Official Review: Affinity's Window by Douglas L. Wilson

[MarisaRose]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Affinity's Window" by Douglas L. Wilson.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Affinity’s Window by Douglas Wilson is a ghost story that fits into the horror genre. A normal child by most standards, Affinity Bell is introduced as a weary ghost, roaming around her family home, Bell Manor, as she is forced to relive the same day over and over. Her only friend, a straw haired, button eyed doll helps her maneuver the halls of her domain while also protecting her from the terrible creatures that plague her house. One day, Tanner Dann (Danny), a writer aspiring to pen a grandiose tell-all about ghosts, and his hired clairvoyant, Linda Cookmeyer, enter Bell Manor hoping to uncover the truth about Affinity Bell and her sudden disappearance years ago. However, Danny has a few secrets of his own and may be more closely linked to Bell Manor than he knows.

The characters in this book are well drawn and add to the overall story. The author does a great job making Affinity a creepily believable seven-year-old ghost. Throughout the story, there are a lot of questions surrounding Affinity’s character, and the development of her family’s peculiar past adds to the fear factor associated with Affinity’s ghost. Likewise, the clairvoyant Linda, and her even more powerful daughter, Claire, have a well-developed and complex relationship. The intimate knowledge provided about each woman’s feelings toward the other aided the believability of certain aspects of the plot. Altogether, the character development was one of the most enjoyable aspects of the story.

Affinity’s Window started off on a strong note, a clear tone of suspense and fear exuding off the pages. Unfortunately, the second half of the story lost much of that tone and began to feel obvious or contrived. Danny’s connection to Bell Manor became rather apparent about halfway through the novel, causing the climax to fall flat. Similarly, loose ends are tied up nicely, but too nicely for this type of book. Much of the fear and suspense in horror comes from the unknown. The explanations provided for events past and present took away from the overall fear factor in this story.

Lastly, though well-written, Affinity’s Window could use another round of editing. Misspelled words, like ‘cob web’ instead of ‘cobweb’ and ‘bond fire’ in place of ‘bonfire,’ and awkward phrases like ‘standing in her bedroom door’ (one cannot stand in a door, but they can stand in a ‘doorway’), though not overly distracting, make it clear that this book needs additional work.

There is a lot to like about this book, and this book will be a fun read for those who like ghost stories with a mild fear factor. However, the lack of fear and suspense towards the later part of the story and the editorial mishaps lead me to rate Affinity’s Window 3 out of 4 stars. There is definite foreshadowing for a companion book, and although there were some detractors in this novel, I will consider reading the sequel when it comes out.

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Affinity's Window
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Like MarisaRose's review? Post a comment saying so!

[Anjum]

I like to read horror stories but it's disappointing that the fear factor is lost in the second half of the story. Thanks for your honest review.

[Aarush Kumar]

Great review... I might read this one... I guess I'll add it to my To-Read list for now...

[kandscreeley]

I thought about reviewing this one myself. It looked quite intriguing. Too bad the second half falls a little short. Great review.

[Quinto]

Great review. The fact that you recommend inspite of the sloppy second part story line makes me want to check it out.I will add it to my to read list.

[Kitkat3]

I like your description of the plot. It's too bad that the second half of the book fell a little flat. Since that does make the book a little less scary, maybe that would make it better for me since I don't handle horror books really well. Great review!

[Athena Moon]

Thanks for the review! Despite the flaws the story sounds truly promising and the connection between characters seems to be intriguing the reader. The fact that secret unveils so quick is indeed a loss, but you make it sound interesting to read.

[IsabelMay]

Ghosts and horror sound great together, but I'm sad to hear it doesn't have a great ending as that's pretty much the only thing that makes difference between a good and a bad horror book. Still, it might not be that bad. Thanks for the nice review.

[Kourtney Bradley]

I'm a huge fan of horror. It's too bad that it looses it's fear factor within the second half of the book though.
Nice review, thank you for sharing with us!

[RegularGuy3]

Groundhog Day for horror? Sign me up?

[MsTri]

Thanks for the thorough review. It sounds like an intriguing story that I'd enjoy as long as I don't expect too much from the second half. I often figure things out long before the "big reveal" (maybe it's just the aspiring author in me?) and that can go either way; sometimes it's frustrating and ruins the fun, other times I really don't mind.

So I guess I'm on the fence now. I'll keep your review in mind if I come across the opportunity to read it and we'll see how I feel, then.

[Emmyblue]

"Awkward phrases, misspelled words" but still comprehendable, nice reviews though, and i think i like this one