Official Review: Surviving on a Whisper by Emilee King

[katiesquilts]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Surviving on a Whisper" by Emilee King.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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Surviving on a Whisper by Emilee King is a YA novel about a girl with powers -- powers that keep her on the run, powers that could destroy the world, powers that she didn't want. Most importantly, those powers have a huge influence on the relationships in her life. Ms. King has written a novel that could have been pure science fiction, but instead chose to focus on the aftermath of scientific revelations.

The novel starts out with a memorable and well-written action sequence, a great way to introduce the main character and her enemies. But from there it starts to dissolve, as more characters are added and dialogue takes over. With such a promising opening, I was disappointed to see how quickly the writing fell into a rut. Something big would happen, the problem would be (mostly) resolved, things would settle back down, something would pop up again, wash, rinse, repeat. The character interactions developed much too quickly, and the author referenced several characters, many of whom did not even come into play until halfway through the novel. Also, despite two of the three main characters being female, I felt like the character list could have used a bit of diversity, especially when it came to the "bad guys."

Overall, the biggest problem I had with the novel was the author's writing style. The author had a bad habit of telling the readers, instead of showing them. This was especially evident whenever time was mentioned, with the characters "being in the car for 15 minutes" or specifying exactly what time the characters woke up at, down to the minute. I think if the author backed away from the details and tried to show a bit of a broader picture the story would have flowed much better. I actually noticed that the narration smoothed out about halfway through the novel, as if the author had eased into the flow of writing and relaxed a bit more. I would have liked to have seen that same fluidity throughout the entire novel. Also, there were a few instances of tense switches between paragraphs, and sometimes between sentences within the same paragraph. Other than a bit of inconsistency and one or two typos -- things that could definitely be fixed with a good editor -- Ms. King's grammar was excellent.

Surviving on a Whisper has a great character cast with a wide variety of personalities and each with their own backstory. In fact, I think the characters were the best developed part of the entire novel, which is why I was so disappointed to see their relationships rushed in the beginning of the novel. If played out a bit more, I honestly believe that the deepening relationships could have led to a fuller novel and endless opportunities for snarky conversations while a few of the characters were still at odds and unsure of each other.

With a little less attention to detail and a bit more interaction between characters to establish what their previous relationships were like before they were changed so completely, this could be a real winner in the YA category. The characters are interesting and memorable, and future fans will be happy to know that there's definitely a possibility for a sequel, with the existing ending.

I rated Surviving on a Whisper 2 out of 4 stars. If I had stopped halfway through the book I would have only given it 1 star, but as the author grew more comfortable with her own writing style the grammatical issues evened out and the style itself became less distracting. Also, the further into the book I read the more the relationships developed, and that was a treat to see. The ending is what delighted me the most -- despite being able to predict a few of the plot twists, the ending was a bit of a shock to me, and I honestly hope that the author decides to continue the series in some way.

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Surviving on a Whisper
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[gali]

The premise sounds intriguing. Too bad it failed to deliver. Thank you for the insightful review.

[chytach18-]

Good book, like good meat, needs to rest. Maybe this book wasn`t rested enough. Very constructive review.

[katiesquilts]

I know I was very critical of the writing style, but I'd just like to point out how amazing it is that a senior in high school made her way through an entire book and was about to get it out and published for others to read!

I hope she keeps at it! I believe she has a great foundation and will to write already, but she can build stronger stories with an editor or a writing mentor.

If she revamps the story and publishes it, I'll be the first one to buy a copy!

[zeldas_lullaby]

She's a senior in high school?? Wowz. Amazing!

I loved your review. I also love the way you're a harsh critic. You tell it like it is. I like that.

[katiesquilts]

She's a senior in high school?? Wowz. Amazing!

I loved your review. I also love the way you're a harsh critic. You tell it like it is. I like that.

I know right?? I'm a senior in college and I whine and complain about having to write anything. LOL

Which is why I maybe feel so bad for grading authors so harshly... I'm no expert, just grading from an entertainment standpoint. But I don't want to go easy on them either, because I honestly want their books to improve and gain a wider audience. Does that make sense?

[Ursula_Minor]

Rather than harsh, I think you're effective. The author won't get better, or find interested and generous readers, if the flaws in her text aren't included alongside its strengths. Plus, I think your tone is constructive, rather than critical: you point out, for example, that the book would be more effective if the grammar were more consistent, rather than just writing it off because the first half was a bit spotty. Nice job.

[katiesquilts]

Thank you so much! I feel like I just received a stellar review of my own review, haha.

I'll be sure to keep up the good work!

[zeldas_lullaby]

Just between you and me, I sometimes feel that some reviewers give a higher rating than I would, but you're right in alignment with my review style.

[Rachaelamb1]

An honest review with excellent critiques. An author can only improve if they first know what is wrong. It sounds like this author is off to a great start though, completing a book at so young an age!

[zeldas_lullaby]

No kidding. I could barely write a short story at that age, and it was a struggle, but my teacher assigned one. I wrote decent poetry, but it's unthinkable to have been able to write a full novel back then. This author can improve greatly, and I'd like to be around to see it.