Rookywriters Book Reviews

Review 37 @AndreaaaRam

Book: The art of loving
Author: AndreaaaRam

REVIEW

1. First chapter blues

*  Summary / prologue - Good story description. Just the right info to grip readers.

*  Intro to main character - So the first chapter with the 'One month before' title had the main character running, what was she running from? Good intro to the character Ava.

*  Intro to story - There is no actual 'story' going on for the first few chapters, because it's a teen fiction, Ava only wants to make new friends and find love. That means the writer will write the chapters involving the themes of friendship and teen love.

*  Intro to genre - Good intro to the genre teen fiction.

2. Story Settings

*  Description - Description of the characters at different times of the day is necessary especially Ava and Daniel and their parents. Also description of the locations was lacking.

*  Theme - Themes of love, high school, was noted.

*  Intrigue / Suspense factor - There is no intriguing factor in the story. Every action seem predictable.

*  Relation to genre - Story is related to the genre teen fiction.

*  Time setting - Timing was noted.

*  Character development - The main characters Ava and Daniel had good back story of their lives. Good.

3. Story Tone

*  Grammar - Good grammar. Good punctuation mark usage.

*  Dialogue - Some dialogue between the characters felt unnecessary because it wasn't pushing the story forward.

Example in chapter two, most of the dialogues didn't help with the story.

Most of the conversation lacked emotions. Example in chapter six, where Daniel and his dad was having a rough argument.

Their words sounded empty and plain because there are no emotion words to convey how they're feeling. Example

'As I was about to grab the keys from the counter, my mother spoke. "Where are you going?'

Another way this can be written is...

'I sighted my car keys on the counter, my mother was sitting few metres away from it. I reached out to pick up the keys when I heard her speak.
"Where are you going?" There was a crack in her voice.'

So always set a mood for the dialogues so that the atmosphere will be charged as they speak.

*  Choice of words - Good diction for the story.

*  Chapter flow - Story flowed well from chapter to chapter.

*  Writing voice - Your have a good writing voice which is still developing as you practice more on writing.

4. Creativity

*  Plot development - Reading through, there's no strong story plot foundation for the story. Most teen fiction stories basically have similar story line.

Normally a well plotted story should have a beginning, a middle and an expected end. I'm sure the story is probably at the middle right now, you only need to wrap up Ava's wishes and bring the story to an end. You could end with a birthday celebration, or prom night, or a little vacation.
My suggest...

*  Writing style - Good writing style. With time it will get more professional.

5. Personal thoughts - 'The art of loving' is a good adventure teen fiction story. You have good, relatable characters. Its got some cool vibes with the romance going on with Ava and Daniel.

I like the little episode with Ava in the last chapter, this can be a test of love on Daniel's side. Nice.

*  Overall - You get a 9 out of ten!

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