CATHERINE CHANT - MOSTLY MYSTERY REVIEWS
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Catherine Chant is an award-winning writer from New England. In addition to serving as the FMAM webmaster and book review coordinator, Catherine is an editor at Chippewa Publishing LLC. She is also a PRO member of the Romance Writers of America (RWA) and an active member of the From the Heart Romance Writers (FTHRW) chapter and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). She is currently working on a young adult time travel romance. She can be reached at webmaster@fmam.biz. |
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April 2006
DON'T
MURDER YOUR MYSTERY
24 Fiction-Writing Techniques To Save Your Manuscript From Turning Up
D.O.A.
Chris Roerden
Bella Rosa Books, May 2006, $17.95, 304 pp.
ISBN 978-1-933523-13-1
http://www.bellarosabooks.com
99 out of 100 manuscripts feel like they are written by the same person.
Why? Because those writers make the same sort of mistakes, mistakes that
different plots and characters cannot cover up. Most manuscripts won't
get read past the first couple pages because the initial reader or manuscript
screener spots one or more of those deadly mistakes and promptly
rejects it. DON'T MURDER YOUR MYSTERY provides you with 24 ways to improve
your manuscript, to bump it up into that 1% that coasts past the submissions
reader and has a chance for a full read.
Don't let the title fool you! This book is not just for mystery
writers. ALL fiction writers can benefit from advice on how to avoid backstory
dump, two-dimensional characters and chit-chat dialogue (to name just
3 of the 24 areas covered).
With clever, catchy section titles like "Hobbled Hooks," "Bloody
Backstory" and "Toxic Transcripts," DON'T MURDER YOUR MYSTERY
is as fun to read as it is educational. Author Chris Roerden has over
forty years' experience as a manuscript editor and writing teacher, and
she uses concrete examples from current novels to illustrate each technique
discussed, as well as gives examples of what not to do.
In addition to common sense advice from an publishing industry expert,
DON'T MURDER YOUR MYSTERY has sections on the pros and cons of prologues,
how to stop character and setting description from stopping your story,
tips for scene analysis to make sure each scene has a purpose, how to
use your computer's search feature to help weed out trouble areas, how
to avoid unnecessary dialogue tags (my favorite pet peeve-as my critique
partners well know), and much much more!
Our very own Babs Lakey is mentioned on pgs 223-224, where her book Spirit
of the Straightedge is used to show how a cliché can be used
as parody.
DON'T MURDER YOUR MYSTERY also includes a list of useful Internet sites,
writing groups and recommended non-fiction reading in the appendices.
You can't go wrong with this book, it's packed with useful information
cover to cover.
DON'T MURDER YOUR MYSTERY will now be on my "must have" list
for all writers along with King's On Writing, Maass' Writing
the Breakout Novel and Walsh's 78 Reasons....
5 stars--don't miss this one!
Catherine Chant
THE
HUNT
The Hunt
Allison Brennan
Ballantine, February 2006, $6.99, 392pp.
ISBN 0-345-48024-4
Twelve years ago Miranda Moore escaped a serial killer known as the Bozeman
Butcher, whose MO was to kidnap young women, rape and torture them for
days, then let them go in the Montana wilderness so he could hunt them
like big game. He enjoyed the sport in tracking them as they ran terrified
into unknown terrain finally to meet their ends by bullet or knife.
Miranda is the only woman to have escaped “the hunt,” but she
lost her best friend Sharon in the process. Since then, Miranda has lived
with survivor’s guilt and a determination to avenge Sharon’s
death and prevent other women from falling victim to this psychopath.
She thought the best way to do that would be to become an FBI agent, and
excelled at the academy. But shortly before graduation, repeated psyche
evaluations showed she had an obsessive personality and was too focused
on apprehending only one criminal—the Butcher.
FBI agent Quinn Peterson regretfully agreed with this appraisal and his
endorsement sealed Miranda’s fate. She was kicked out of Quantico
with the approval of the man she’d grown to love over the past two
years. While Quinn thought he was doing what was best for her, all Miranda
saw was her lover betraying her, killing her dream, the only thing that
had kept her going since the attack.
Ten years later, the Butcher has struck again and a woman’s body
is found in Montana. The FBI is called in to assist, and Quinn is assigned
to the case because of his previous work on the investigation. Miranda
is now the head of the local search and rescue team and no less determined
to bring the Butcher to justice than she was a decade ago. Quinn’s
reappearance in her life is the last thing she needs, but he may also
be the only one who can help turn the investigation in a positive direction
after years of dead ends. Since Miranda’s attack, several other girls
have been abducted and killed, and the local police have turned up few
clues.
Miranda pushes aside the painful memories of Quinn’s betrayal and
agrees to work with him for one reason only: so they can catch the man
who tortured her and killed her best friend. Quinn is equally dedicated
to catching this killer, but he’s not pushing any feelings aside
when it comes to Miranda. He’s as much in love with her as he was
ten years ago.
THE HUNT is an intense romantic thriller, filled with unpredictable twists
and packed with emotion. The love triangle between Miranda, Sheriff Nick
Thomas and Quinn takes the story beyond a standard romantic suspense,
gives it more complexity, and creates an added level of suspense as you
read on to find out not only how they’ll catch the killer but also
how the relationships will turn out.
What really struck me about this book, aside from the heart-pounding suspense
and tender romance, was the brilliant portrayal of an abused man’s
transformation into a serial killer. Here is a villain you will hate,
but will also be tempted to feel some sympathy for. Although he is as
evil as you can get and does some pretty despicable things over the course
of the story, his history and the demons he battles show there is more
to the man than the monster—all of which makes for one unforgettable
story.
THE HUNT was a book I could not put down.
Catherine Chant
Catherine's Archived Reviews
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