There’s a newbie author who’s been picking up some major steam lately in the publishing world. All his books so far have gotten a bunch of awards, some great reviews, and all that type of stuff that we all want but don’t get. Not to mention the number of sales!
Anyways, that author’s name is Spike Black and he’s the author of Don’t Look Inside, the book I’m reviewing today. He has five books right now released, and two of them at least have a few characteristics unlike any authors. I guess you’ll just have to read on to see what I mean 😉
(but really do look inside.)
WHAT I LIKED:
- Simplicity
This author’s writing has a very simple, understandable style to it. He lets you imagine the settings for yourself, which is a good idea as it normally frightens you worse. Not only that, but the characters are mostly up to you. You can decide what they look like. This, too, is a great trait in a book!
The story itself is pretty simple, and there’s a great twist at the end. You don’t meet the main protagonist until Chapter 4 or 5, which also makes it seem like the story isn’t about a ‘good guy’ -it’s about the evil book. He even gave the book it’s own title, which was…
- Cat’s Curiosity
Yep, that’s the book name. Cat’s Curiosity is a freaky, creepy little rhyming book. It’s really fascinating, honestly. Maybe it’s just because I haven’t read much possessed-book-type stuff, but it was really fun and scary. I know there’s lots of stories with possessed books (that’s just what I’ll call them) out there, so this might not really be your cup of tea in a book.
Nevertheless, this book made this book great. (Confusing, much? Good. Books about books are books all the same.)
- Beginning
I loved the beginning of this book, because it involves two characters who basically are pointless in the grand scheme of things. You don’t meet the protagonist until Chapter 4 or 5, like I said, and you don’t meet the really important people until even later.
I just thought it was cool that the book starts out with what seems to be a big deal, and then it becomes relatively pointless in the end. It’s like having two stories in one. Discount-Day, everybody!
WHAT I DISLIKED:
- Ending
Just as the beginning was really interesting and made perfect sense, and the middle was really interesting and made perfect sense… well, the end wasn’t.
By the time the book ended, I was confused. There were so many ghosts/confusions/crazies I was just lost. And that’s not it! Apparently,
*SPOILER*
Spike Black likes to kill off every single major character before the book ends. Like for real. Every single one.
*SPOILER ENDED*
- Setting
So at times, I was a bit confused about where stuff was happening, like place-wise. I knew there was a town in England, and that’s where most of the stuff goes down. And we go to places like the library and then for some reason back to the police station. And then we’re on a highway one time? I don’t know. There’s lots of stuff I still don’t understand about the book. That’s not always a bad thing, but I’m still gonna mark it down as a minus.
MY RATING: 8.5/10
This book was interesting, captivating, and had very unique writing, in a good way. There’s lots to love about Spike Black’s writing, and I’ll be reading his book Leave This Place next!
David Kummer 