Smoke Screen
Smoke Screen
By: Terri Blackstock
I've always liked Terri Blackstock's books. This was no exception. She captures the emotional wreck (what I imagine is pretty realistic) of divorce, a custody battle, and what plays into Brenna's depression and alcohol abuse. Nate, the other main character, is the stable, logical, God-centered character that helps Brenna through the ordeal. I think Blackstock did a good job with the romance part of the novel, not making it about the two characters 'fixing' each other. The plot wasn't surprising but I still liked watching it unfold. It's always satisfying to read a story where justice is served. Well, ALMOST served- I would have liked a particular character to be punched in the face...
I actually hadn't read one of Blackstock's books in awhile and it wasn't as suspenseful as I remember her other books being. There was a bit more drama than action, which was fine, just unexpected.
The minor criticisms I have for this book are:
1) when she talks several times about Nate and his dad going through the box of murder files in order to clear his dad's name- that never ended up being how they figured out what happened. I was expecting them to come across a piece of vital information, it was misleading in a non-red-herring way. Why bother writing about them doing that if it wasn't actually going to move the plot?
2) the use of the word 'preacher'. Very rarely did she use Brenna's dad's name. Whenever ANY non-family member talked about him, it was always 'the preacher.' For one- do people use preacher over pastor? And two- I've lived in a small town where everyone knows everyone (similar to this book's setting) and people use names. They don't say, "Did you hear about the preacher? He must have killed the preacher. That's the preacher's house. I wonder what happened to the preacher." They would use his name. Especially a murder incident. His name would have been all over the news and papers during the trial. People would know who you are referring to. It just felt very unnatural and annoying how often the word 'preacher' was used. Just sayin.'
**I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.**