Isabelle Reviews (CLOSED FOR NOW)

Airborne (Action, Romance)

Review date: October 14, 2023

Author: courtneyrush756

FIRST IMPRESSION: 5/5

TITLE: 5/5

COVER: 5/5

Thanks so much to the author for entrusting this book to me! This is the author's second book that was submitted.

Anyway, I'll be honest. I have developed a huge liking for the cover. It's neither a plain Jane design nor a complicated one. It's the sight of nature—greens and all. I don't usually see that in books but I believe that the cover was used wisely. Plus, it fits the title. Airborne literally translates to transmission via air, and there's easily a relationship to nature. The text isn't fancy, but it doesn't need to be. It's good the way it is, especially if you're not aiming for something that is too va-va-voom. I suggest the name of the author to be enlarged by a tad. Not too space-occupying, but just enough to be seen at once. And another tip would be, make the cases of the text below regular instead. Or, make the spaces in between smaller. The message is very beautiful and I don't want readers to miss it. As I always say, first impressions last, so be sure to hit them with your best shot before anything else.

BLURB: 7/10

I used to not understand the purpose of loglines. But as I read more, I finally did. And the blurb's logline just nailed it when it came to showing me what loglines were for.

Instantly, I was taken over by my spirit of inquiry by Chloe's potential endeavors as she departed to find answers and make things right. It was because this went well with the logline. Meaning, the placement was just good and just.

Minor issue though, would be fixing the next part. It has already concluded the plot at once without introducing who the characters were and why exactly should readers need to care about them. I have no problem with the question put there, but then a character named Brody just pops out of nowhere and it was quite confusing.

Personally, the first part would already be nice. The next, though, have to not only be polished but defined to a more comprehensible extent. The question is good to go at the end.

But other than all that, the blurb has potential.

PLOT: 19/20

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: 16/20

The first chapter would be from a character named Levi's perspective. Though it was an excellent opening, I immediately thought of Chloe from the blurb. This is not absolute truth but rather a preference. However, if I was in the author's place, I'd choose between adding Chloe in the blurb and putting her perspective first OR removing Chloe from the blurb and save her for later to give room for Levi's story. Why? It's because it confused me at first as to who the main character is or who I'll have to pay attention to first. I know characters must receive equal attention, but given that this is the first part, I believe it'll be cool to choose only between the two options I provided because quite frankly, I suddenly forgot about who Chloe was supposed to be.

Anyway, the first chapter was colorful, upbeat, and humorous without any intention to be a comedy. It still remains stern in its genre, so no worries about that. The first chapter was basically about Levi (just as I said) and work at the clinic. I like how it plays with the element of choosing to have a cliffhanger or not, especially with the mystery of falling things for that matter. But with that being said, Levi's POV was good.

The next chapter is Chloe's POV. I thought, ah, finally—the girl from the blurb. It's Halloween and she's so uneasy about it that she has to be reassured about having a family and some chocolate chip cookies, which I found cute. Chloe is not angsty and she's not negative either.

What I noticed though, is that Chloe is childlike, which is not a bad thing. But I just thought from the start that Chloe would be too young to leave and look for answers since young people like her don't have that much self-awareness just yet. But on another note, it's also possible to assume that those thoughts will only be present once she fully reaches adulthood.

I'm not sure if this will be a major change for the author, but I also noticed that the vocabulary, though excellent and fine, may have been too advanced for a young person. Perhaps the author could probably present it as a flashback from the third person perspective and assign it as a prologue or a flashback. It's already executed properly, and I don't want it to go to waste just because Chloe is young.

So Chloe is brought someplace else by Logan for her safety. Thirteen years pass. The realism of the language is better and more valid. I no longer have second thoughts about Chloe's intentions and Logan's role. I also suggest introducing who some of the characters are instead of placing them there, because again, authors must give readers reasons to care about their characters to keep reading. Lastly, the immediate switching of POV and the pacing could be improved.

DESCRIPTIONS: 14/15

WRITING STYLE: 9/10

GRAMMAR/PUNCTUATION: 10/10

The way it's written is undeniably spot-on. The descriptions and imagery were incomparable and unthinkable, but in the best way I could paint in my head. It's difficult to pull off something like this. But then again, the switching POVs can be overwhelming. Still, fantastic job!

OVERALL: 90/100

I have no negative things to say about this book. It captures the feelings of fear, change, and the search for the truth. So meaningful.

Thanks for trusting me in reviewing your work! <3, Isabelle