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A review by novabird
The Edge of Normal by Carla Norton
2.0
Norton does not give us an edge of your seat thriller or a psychological portrayal of a victim become vigilante. What we get is mystery with little action. What we get is the suspense of a whodunnit where we already know who the perp is so we also know that its just a matter of time before he is caught.
Reeve at first is a sympathetic character but she has only slight flaws. There is nothing abnormal about her. Her flaws are shown as mild symptoms of PTSD; like hypervigilance (being acutely aware of other people and one's surroundings and cued into any prospective lurking danger)and the fact that she can't stand close physical proximity/ touching/ hugging. So she ends up coming out as a flat character. As does the perp, whose only goal is to masquerade as a good guy meanwhile being the super-intelligent villain underneath.
Norton presents Reeve as a vigilante but does not explain to us how she shifted from victim to vigilante. Norton actually uses Reeve in the end to forward the plot by giving her both an uncharacteristic trusting nature (which flies in the face of her overall character) and a level-headed-ness that allows her to
I give this a rating of 2.6 barely grazing the 50% margin. It is an okay read but not memorable. I did like the premise, but not a lot of the content. I would recommend, "Room," to those interested in the psychological after effects of this type of crime. I was left with a feeling of, "Dammit this could have been so much more." Yet its unrealistic storytelling was a real let down. I compare, The Edge of Normal, to a mediocre episode of CSI or Law and Order's Special Victims Unit. Then again I prefer books to TV - can you tell?
Reeve at first is a sympathetic character but she has only slight flaws. There is nothing abnormal about her. Her flaws are shown as mild symptoms of PTSD; like hypervigilance (being acutely aware of other people and one's surroundings and cued into any prospective lurking danger)and the fact that she can't stand close physical proximity/ touching/ hugging. So she ends up coming out as a flat character. As does the perp, whose only goal is to masquerade as a good guy meanwhile being the super-intelligent villain underneath.
Norton presents Reeve as a vigilante but does not explain to us how she shifted from victim to vigilante. Norton actually uses Reeve in the end to forward the plot by giving her both an uncharacteristic trusting nature (which flies in the face of her overall character) and a level-headed-ness that allows her to
Spoiler
inflict physical damage on the perp twice and not only escape captivity but a raging fire as wellI give this a rating of 2.6 barely grazing the 50% margin. It is an okay read but not memorable. I did like the premise, but not a lot of the content. I would recommend, "Room," to those interested in the psychological after effects of this type of crime. I was left with a feeling of, "Dammit this could have been so much more." Yet its unrealistic storytelling was a real let down. I compare, The Edge of Normal, to a mediocre episode of CSI or Law and Order's Special Victims Unit. Then again I prefer books to TV - can you tell?