all along.
This was such a quick, heartwarming story that really exemplifies what matters in life. Daniel and Kelly both love one another, but they both are afraid to share things with one another, despite being married for several years. They have a teenaged daughter who also helps them to see what is really important.
I really liked the "magic" in this book. Obviously, there is something very special going on with the camera and the film, and I appreciated that it did not feel too outlandish. When Daniel gets the photos developed, those pictures could be real, because the camera is showing what is happening behind the scenes.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a story about a family rife with troubles, but who love one another unconditionally.
"The Camera Never Lies" follows one married couple who are currently facing the biggest challenges their marriage has ever seen. Daniel is a successful marriage counselor with a widely popular book and his wife, Kelly, is a successful pharmaceutical sales rep. But, they both have secrets about their careers. Following Daniel's grandfather's death, Daniel receives a special camera from the will. As Daniel starts to use the camera and develops the pictures, he begins seeing things that cannot be real, or maybe he is finally seeing what has been in front of him all along.
This was such a quick, heartwarming story that really exemplifies what matters in life. Daniel and Kelly both love one another, but they both are afraid to share things with one another, despite being married for several years. They have a teenaged daughter who also helps them to see what is really important.
I really liked the "magic" in this book. Obviously, there is something very special going on with the camera and the film, and I appreciated that it did not feel too outlandish. When Daniel gets the photos developed, those pictures could be real, because the camera is showing what is happening behind the scenes.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a story about a family rife with troubles, but who love one another unconditionally.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship
Easily my least favorite book I have read in years. It wants to be super moving and conceptual but it just pretentious and moronic. There is not a single likable or even really sympathetic character. Logic has no place in this world and several times there are weird jumps between plot points or moments when things suddenly escalate without warning. I guess it supposed to be like magical realism but that is undercut by character repeatedly saying how impossible this could be. I don't really know why I bothered to finish it except that it was like a train wreck I couldn't look away from.
This one is a tough one to review. The idea of it was cool and the underlying message was good but the execution in my opinion was poor.
I felt like I was reading the same thing over and over again. Not much happened and yet it managed to drag on for so long.
Daniel was a horrible character and so self absorbed I was really just hoping Kelly would leave him the whole time.
I honestly feel like I will have forgotten about this book in a week which is sad because like I said the underlying message was good and important but it wasnt done in a memorable way.
Thanks to netgalley for arc in exchange for honest review
I felt like I was reading the same thing over and over again. Not much happened and yet it managed to drag on for so long.
Daniel was a horrible character and so self absorbed I was really just hoping Kelly would leave him the whole time.
I honestly feel like I will have forgotten about this book in a week which is sad because like I said the underlying message was good and important but it wasnt done in a memorable way.
Thanks to netgalley for arc in exchange for honest review
This was a very interesting story with many life lessons and some magical elements thrown in.
The story revolves around Daniel, a marriage counselor who is struggling in his own marriage. He has just received a camera from his grandfather, who passed away, and quickly finds out that "the camera never lies".
There are great themes weaved throughout the story, the main one being honesty. Sometimes honesty is difficult but it is very important (as Daniel quickly discovers).
This book raised a lot of moral questions and scenarios that I caused me to consider for my own life (what would I do?) and I am still thinking about it after I've finished reading it. The story is very clean and the content is appropriate.
I highly recommend this story.
I received this book from the publisher/author to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
The story revolves around Daniel, a marriage counselor who is struggling in his own marriage. He has just received a camera from his grandfather, who passed away, and quickly finds out that "the camera never lies".
There are great themes weaved throughout the story, the main one being honesty. Sometimes honesty is difficult but it is very important (as Daniel quickly discovers).
This book raised a lot of moral questions and scenarios that I caused me to consider for my own life (what would I do?) and I am still thinking about it after I've finished reading it. The story is very clean and the content is appropriate.
I highly recommend this story.
I received this book from the publisher/author to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
After reading this book, I had only one thought. I need a camera like this ASAP. So this book kind of uses magic realism where you use a fantasy camera in real life to take a picture with amazing clarity. The camera captures the emotional state of the person and this is why I need it. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. This is that one good book you read to clear your mind. the plot and characters are well written and I found myself reading more and more. I recommend this book to people who need an easy read between their schedule.
The story of this book was good, but a little confusing. I couldn’t tell if it was supposed to be real life or fiction. But the moral of the story that the truth will set yo7 free is something that all people can stand to hear.
Overall I definitely did enjoy this and I would recommend it.
Overall I definitely did enjoy this and I would recommend it.