Cathy C. (cathyskye) -
This is the beginning of a new cozy series that shows a lot of promise. Meg is a good-hearted, and sometimes bumbling, young woman fresh out of college who's always wanted to follow in her talented father's shoes as an investigative journalist. Her best friend Jill has a nice apartment in Portland and is more than willing to put up with Meg's slovenly ways. There are suitable romantic interests for our heroine, and Dyer-Seeley has created a cast that should stand up well to future adventures even if it does contain my least favorite character-- the impossible mother.
The Portland setting with nearby sites and hiking trails made me want to go up there and experience it for myself. Scene of the Climb is a nice blend of the traditional cozy and an adventure with an edge to it, and the series should do well-- especially if a couple of things are addressed.
Meg being a couch potato who has to go out there and learn outdoor skills is going to have a wide appeal among readers; however, I found two of her behaviors to be rather disturbing. She doesn't seem to have a complete understanding of the word "deadline" although she certainly has time to go out for coffee or meals with her friends. This might just mean that I haven't fully recovered from being one of those Type A personalities, but the other thing well and truly drives me up a wall. Without going into too much detail, she knows that her life is in danger, but instead of exercising at least a bit of common sense and caution, Meg just keeps going out to test her luck. Not. Good.
The other thing that bothered me is something I normally do not mention, but I feel I have to here. Incorrect punctuation a time or two, the wrong word in a sentence... if they happen less than five times in a book, I ignore it. But it happened over and over and over in this book. The proofreading and editing were abysmal. Countless instances of missing or extra words, "air" being used instead of "err," and a scene in which Meg was called first thing in the morning to meet someone who was an hour away. Meg left almost immediately, but as she was driving non-stop to her destination, the sun had set.
As I said before, this series has a lot of promise. I'm hoping that Meg locates her common sense, and that the next book is edited more carefully because then the promise will begin to be realized.
The Portland setting with nearby sites and hiking trails made me want to go up there and experience it for myself. Scene of the Climb is a nice blend of the traditional cozy and an adventure with an edge to it, and the series should do well-- especially if a couple of things are addressed.
Meg being a couch potato who has to go out there and learn outdoor skills is going to have a wide appeal among readers; however, I found two of her behaviors to be rather disturbing. She doesn't seem to have a complete understanding of the word "deadline" although she certainly has time to go out for coffee or meals with her friends. This might just mean that I haven't fully recovered from being one of those Type A personalities, but the other thing well and truly drives me up a wall. Without going into too much detail, she knows that her life is in danger, but instead of exercising at least a bit of common sense and caution, Meg just keeps going out to test her luck. Not. Good.
The other thing that bothered me is something I normally do not mention, but I feel I have to here. Incorrect punctuation a time or two, the wrong word in a sentence... if they happen less than five times in a book, I ignore it. But it happened over and over and over in this book. The proofreading and editing were abysmal. Countless instances of missing or extra words, "air" being used instead of "err," and a scene in which Meg was called first thing in the morning to meet someone who was an hour away. Meg left almost immediately, but as she was driving non-stop to her destination, the sun had set.
As I said before, this series has a lot of promise. I'm hoping that Meg locates her common sense, and that the next book is edited more carefully because then the promise will begin to be realized.
A new mystery from a new author set on the Oregon coast in Portland and the scenic mountains that surround it. The protagonist is a very young 20 something who gets her first job as a writer for an 'extreme' outdoors magazine. Thing is, the only 'extreme' she does is elaborate coffees. But she bluffs her way through the interview and gets the job.
She manages to keep a low profile until she has to cover the last leg of Race the States, a combination challenge and reality show for sports people. Not only does she know nothing about it, she's out of shape and afraid of heights.
The author adds excellent details about the locale and even what happens with fear of heights. Who will get killed is obvious, but the why isn't, and am happy to say the who was well done and it took more than half the book for me to guess correctly. In most cozies, I know by page 30.
As an amateur sleuth book, this first effort is entertaining and fun. Nothing challenging about it, but I liked the characters. Best friend Jill needed more development as did Matt. I have a friend who lives in Portland and hikes all those trails for fun reading it and she's said that part is accurate, though she took liberties with Angel's Rest for the story.
A nice easy read that's well paced with a decent plot. Yeah, it could use a little polishing, but it's still a very worthwhile read. The real tell is, I pre-ordered he second book. Enjoy!
She manages to keep a low profile until she has to cover the last leg of Race the States, a combination challenge and reality show for sports people. Not only does she know nothing about it, she's out of shape and afraid of heights.
The author adds excellent details about the locale and even what happens with fear of heights. Who will get killed is obvious, but the why isn't, and am happy to say the who was well done and it took more than half the book for me to guess correctly. In most cozies, I know by page 30.
As an amateur sleuth book, this first effort is entertaining and fun. Nothing challenging about it, but I liked the characters. Best friend Jill needed more development as did Matt. I have a friend who lives in Portland and hikes all those trails for fun reading it and she's said that part is accurate, though she took liberties with Angel's Rest for the story.
A nice easy read that's well paced with a decent plot. Yeah, it could use a little polishing, but it's still a very worthwhile read. The real tell is, I pre-ordered he second book. Enjoy!
Jacque S. (twinmomx5) -
Loved the newbie trying new outdoor pursuits.. with a murder thrown in. The bonus adventure material was great!
Kimberly N. (kimberlyrav) -
I wasnt too happy with the main character constantly praying to the Universe for good things.
