Official Review: Frequencies by Linda Armstrong

[kandscreeley]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Frequencies" by Linda Armstrong.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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There are sound waves all around us. These sound waves are called frequencies, and the town of Bellville has been built to use these for their benefit. Not only does this create peace and harmony, but it can cure sickness as well.

Molly is fleeing from her gangster boyfriend Tony, when her car breaks down on the side of the road. Rory comes along just in time to help her out. He points out that her name means gangster’s woman, so she decides to use the nickname Eva. He then takes her to the town of Bellville where the citizens all help her to evade Tony. Bellville wants to offer her citizenship, but she has a lot to learn about the town and its frequencies.

Frequencies by Linda Armstrong is a novel of about 280 pages in the science fiction genre. You can read this for free with Kindle Unlimited or purchase the Kindle edition for $9.99. It is classified for teenagers, although I think it might be better suited for adults.

The town of Bellville is intriguing. I enjoyed the descriptions of some of the unique buildings in town. The library, for example, is made of glass and resembles a stadium. It has reflective technology to make it blend in with the scenery around it. It also contains a greenhouse where many fruits and vegetables are grown. Ms. Armstrong does a great job in describing this town and making it come alive in the mind of the reader.

While I was curious about where the story was headed and what would eventually happen to Molly/Eva, the story started dragging in the middle. The plot seemed to focus more on the town of Bellville than Eva. I was fascinated about this different town with its frequencies, but Ms. Armstrong seemed to just linger a little too long on the details.

Along the same lines, I don’t feel like the author spent enough time telling us about Eva and her history. We only learn very small bits about what her life was like with Tony before arriving in Bellville. There are also times that the author alludes to a past memory but never tells what it was. For example, when Eva gets dressed up to go to a town dance, she mentions that the formal clothes evoked a memory from long ago. We are never told, however, what that memory was. This made me feel as if something was left out.

Furthermore, I feel the need to mention that true fans of science fiction will be disappointed in this novel. I am guessing this was put into the science fiction genre because of the frequencies that are used in the town. Yet, that really does not qualify this book as science fiction, in my opinion. There is no magic, no time travel, no supernatural creatures, no alternate universe. I think the author would be best served by reconsidering which genre this book belongs to.

Unfortunately, there were also errors sprinkled throughout the book. These consisted of the usual punctuation errors as well as tense issues and run-on sentences. While there was nothing extremely grievous, it leads me to believe that this book has not been professionally edited.

All in all I rate Frequencies 2 out of 4 stars. The consistent errors caused the book to lose 1 star. The other star was lost due to the dragging in the middle of the story line as well as details missing from the life of the main character. Some might enjoy this book, especially those who enjoy reading details of a Utopian society. For my part, I think there needs to be some major reworking in this novel.

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Frequencies
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[Tanaya]

That library does sound awesome! I appreciated the fair critiques in this review. Nicely done.

[kandscreeley]

Yeah I would definitely take a library like that one! Thanks for stopping by Tanaya.

[MarisaRose]

Hm I'm curious about this novel. I agree that it doesn't really sound like sci-fi. Seems like the author has an interest premise but needs to work on the execution. Really good review!

[Amagine]

I agree that this doesn't really sound like a science fiction. The town sounds interesting but it's disappointing that the author doesn't focus more on the characters than the town itself.

Great Review! ?

[kandscreeley]

Thanks marisarose and amagine. This book was difficult for me to rate. It was a very interesting premise. I think it just needs some work and a new genre.

[Spirit Wandering]

Yes, it would seem difficult to place this book in a genre. I am intrigued by the town's use of frequencies for harmony and healing. It sounds like the situation in the book parallels our own current scientific developments. For example, the use of new techniques such red light therapy and bi-neural beat frequencies to address both physical pain and psychological issues. Thanks for your review.

[Sophy Chunge]

What an honest review! It seems I can learn a lot from your style of writing. I might not read this book but Iam definitely going to read more of your reviews.

[kandscreeley]

Yes, it would seem difficult to place this book in a genre. I am intrigued by the town's use of frequencies for harmony and healing. It sounds like the situation in the book parallels our own current scientific developments. For example, the use of new techniques such red light therapy and bi-neural beat frequencies to address both physical pain and psychological issues. Thanks for your review.

Yeah. It does sound something quite similar to that. It's almost something I could see being used some day. I'm not sure what genre I would put it in. Possibly other fiction? But I definitely wouldn't call it science fiction. It's an interesting concept though.

-- 01 Jun 2017, 07:43 --

What an honest review! It seems I can learn a lot from your style of writing. I might not read this book but Iam definitely going to read more of your reviews.

Thanks! I appreciate that! Hopefully you'll find a book that you will enjoy.

[Jaime Lync]

Great review. I really enjoyed your analysis. I know not to touch a book when I've been told that it 'drags in the middle'.

[kandscreeley]

Thanks Jaime. It definitely is hard when books start dragging. Everyone is different though.

[Rosemary Okoko]

Thanks for the honest review. I will put it in my bookshelf

[gali]

An intriguing premise. Too bad the story started dragging in the middle and that it wasn't well edited. I love the genre, but I don't think the book is for me. Thank you for the review!

[kandscreeley]

Thanks gali. It's definitely an interesting concept, almost realistic.

[Kitkat3]

This sounds like a really interesting concept. If the author takes your constructive criticism then she could make it even better. I love the idea of the library. It's really unfortunate that there wasn't enough information on the main character. Great review!