Review of Crossroads
Posted: 21 Jan 2022, 11:05
[Following is a volunteer review of "Crossroads" by Andrew Slac.]
I started out really excited to read Crossroads: The Death and Life of Tom Valentine by Andrew Slag. The synopsis of this book drew me in. I love stories of magic and places I've never been, like New Orleans. Who could resist a story of voodoo and heartbreak? Crossroads is set up as a story of a man who is cursed, whose whole life has been taken out of reach by voodoo magic. Now, no longer among the living, Tom Valentine is driven by vengeance to discover who cursed him and how to get his life back. Tom is described as "a hardworking liar with a heart of gold" and this is the story of how he died and chose to live.
Crossroads turned out to actually be a story of a lonely, boring man who fills his days managing his father's factory, pining over his receptionist and boozing himself to sleep in his office chair at night. That is, until he meets a stranger on the train trip back to New Orleans to see his father for Mardi Gras. For a man whose family ties are what make Tom who he is, the family dynamics almost seemed to be too good to be real. I've never been able to enjoy a book fully with families in it that were too perfect.
The only thing that saved Crossroads from being a total bust was the plot. The overarching theme of being an average joe being cursed into an existence on the outskirts of his own life is one that I never tire of reading. Because of this, I rate this book 2 out of 4 starts.
Being around his father was the only time Tom had any emotion. Even when he was discovering what his undead life enabled him to become, he really didn't show his supposed anger, hurt, or frustration. The talking tools had more feelings of realness than the main character. I felt that the majority of the story was told to me, making it hard to be absorbed by the story. As a reader, I was kept apart from the events rather than being able to feel as if I were there too.
The pace of this book was slow. I kept losing my interest, only to have it momentarily caught again a bit further into the story. There was no consistency to pacing, which made it a difficult read. I had really looked forward to reading the book, but by around chapter six, I was slogging through it. The most interesting characters are the supporting characters, including Roxanne and Anthony. Even the talking tools Oliver had more personality than Tom Valentine. Overall, it is not the story I was excited for, was paced too slow to be enjoyable, and felt static.
******
Crossroads
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
I started out really excited to read Crossroads: The Death and Life of Tom Valentine by Andrew Slag. The synopsis of this book drew me in. I love stories of magic and places I've never been, like New Orleans. Who could resist a story of voodoo and heartbreak? Crossroads is set up as a story of a man who is cursed, whose whole life has been taken out of reach by voodoo magic. Now, no longer among the living, Tom Valentine is driven by vengeance to discover who cursed him and how to get his life back. Tom is described as "a hardworking liar with a heart of gold" and this is the story of how he died and chose to live.
Crossroads turned out to actually be a story of a lonely, boring man who fills his days managing his father's factory, pining over his receptionist and boozing himself to sleep in his office chair at night. That is, until he meets a stranger on the train trip back to New Orleans to see his father for Mardi Gras. For a man whose family ties are what make Tom who he is, the family dynamics almost seemed to be too good to be real. I've never been able to enjoy a book fully with families in it that were too perfect.
The only thing that saved Crossroads from being a total bust was the plot. The overarching theme of being an average joe being cursed into an existence on the outskirts of his own life is one that I never tire of reading. Because of this, I rate this book 2 out of 4 starts.
Being around his father was the only time Tom had any emotion. Even when he was discovering what his undead life enabled him to become, he really didn't show his supposed anger, hurt, or frustration. The talking tools had more feelings of realness than the main character. I felt that the majority of the story was told to me, making it hard to be absorbed by the story. As a reader, I was kept apart from the events rather than being able to feel as if I were there too.
The pace of this book was slow. I kept losing my interest, only to have it momentarily caught again a bit further into the story. There was no consistency to pacing, which made it a difficult read. I had really looked forward to reading the book, but by around chapter six, I was slogging through it. The most interesting characters are the supporting characters, including Roxanne and Anthony. Even the talking tools Oliver had more personality than Tom Valentine. Overall, it is not the story I was excited for, was paced too slow to be enjoyable, and felt static.
******
Crossroads
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon