You've Been Warned by James Patterson, Howard Roughan
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Book Reviews of You've Been Warned
Book Review: You've Been Warned
Summary: 4 Stars
BEWARE: Minor spoilers, but nothing that will give away what happens in the end, etc.
I know people are going to look at my four-star rating and go "What on Earth was he thinking?! This book was terrible!" Oh, well. :)
This book follows the story of Kristen Burns, an aspiring photographer who is, in reality, a nanny who is having an affair with the children's husband. What starts out as a dream spirals into a convoluted story of Kristen having macabre dreams and meeting up with people who should be long deceased. So really, it's nothing like the dust jacket says.
Personally, I really liked this book (except for the ending, which I'll discuss later). It felt like an episode of the Twilight Zone in a way. Every chapter (almost all of them, since there were so many) held something new in store, and made me want to read on. The protagonist meeting up with her dead father, being stalked by the Ponytail man (does he have a name?), losing track of her days, and being lured back to the Falcon was very compelling and thrilling to me. But that was until I reached the end.
None of the interesting things that were happening to poor Kristen were ever explained in the end. Like another reviewer said, it was too ambivalent, and not in a good way (hope you don't mind me citing you). For example, in the beginning of the book, Kristen's neighbor knocks on the door and yells at her for making too much noise, and then Kristen takes a shower to find that all the hot water is out. Towards the end of the novel, many days later, her neighbor says she yelled at her that morning, and Kristen gets a letter from her apartment complex apologizing for the lack of hot water. It was never at all explained why she was losing track of her days, and/or how many days had actually passed throughout the novel. Why her dead father kept appearing, Kristen having her baby at the Falcon (which was randomly thrown in there), and why people kept calling her Satan were also not explained at all. It was as if the authors thrown a bunch of interesting things in the book to make it thrilling, but the ending explaining it all got lost in translation.
All in all, it is a good, fast read that will keep you interested for the first 350 pages, but in the last few, will have you going "Are you joking?"
B-
Book Review: Not his typical book, but still good!
Summary: 4 Stars
I think too many people are expecting all of Patterson's books to be just like the Alex Cross series. Personally, I'm a bit burned out on Alex Cross; how many Cross books have there been now?? It's just a 'been there, done that' feeling now. I know, MANY people would burn me at the stake for even considering a criticism of Alex Cross, but I've just lost track of all of them. I like reading something that's a change of pace, and this one is definitely different! While it took a chapter or two for me to really get into it, once I did, I couldn't wait to see what happened next. I will admit, the premise is a bit "out there", but I read fiction to be entertained & to escape daily life, and this was entertaining. The ending was a surprise as well!! I would definitely recommend it, with the warning that it's nothing like anything else he's ever written. Read it with an open mind & I think you'll like it.Book Review: Fun little read for the airport
Summary: 4 Stars
Picked this book up at the grocery store as it seemed to be the only book without Fabio on the cover. It's definitely not Shakespeare, but I found it to be a page turner. I enjoyed it and couldn't wait to see how it would end. I recommend this as a great book to take along to pass the time in a waiting room or somewhere you wouldn't want to read a book that's really deep. If you go into it not expecting much I think you'll get a kick out of it.Book Review: One of my favs
Summary: 4 Stars
I've read many of Patterson's books but this was one of my favorites. In fact, I liked it so much, I read it again once I finished it the first time. What I like most about the book was the angle it comes from - something different, fresh and capturing.Book Review: An ending with a twist
Summary: 4 Stars
I think some editing could've tightened up the writing and plot, but overall, what a break from Patterson's usual fare. The book was hard to put down once I got into it. And what a great ending!