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hazelalaska 's review for:
The Golden Braid
by Melanie Dickerson
3.5
I made the mistake of not checking the genre before I bought this, since I am not religious and don't read Christian fiction. I also did not realize that it was part of a series, because I again didn't check. This was one of the first books I bought based on Goodreads deals, so it isn't a big deal because it was cheap. Now I do always check the genre before I buy, but apparently when I bought this book I didn't.
I did enjoy this book toward the end, but the beginning didn't hold my attention, and if I had to rate it then it would have been 2 stars. It did get better as the story moved along, but the pacing sort of annoyed me too. Some parts seemed to move really fast, and then others dragged on forever. At some points I felt like the story was winding down, but then it was not even 2/3 of the way through the book, and this happened several times, when the plot loops were starting to close and a new one hadn't be opened yet.
I also think that the author tells us too much and doesn't show us. There needs to be more detail, not just saying he did this or she felt this. This could also relate to the pacing issue.
I did like the romance between Gerek and Rapunzel. It reminded me a lot of the book and it's tv show adaptation Still Star-Crossed, and the relationship between the main characters Rosaline and Benvolio.
Some of the Christian plot points annoyed me and I felt they were unnecessary. I originally thought that it was not that religious and preachy for this genre, but then there was a certain plot point close to the 75% mark that I did not like at all. If I was the target audience for this book I probably would, but because I am not it just seemed really unnecessary to me, and I think that it could have been done differently.
I realized that some of the other books in this series are on my want to read list, and while reading this book I considered whether or not I would read them because this genre is not for me, but I think I have decided to give them a try, even though I am reading the series out of order. I did like the romance in this book, although it didn't make me fangirl like crazy, so hopefully I will like some of the other books.
SPOILER!
The point I am referring to is when Gerek prays to God and truly says how foolish he has been that God tells him to go in this direction to find Rapunzel. I do not like the divine intervention plot point, because I think that Gerek could have found the trail himself that led to Rapunzel. People who are religious would not have a problem with this, and I am trying not to judge too harshly because I am not the audience that this book is intended for, but I still think that it could have been done differently. It could even have been implied and not directly stated and I would have had less of a problem with it.
I made the mistake of not checking the genre before I bought this, since I am not religious and don't read Christian fiction. I also did not realize that it was part of a series, because I again didn't check. This was one of the first books I bought based on Goodreads deals, so it isn't a big deal because it was cheap. Now I do always check the genre before I buy, but apparently when I bought this book I didn't.
I did enjoy this book toward the end, but the beginning didn't hold my attention, and if I had to rate it then it would have been 2 stars. It did get better as the story moved along, but the pacing sort of annoyed me too. Some parts seemed to move really fast, and then others dragged on forever. At some points I felt like the story was winding down, but then it was not even 2/3 of the way through the book, and this happened several times, when the plot loops were starting to close and a new one hadn't be opened yet.
I also think that the author tells us too much and doesn't show us. There needs to be more detail, not just saying he did this or she felt this. This could also relate to the pacing issue.
I did like the romance between Gerek and Rapunzel. It reminded me a lot of the book and it's tv show adaptation Still Star-Crossed, and the relationship between the main characters Rosaline and Benvolio.
Some of the Christian plot points annoyed me and I felt they were unnecessary. I originally thought that it was not that religious and preachy for this genre, but then there was a certain plot point close to the 75% mark that I did not like at all. If I was the target audience for this book I probably would, but because I am not it just seemed really unnecessary to me, and I think that it could have been done differently.
I realized that some of the other books in this series are on my want to read list, and while reading this book I considered whether or not I would read them because this genre is not for me, but I think I have decided to give them a try, even though I am reading the series out of order. I did like the romance in this book, although it didn't make me fangirl like crazy, so hopefully I will like some of the other books.
SPOILER!
The point I am referring to is when Gerek prays to God and truly says how foolish he has been that God tells him to go in this direction to find Rapunzel. I do not like the divine intervention plot point, because I think that Gerek could have found the trail himself that led to Rapunzel. People who are religious would not have a problem with this, and I am trying not to judge too harshly because I am not the audience that this book is intended for, but I still think that it could have been done differently. It could even have been implied and not directly stated and I would have had less of a problem with it.