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A review by cgcang
Breaking Creed by Alex Kava
3.0
It's been a terrible few days for everybody, but I'm immeasurably lucky to have been able to read and even finish a book.
And this one's a bit difficult to judge. The whole premise is very interesting, it's basically another thriller with dogs, but this time a whole pack of them, and they don't even take the spotlight. The dogs, even Grace, are not the main characters, Ryder Creed and Maggie O'Dell are. It's not to say that they aren't featured enough or anything, but somehow I'm not sated.
The writing and the pacing is mostly good, but I have quite a few problems with how the plot moves. There are often weird jumps and gaps in the story, as if to justify the lack of twists, because most of what's left incomplete eventually ties into the sort-of-twist ending, though it's not much of a shock anyway, not to mention feeling a bit rushed.
I blame the presence of two main characters, because Maggie O'Dell is the main character of Alex Kava's other long-lasting series, and while this is a Ryder Creed book, somehow Kava can't seem to be separated from her, so some of the mystery is left for her to unveil, which in turn steals from Ryder Creed and his dogs.
While the book is effectively a page-turner, there isn't much confrontation and meaningful action, aside from the finale, and these are the two main things I look for in a thriller.
So... I'm torn. The book started off as a 5-star read, then dropped to a 4, then dropped to a 3, and seemed to pick back up towards a 4 in the last few pages, but in the end I guess I'm staying with 3 stars. However, I intend to give the Ryder Creed series another shot, so I'll be owing Alex Kava another star if I'm impressed with the second book, at the risk of sounding a bit cocky.
And this one's a bit difficult to judge. The whole premise is very interesting, it's basically another thriller with dogs, but this time a whole pack of them, and they don't even take the spotlight. The dogs, even Grace, are not the main characters, Ryder Creed and Maggie O'Dell are. It's not to say that they aren't featured enough or anything, but somehow I'm not sated.
The writing and the pacing is mostly good, but I have quite a few problems with how the plot moves. There are often weird jumps and gaps in the story, as if to justify the lack of twists, because most of what's left incomplete eventually ties into the sort-of-twist ending, though it's not much of a shock anyway, not to mention feeling a bit rushed.
I blame the presence of two main characters, because Maggie O'Dell is the main character of Alex Kava's other long-lasting series, and while this is a Ryder Creed book, somehow Kava can't seem to be separated from her, so some of the mystery is left for her to unveil, which in turn steals from Ryder Creed and his dogs.
While the book is effectively a page-turner, there isn't much confrontation and meaningful action, aside from the finale, and these are the two main things I look for in a thriller.
So... I'm torn. The book started off as a 5-star read, then dropped to a 4, then dropped to a 3, and seemed to pick back up towards a 4 in the last few pages, but in the end I guess I'm staying with 3 stars. However, I intend to give the Ryder Creed series another shot, so I'll be owing Alex Kava another star if I'm impressed with the second book, at the risk of sounding a bit cocky.