Scan barcode
A review by edshara
The Restorer by Amanda Stevens
4.0
*Reread Oct. 2017*
So if I was going to rate this after my reread, I would give this book 3 stars. I'm not going to change my initial rating because, at the time, that is what I thought this book deserved. Besides, I'm the one who changed, not the book.
Things I noticed this time around:
-The writing style isn't my favorite. It's a bit cheesy, over the top and too wordy. The author did a lot of telling, instead of showing.
-Amelia is close to 30 and yet she's still treated like a child and on top of that she allows it. Their is a situation with her mother, that I felt she had every right to be upset about. Yet when she began to express it, she was reprimanded and she just let it go. Umm no, she's an adult, and you can't always protect her. At the same time I think Amelia is more than a little naive and maybe that plays into it as well.
She also has this ability, that she's had for years, and she still doesn't really know all that much about it. The one person she can talk to about it seems so caught up in his own drama that he only teaches her when their is a problem and he always seems irritated or angry. It's like he's mad Amelia would ask questions about it. You know, because seeing ghosts is so normal!
-I had the same problem with the middle of the book this time around too. I think the book starts off well enough and the ending while, slightly predictable, was still pretty good. But in the middle I just found that, at times, I was bored and just wanted the end to happen already.
-I like John, however for all his layers he still felt one dimensional. I guess that goes with us being told how he was instead of really being able to see/feel it. As far as the tragedy that surrounds him I think The reasoning behind John's guilt was a little over the top. It was just too many pieces. He marries a woman who he knows, is an expert in pushing his buttons, that leads them to have a verbally explosive argument in front of their child and friend(maybe, I can't remember if friend was actually there). Only to, get so angry, you make small, (seemingly) uncharacteristic mistakes leading up to the event. I don't know, it just didn't seem to fit his character in my opinion. (Lol sorry if that's vague, trying not to spoil it). Now he lives with all this guilt. I didn't really like/buy that part of the story. It felt like it was an unsuccessful attempt to pull the heart strings.
-The prequel was totally unnecessary and didn't really tell us any more than what the first book tells you. I wouldn't bother with it.
I did like the fact that Amelia wasn't supposed to have any interactions with ghosts. That's a different little twist from most stories where characters can talk and interact with ghosts. While I did find more flaws this time around I'm still interested to see how things go with Amelia and John and if Amelia finds out more about what she can do. Fingers crossed the series gets better. On to Book 2.
So if I was going to rate this after my reread, I would give this book 3 stars. I'm not going to change my initial rating because, at the time, that is what I thought this book deserved. Besides, I'm the one who changed, not the book.
Things I noticed this time around:
-The writing style isn't my favorite. It's a bit cheesy, over the top and too wordy. The author did a lot of telling, instead of showing.
-Amelia is close to 30 and yet she's still treated like a child and on top of that she allows it. Their is a situation with her mother, that I felt she had every right to be upset about. Yet when she began to express it, she was reprimanded and she just let it go. Umm no, she's an adult, and you can't always protect her. At the same time I think Amelia is more than a little naive and maybe that plays into it as well.
She also has this ability, that she's had for years, and she still doesn't really know all that much about it. The one person she can talk to about it seems so caught up in his own drama that he only teaches her when their is a problem and he always seems irritated or angry. It's like he's mad Amelia would ask questions about it. You know, because seeing ghosts is so normal!
-I had the same problem with the middle of the book this time around too. I think the book starts off well enough and the ending while, slightly predictable, was still pretty good. But in the middle I just found that, at times, I was bored and just wanted the end to happen already.
-I like John, however for all his layers he still felt one dimensional. I guess that goes with us being told how he was instead of really being able to see/feel it. As far as the tragedy that surrounds him I think The reasoning behind John's guilt was a little over the top. It was just too many pieces. He marries a woman who he knows, is an expert in pushing his buttons, that leads them to have a verbally explosive argument in front of their child and friend(maybe, I can't remember if friend was actually there). Only to, get so angry, you make small, (seemingly) uncharacteristic mistakes leading up to the event. I don't know, it just didn't seem to fit his character in my opinion. (Lol sorry if that's vague, trying not to spoil it). Now he lives with all this guilt. I didn't really like/buy that part of the story. It felt like it was an unsuccessful attempt to pull the heart strings.
-The prequel was totally unnecessary and didn't really tell us any more than what the first book tells you. I wouldn't bother with it.
I did like the fact that Amelia wasn't supposed to have any interactions with ghosts. That's a different little twist from most stories where characters can talk and interact with ghosts. While I did find more flaws this time around I'm still interested to see how things go with Amelia and John and if Amelia finds out more about what she can do. Fingers crossed the series gets better. On to Book 2.