Book Review: The Knight
(by Steven James)
When I was asked by Revell/Baker Publishing if I wanted to read The Knight, by Steven James (Baker Publishing), in order to do a book review, I said, "Sure!" Unfortunately, I too quickly read the email I received about this book.
NEVER DO THAT!
If I had slowed down a bit more and read it with more care, which I will definitely do the next time, I wouldn’t have been in the predicament I found myself in: having to read a crime investigation book that was well written…but too scary for me.
The Knight is the third book in the "Patrick Bowers Thriller" series by Steven James. Mr. James is an excellent writer, who weaves his story with great skill and craft. One of Mr. James’ recent books, The Rook, just received the Christy Award for the Best Suspense Novel of 2008. Obviously, this man is a gifted writer.
Unfortunately, it was too graphic for me, even from the first page. Here’s what I should have read closely in my email, before accepting this book to read: "A word of caution: this book is considered ‘gritty, chilling, and intense’. It contains graphic descriptions of disturbing crime scenes. While not for the faint of heart, the series has been described as ’suspense thriller writing at its highest level’ and is likely to keep you up all night."
Well, the Publicity Assistant was exactly correct! This book will keep you up all night, either from fear from what you have just read in the book…and/or that you feel compelled to finish the book immediately because you have just GOT to know what happens at the end of it!
I really enjoyed reading Mr. James’ style of writing, but it was also too graphic and scary for me. Okay, I’m a wimp.
But I do have to say that Mr. James has definitely done his homework before writing this book. You will believe that you are with the main character, working as an investigative officer, out on numerous crime scenes. His writing is very realistic. I have enjoyed watching CSI and those kinds of crime scene shows in the past, although I don’t anymore. But there is something about reading through these scenes that is far more intense than watching it on television ever was for me.
If I had known how I would react to what I was going to read, I would have skipped on this book. So, if you really enjoy the crime scene/CSI types of television shows, and you love scary, gruesome, descriptive, gripping mysteries, you will probably really love this book. For the rest of us, we’ll stick with books that are a bit more mild! Sigh.
NEVER DO THAT!
If I had slowed down a bit more and read it with more care, which I will definitely do the next time, I wouldn’t have been in the predicament I found myself in: having to read a crime investigation book that was well written…but too scary for me.
The Knight is the third book in the "Patrick Bowers Thriller" series by Steven James. Mr. James is an excellent writer, who weaves his story with great skill and craft. One of Mr. James’ recent books, The Rook, just received the Christy Award for the Best Suspense Novel of 2008. Obviously, this man is a gifted writer.
Unfortunately, it was too graphic for me, even from the first page. Here’s what I should have read closely in my email, before accepting this book to read: "A word of caution: this book is considered ‘gritty, chilling, and intense’. It contains graphic descriptions of disturbing crime scenes. While not for the faint of heart, the series has been described as ’suspense thriller writing at its highest level’ and is likely to keep you up all night."
Well, the Publicity Assistant was exactly correct! This book will keep you up all night, either from fear from what you have just read in the book…and/or that you feel compelled to finish the book immediately because you have just GOT to know what happens at the end of it!
I really enjoyed reading Mr. James’ style of writing, but it was also too graphic and scary for me. Okay, I’m a wimp.
But I do have to say that Mr. James has definitely done his homework before writing this book. You will believe that you are with the main character, working as an investigative officer, out on numerous crime scenes. His writing is very realistic. I have enjoyed watching CSI and those kinds of crime scene shows in the past, although I don’t anymore. But there is something about reading through these scenes that is far more intense than watching it on television ever was for me.
If I had known how I would react to what I was going to read, I would have skipped on this book. So, if you really enjoy the crime scene/CSI types of television shows, and you love scary, gruesome, descriptive, gripping mysteries, you will probably really love this book. For the rest of us, we’ll stick with books that are a bit more mild! Sigh.
I was given a copy of The Knight in exchange for my honest review. No other compensation was provided.
© August 2009 by Julieanne Miller
