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A review by victoriajaynes
The Salty Dog by Debbie White
1.0
I guess the good thing about this book is that it's short. I sped through this one in a day. And the other good thing... Well, nothing really comes to mind.
Libby, the main character, was pretty one dimensional. She loved Luke, and Harley, her dog, and she worked at a cafe. That's all. She had no fears, or hopes. Her whole life revolved around the cafe and the dog. She tried to have an interesting romance with Jackson and Maxwell. But she was too busy being in love with her dead husband to make it interesting. I know I sound harsh, but I've seen shows where a woman struggles with losing her boyfriend/husband and finding new love. Nina in Offspring managed to make the same plot interesting. Libby was too flat to make it interesting.
The supporting cast were even worse. I had no idea who any of them were. I honestly though Blake was a girl for half the story, until Avery mentioned "her husband". I thought those two were just friends. I didn't get to know the other two who worked there either. I knew literally nothing about them apart from their ages. Not that Blake had a personality either. Avery was a good friend, and that was it. Oh, and don't forget Libby's best friend. She was randomly thrown in there for a chapter, just to give Libby advice.
The plot was incredibly rushed too. It was meant to be a love story, about Libby struggling with the loss of her husband, and how she could possibly move on. But the story with Luke was barely explained. We weren't shown was happened, we were just told. We skimmed over the story, but were expected to feel sad for Libby's loss. I need to know someone before I can miss them. I also need to know someone before I can want them to be together. And, unsurprisingly, there was no build up with the two other relationships. The men weren't introduced well, Libby flirted them because they were attractive, they nearly had sex, then she picked one. With both of them. I know, love triangles are never great. But usually I can at least pick a side. This time, I honestly couldn't care less who she chose.
Overall, I'm incredibly disappointed with this book. After so many 5 star reviews, I expected more.
Libby, the main character, was pretty one dimensional. She loved Luke, and Harley, her dog, and she worked at a cafe. That's all. She had no fears, or hopes. Her whole life revolved around the cafe and the dog. She tried to have an interesting romance with Jackson and Maxwell. But she was too busy being in love with her dead husband to make it interesting. I know I sound harsh, but I've seen shows where a woman struggles with losing her boyfriend/husband and finding new love. Nina in Offspring managed to make the same plot interesting. Libby was too flat to make it interesting.
The supporting cast were even worse. I had no idea who any of them were. I honestly though Blake was a girl for half the story, until Avery mentioned "her husband". I thought those two were just friends. I didn't get to know the other two who worked there either. I knew literally nothing about them apart from their ages. Not that Blake had a personality either. Avery was a good friend, and that was it. Oh, and don't forget Libby's best friend. She was randomly thrown in there for a chapter, just to give Libby advice.
The plot was incredibly rushed too. It was meant to be a love story, about Libby struggling with the loss of her husband, and how she could possibly move on. But the story with Luke was barely explained. We weren't shown was happened, we were just told. We skimmed over the story, but were expected to feel sad for Libby's loss. I need to know someone before I can miss them. I also need to know someone before I can want them to be together. And, unsurprisingly, there was no build up with the two other relationships. The men weren't introduced well, Libby flirted them because they were attractive, they nearly had sex, then she picked one. With both of them. I know, love triangles are never great. But usually I can at least pick a side. This time, I honestly couldn't care less who she chose.
Overall, I'm incredibly disappointed with this book. After so many 5 star reviews, I expected more.