My Book Was Reviewed!

Thank you Hannah at Little Letters Lost

Review of Life Changes: The Short Story of My Long Life

Yup, it's book review time again.  Halloween, and so time for a bit of a Halloween-y tale.

I got an author request to review "Life Changes: The Short Story of My Long Life" by R L Marsch.  I read an online copy, and more information on the book can be found here:

http://www.amazon.com/Life-Changes-Short-Story-Long/dp/1503186253/

Please spread this post around to spread awareness about this cool story!

Now, onto my review.

(The story's cover.)

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Firstly, I have to say, I really enjoyed the storytelling format of this story.  It's written like a true autobiography, with a bit of a folk tale-ish nature.  Very straightforward, but still with mystery in it. It sets things up nicely and the tone is enjoyable, showing the progression of the main character and others smoothly.

Speaking of which, the characters are another really enjoyable part of this story.  They're very interesting, different from the norm, and draw you in to caring about them from the start.  They play right into the world, including the setting and the supernatural elements.  Overall, the characters and their voices are one of the strongest parts of the story.

Another strong part is the characters relationships.  Instead of a focus on the romance as is in so many paranormal romances, we see a strong and unique sibling relationship brought into the spotlight from the very start.  We see other family relationships and platonic ones as well.  Yes, there is romance, but it's not quite in the same way as many books in the same genre, which is a refreshing change.

The only issue I really found with the story -- and a minor one at that -- was that in the copy I read, the conventions, spelling, grammar, etc., were not all fixed up; I don't know about the Amazon copy, however.

Back to the strong points, though: in addition to very enjoyable characters and relationships, the setting is also very clear, vividly described and easy to picture, wherever the story takes us.  There's a strong sense of it in the characters, in the "props" of the story, and in the language itself.  It's also a different setting than a lot of people read stories in for parts of the story, which is a nice change, and lets you immerse yourself in another culture and time while you read.

The fantasy elements that are introduced to us in this vivid world are also a nice change.  There are unique twists to them; this leads to a unique storyline.  Throw in the strong world-building, and character and relationship development, along with the storytelling format, and you've got yourself a very pleasantly non-typical story.

Don't worry about it being too much, however; this story is a very quick and easy read.  Not that it's light -- but it goes by quickly and isn't too difficult to understand, in the best way.

If this is your type of story, take a look at "Life Changes: The Short Story of My Long Life"!