5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Choppy with Bad Editing, April 15, 2009
This review is from: Wicked Weaves (Renaissance Faire Mysteries, No. 1) (Mass Market Paperback)
I really like these cute quick read mystery books, and this book had potential, but fell a little short of keeping my attention in a steady manner. Told in the first person, it was a little confusing in areas, and choppy. There were places where the characters' conversations really made no sense. One example of this is that the main character, a woman named Jessie, has a twin brother who constantly borrows money from her. In one "scene" she and two others are sitting in the Renaissance Village cafe and the brother comes in, already owing her $100, and asks her for another $20 for a date he has. Jessie becomes embarrassed and flat out denies him anymore funds. The brother gets irritated and Jessie's "love interest" spots him the $20 to shut him up. Afterward, Jessie and her beau leave the cafe and the beau proceeds to tell her how he understands and that her brother just needs to be more responsible and learn to stand on his own two feet. Did I mention Jessie and her brother are in their 30s? This completely contradicts the fact that the beau just loaned him money which he will probably never see again! There are several of these examples throughout the book which to some may seem minor, but leave me shaking my head.
Another issue I have with the book is there is a constant sexual tension or insinuation in almost every interaction that does not deal directly with the mystery storyline. Okay, she's hot for this guy, we get it. It really doesn't add to the plot, and they overtalk wanting to go back to his place; they have time to, they don't have time to, she wishes they had time to. Like too much swearing, gets old after awhile.
Lastly, there were some serious editing errors, which kind of jump off of the pages when you are reading. Some sentences I had to go back and read four or five times and I still don't think they were worded right, and some flat out don't make sense. There is the inconsistent switch between "Ms." and "Miz" (both used for Jessie) and a married character is referred to as both "Mrs." and "Ms." in different places. And editor should have caught this, and if this was an attempt to change things up, grammatically it was bad judgment because it looks like someone does not know proper grammer and the inconsistencies are annoying.
There are also quippy thoughts Jessie has that contain information that is simply incorrect. For example, in trying to be funny the authors wrote in a cute thought of Jessie's that "when the egg split" she got the brains and her twin brother got the looks. Fraternal twins do not come from the same egg so there is no such thing as identical fraternal twins where they would share or split anything. A factual reference that I would consider rather embarrassing as an author to not know. This may have been an instance where the authors assume you get the joke but it would have been more effective leaving out "when the egg split," but worded as it was, it was as if they just didn't know the biological aspect of fraternal twins. Again, a minor thing, but makes me question the authenticity of information presented. Even in fiction, an author needs to do his or her homework and stay true to the facts of these kinds of "minor" details, if for nothing else than to just not look ignorant. An editor should have caught that reference immediately.
All in all, it was a cute book and I will probably read the rest when they come out in this series. You just have to overlook the editing mistakes, somewhat contradictory actions of the characters, and not assume that any kind of historical or scientific reference, in any form, is accurate.
I always hold out hope for the books following the first one because there is room to expand and grow the characters. I would have expected more from authors who already had books out, but I haven't given up on this series.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Read! I Loved It!, September 21, 2008
This review is from: Wicked Weaves (Renaissance Faire Mysteries, No. 1) (Mass Market Paperback)
I am not sure how our writing due, Jim & Joyce Laverne, come up with the locals and interesting characters for all their wonderful books, but I am sure glad that they do. In this new book "Wicked Weaves," the entire story takes place in an amusement park called, "Renaissance Faire Village." What a place this is. All of the characters that work, and live there are in costume of the Medieval times. We have a King and Queen and all their noble servants in toe. We also have craftsmen of the era and shops along the way for tourists to shop in as if they were in that time. I found just this part of the storyalone extremely interesting before I even got to the mystery. I actually wanted to visit Renaissance Faire Village myself.
Our main character, Jessie Morton, worked at the Village every summer. Every year she would work with one of the craftsmen learning their trade. This year she was with, Mary, a woman who weaved Gullah basket. Besides leaving the weave Jessie helped Mary in her store.
Mary was a mysterious woman that no one really knew much about, and it wasn't long into the read before a dead body is discovered. Whose body? None other than Mary's husband whom she has not seen for years and years. Immediately suspicion is thrown on Mary as the killer and Jessie is also implicated. Certainly not something she wanted to experience. All clues seem to confirm that Mary is guilty, but Jessie knows this could not be so; the problem, how to prove it? And just what about her past is Mary trying so hard to keep hidden? Soon it begins to unravel as her brother and son show up in the story. Who knew Mary had a son? And why was he never in Mary's life before? Ah! the plot thickens to the delight of the reader...
To add a little spice to the story we are taken into the rollercoaster love life of Jessie and Chase, who also works at the Village. The authors did a good job merging the characters relationship with the mystery going on in the rest of the story. It ran quite smoothly and as I said, added just the right amount of seasoning to give the story warmth.
So, just who did kill Mary's husband? Don't expect to figure this one out early on in the read because you will be very disappointed in yourself. You just end up having too many questions and not enough answers to know until the very end. As always, Joyce and Jim have done it again with a top-notch mystery read that is laced with a tad of romance, exceptional, colorful characters and local, and a surprise ending. Just a great book from beginning to end, and one I am proud to recommend.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointed, August 8, 2009
This review is from: Wicked Weaves (Renaissance Faire Mysteries, No. 1) (Mass Market Paperback)
I like the characters and the setting. However, Jessie, who is working on her Phd dissertation, thought and acted more like a seventeen year old than a 20 something woman. I found her petty and self-centered at odd times and at other times lacking in sympathetic understanding. If her maturity matched her education level this would be a good series.
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