Customer Reviews

Roadrunner: A Novel

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

After reading Nappily Ever After, Trisha Thomas immediately became one of my favorite authors. I anxiously awaited her next novel and I was not disappointed.

Roadrunner is about a professional baseball player, Dell who for a series of reasons, no longer plays ball. His downward spiral not only affects his wife Leah and their children but also ends in his disappearance. Enter Angel, a police officer who tries to get closer to Leah while she is dealing with this latest tragedy. But where is Dell and is he coming back?

Everything about this novel was on point. The storyline was very believable and well executed. I could relate to the emotions and actions of all the characters. I read this novel in one sitting; a 3 hour plane trip. I would recommend this book to all but especially fans of Trisha Thomas. Again I anxiously await the next one.

Reviewed by Nicole
APOOO BookClub

While Nappily Ever After truly displayed Trisha Thomas' promise as a writer, I eagerly anticipated Roadrunner. It was my hope that in Roadrunner that Thomas would go to the next level in her craft. After finishing Roadrunner, I can honestly tell you that not only has Thomas accomplished that, but she has truly stepped up to the levels of Terry, Eric Jerome, and E.Lynn.

Roadrunner takes us into the lives of Leah and Dell "Roadrunner" Flecther. Once a popular baseball athlete, an injury ends Dell's career, leaving him with confusion regarding his direction in life. He also experiences a growing addiction to alcohol and painkillers. His wife, Leah is a successful screenwriter and busy raising their young son Josh and their teenage daughter Kayla. In the middle of the recent changes, Dell and Leah struggle to keep their marriage together, however as the tension mounts and the fighting grows, Dell leaves and eventually disappears after Leah tells him to "get help or get out".

Shortly after Dell's disappearance, Officer Angel Lopez enters in the lives of Leah and the children, becoming their "protector" and male figure in Dell's abscene. As Angel makes his way into the family, he eventually grows fond of Leah and falls in love with her.

What keys does Angel hold in Dell's whereabouts? What really happened to Dell on the night he disappeared? Will he ever return to Leah and the children? To find out these answers you will have to read this excellent tale from Ms. Thomas.

The story just moved TOO SLOW( and boring) for me. I usually read books fast, but after 2 weeks of sruggling through this book I just went ahead and returned it to the library.

I cannot say that this book was good. The storyline or rather the intent of the storyline was good, but the writing of it wasn't good. It just simply moved along sooo slow, the narration at times was too long. I agree with the reader on 12.1.02. I also read Trisha Thomas previous book, Nappily Ever After and I do recall feeling fatigued trying to get through that book. I hope her writing and developement of the storyline improves with her 3rd book.

I must admit that I love fun filled drama when it comes to book. It usually takes me no more than two days to finish a book but this one took me more than two weeks. This book failed to grab me from the start. I found myself skipping paragraphs just so I can finish the book. I must admit I cannot recomend this as a must read. If you come across it for very cheap then you can give it a whirl or if you don't, don't waste your time.

I actually enjoyed this novel more than "Nappily Ever After"...Ms. Thomas truly has an artistic writing style, vivid and poetic, but also down-home when needed. I was captivated by the attentive detail to the main characters' speech and character development (Dell, Leah, Angel, and Josh...Elicia, Kayla, and Squire were supporting characters). The book held my attention throughout...I did not care for nor expect the ending, which was a little rushed and too smoothed-over considering the exceptional development that lead us there; however, overall "Roadrunner" was a great story!

Trisha Thomas' first novel, "Nappily Ever After", started off slow and got better along the way. Roadrunner, her second novel, was just the opposite.

This novel started off juicy. Angel Lopez, one of LAPD's "finest", comes into the life of Leah and Dell, "The Roadrunner" Fletcher by responding to Mrs. Fletcher's call of domestic violence. Officer Lopez had always idiolized The Roadrunner, one of the best baseball players around before falling on hard times due to injuries. For whatever reason, Officer Lopez takes matters into his own hands with Dell and becomes increasingly obsessed with Leah.

As the novel progresses, one can sense that there were many other ways that this novel could have been extremly interesting. Other chain of events that would have had you on the edge of your seat. There were the two Fletcher children, the adoring young son Josh and his high school sister Kayla. Both seemingly had developing roles which died down towards the end. There were even Dell's personal issues that came to light. This was very intriguing but did not contribute to the excitement of the climax.

All in all, this was not a bad read. Great plot but there should have been more action and a more convincing conclusion.

Roadrunner is entertaining, tightly plotted and a fun read without being totally frivolous. In fact, a lot of the focus is on relationships and marriage and the problems inherent in both. You see a lot of this in novels today, but in this book the mystery elements of the plot and the realistic characters held my interest more than most "fast reads" do. In fact, I found it quite moving as well as entertaining, and thought about it for a long time after I had finished, which made it well worth the cover price. I hope to read more from Trisha Thomas.

This novel hits alot of life situation that one time another we all have to endure.The storyline are great,sectioning off family,and work.We all are roadrunner somewhere in life.Nice book!!Must read!

I read Ms. Thomas's first novel, and I was eager to read the second. I am torn on whether or not to say that I was disappointed. I will assume that you have some idea of what the story was about, from reading the reviews above. My problem was not with storyline, but with the depth. I still don't feel like I got to know Leah -- who she was, what motivated her. For example, when the author writes at the end of the story was Leah had been unhappy in her marriage for a while, I am surprised to read it. That wasn't clearly conveyed before. It was clear that her husband, Dell, had problems, but not that she or that he had been unhappy for years before the problems began. I was also able to quess where Dell had been after he "disappeared," long before it was clearly revealed, and I really, really wish that Ms. Thomas had concealed that from the reader a little more, so that it would have been more of a suprise. As it was, there was neither buildup nor shock when I learned where he had been.

Finally, I will say that I truly enjoyed the portrayal of Angel. Thomas does a good job of getting into his past, his thoughts, his motivations, his desires in a subtle, but intriquing way. I enjoyed the way she played up his moral, concerned-officer role slowly. He seems like he is just has a crush on Leah, and bit by bit it is clear that he is self-righteous, controlling, petty, and selfish, not just obsessed. He really did seem harmless at first, and the reader slowly comes to see that he isn't quite right, even though he doesn't see that himself. Ms. Thomas makes it clear that Angel finds his actions justified.

Overall, I enjoyed the book. I appreciate that it was not a completely frivolous read, raising some interesting, important questions about love and relationships and forgiveness. And betrayal. And I do recommend it, and I look forward to reading her third book. I'll be going to the bookstore today.