Afraid of the Dark [Mass Market Paperback]

Donna Anders (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 30, 2004

As a single mother struggling to get by in a tough neighbourhood, policewoman Jessie Cline knows she can't protect her son from the streets forever. For his sake, she takes a job as assistant police chief in a small island town off the coast of Washington state, wheree she lived as a child.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Ann Rule

Incredibly scary! Lock the doors before you start reading!

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Pocket (November 30, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743427319
• ISBN-13: 978-0743427319
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,119,821 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Little Suspense or Drama, March 21, 2005

By 

A. M. Stepnick "wyomingliving" (Pittsburgh, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Afraid of the Dark (Mass Market Paperback)

I normally love reading Donna Anders books. However, I am 3/4 of the way through Afraid of the Dark, and I am not really enjoying it. Most of what I read just repeats itself.

How convenient that the widowed, good-looking police chief, Hank, is always there helping Jessie, the new woman to the island and the assistant police chief. Even though her ancestors are connected to the island and she interited the huge home on the island near the water, she's being portrayed as a very weak woman who's always paranoid about something or other.

I can't imagine that she was a great cop in San Francisco, where she lived before moving to the island. For safety reasons and because a job was open is the only reason she moved. She's acting more scared on a small island than she did in San Francisco (from the little we read at the beginning of the book). Her young son has more guts and courage than his own mother!!

Little chemistry between Jessie & Hank, so no great romance is written in either. Previous reviews suggest that you don't read this in the dark. I don't see way, this is no where near scary or suspenseful at all.

I'm sorry to say that I don't find this book a good read. Just a little more interesting at the point I'm at now, but I can't see this book not "drowning in boredom" by the end.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars good story line; dreadful editing, July 4, 2005

By 

B. Jones "civil war writer" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Afraid of the Dark (Mass Market Paperback)

Painfully poor editing detracted from what should have been a four star read. example: "a grizzly sight." which should be "a grisly sight." No commas, ongoing sentences, poor punctuation, and in general, sloppy editing. Incorrect context in main descriptions, not in dialogue where it would be possible. Use of "Julia" as heroine rather than "Jessie." "Julia" was heroine of prior book. If Ms. Anders has an editor, get another one, immediately. If she does not have an editor, get one, immediately.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars poor excuse for a book, March 16, 2005

By 

lusty22 "avid reader" (VT United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Afraid of the Dark (Mass Market Paperback)

I can't believe first of all that anyone would think this book was scary, much less Anne Rule. Did she even read it? It was lame in every way. The plot was stupid and amateurish. The way it was written was absolutely horrid and I wonder how it even got published. Donna Anders writes like she is a child. She has the child in the book speaking like an adult and the adults all speak as though it is a b movie and they have nothing to work with. The plot, which is so silly I had to laugh, does not even make any logical sense in the end. I will not comment more on it in fear of giving it away in case someone actually makes the mistake of reading this sad excuse of a book as I did.