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A review by being_b
The Book of Peril by Melissa McShane
2.0
This book was a bit of a damp squib. I understand that as the second book in a nine book series, there are supposed to be dangling possibilities for future exploration, but so much was left unresolved (and not even addressed as being unresolved) that I start to question the integrity of the writing. In particular (massive spoilers for the ending ahead):
The villain came out of nowhere. 95% of the way in and we learn he's a random dude who was probably mad at the oracle because his wife died.. but he's dead now... so we don't really know.
Character reactions are odd: Obviously the villain's Mysterious Partner (because of course, Mysterious Partner) is going to be relevant later on, but nobody including Helena seems particularly worried that there is a Mysterious Partner with a vendetta against the bookstore. And $$$ to spend on expensive illusions.
Telling not showing: Everybody keeps going on about how they feel "a sense of urgency" but don't know why. At the end of the book, I still... don't know why. Nor did I feel that urgency myself.
Unconvincing romance: I just don't buy Malcolm's attraction to Helena, largely because it doesn't seem like he's spent enough time with her to know much about her. He's your typical Billionaire Navy Seal Alpha type hero (handsome, lots of cash, great suits, physically strong, takes charge in all situations), and he definitely acts protective of her. So I see why she's into him. I think we need some time in Malcolm's POV.
Also, in non-spoilery things:
Clunky romance dialogue: Malcolm and Helena flirt by exchanging movie quotes, which... don't feel organic to the story. Mostly because neither of them is seen reacting to the quote beyond "oh yeah, that's from x." The fun of movie quotes is that by quoting a movie, you're bringing up all the context and feeling of that movie (for example, if character A always quotes from noir thrillers, character B might feel a bit nervous about character A). Malcolm and Helena quote almost exclusively from old romantic comedies, yet it never seems to occur to Helena to wonder if this might, you know, mean something. Or that she might send him a message by her choices.
I think a large part of my problem is that Helena, as a character, is very young and vague. It's hard to get a sense of who she is or what she values. We know she will always Do The Right Thing, but we don't know where this sense of moral rectitude and duty comes from. She's pretty formless, and that's very frustrating.
Spoiler
The villain came out of nowhere. 95% of the way in and we learn he's a random dude who was probably mad at the oracle because his wife died.. but he's dead now... so we don't really know.
Character reactions are odd: Obviously the villain's Mysterious Partner (because of course, Mysterious Partner) is going to be relevant later on, but nobody including Helena seems particularly worried that there is a Mysterious Partner with a vendetta against the bookstore. And $$$ to spend on expensive illusions.
Telling not showing: Everybody keeps going on about how they feel "a sense of urgency" but don't know why. At the end of the book, I still... don't know why. Nor did I feel that urgency myself.
Unconvincing romance: I just don't buy Malcolm's attraction to Helena, largely because it doesn't seem like he's spent enough time with her to know much about her. He's your typical Billionaire Navy Seal Alpha type hero (handsome, lots of cash, great suits, physically strong, takes charge in all situations), and he definitely acts protective of her. So I see why she's into him. I think we need some time in Malcolm's POV.
Also, in non-spoilery things:
Clunky romance dialogue: Malcolm and Helena flirt by exchanging movie quotes, which... don't feel organic to the story. Mostly because neither of them is seen reacting to the quote beyond "oh yeah, that's from x." The fun of movie quotes is that by quoting a movie, you're bringing up all the context and feeling of that movie (for example, if character A always quotes from noir thrillers, character B might feel a bit nervous about character A). Malcolm and Helena quote almost exclusively from old romantic comedies, yet it never seems to occur to Helena to wonder if this might, you know, mean something. Or that she might send him a message by her choices.
I think a large part of my problem is that Helena, as a character, is very young and vague. It's hard to get a sense of who she is or what she values. We know she will always Do The Right Thing, but we don't know where this sense of moral rectitude and duty comes from. She's pretty formless, and that's very frustrating.