Series: A Mark Angelotti Novel #1
Author: Lynne Raimondo
Published: January, 2013
Format: Paperback, 350pgs
Publisher: Seventh Street Books
A troubled psychiatrist turns investigator when a young patient confesses to murder. Psychiatrist Mark Angelotti knows that genes don't lie. Or do they? Back at work after a devastating illness, Mark believes he has put his past behind him when he is asked to examine Charlie Dickerson, a mentally handicapped teenager whose wealthy mother insists he is a victim of sexual abuse. Mark diagnoses a different reason for Charlie's ills, but his prescription turns deadly when a teacher is murdered and Charlie confesses to the police. Volunteering to testify on Charlie's behalf, Mark's worst fears are realized when paternity tests show the victim was pregnant with Charlie's child. Now it's up to Mark to prove Charlie's innocence in a case where nothing is as first meets the eye. Not even genes—Mark's or Charlie's—can be trusted to shine a light on the truth.
Unfortunately...I'm sorry to say that Dante's Wood and I just could not see eye-to-eye (no pun intended).
It's not that Lynne Raimondo is a bad writer - in fact, that is actually far from the case. The words were perfectly descriptive, creative and they sufficiently transported you to the world of our novel.
The story-line wasn't too bad either: a blind man searching for purpose and redemption; a mentally handicapped boy being accused of murder...I mean, it has all the markings of a great classic mystery.
The problem for me? There was just NO mystery....at all. From beginning to end, the book became easily predictable and therefore...kind of boring. The characters were typecast, the murder not unusual, the mystery so superficial. I felt like I had no emotion toward any one character. Heck, they could have all been the killer and I would not have minded. Sadly...that's just how deep the story went for me.
Read it for yourself, and tell me if you agree or disagree.
1 out of 5 stars
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It's a shame you didn't enjoy this one =( I guess mysteries can be hard to pull off sometimes - you want to give the reader enough info for them to start to guess things them self, but not too much either.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely loathe predictability. It really makes me want to stop reading the novel.
ReplyDeleteThat is too bad that the story didn't work for you since the description looked pretty interesting.
ReplyDeleteSad to hear about this book. I was looking forward to reading it, but I think I may pass now. Thanks for your review.
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