Thursday 20 September 2012

Review of Coincidences by Maria Savva

Yep, guys, due to the free promo starting tomorrow, I have pushed the review up to today, to ensure it gets enough visibility.
So, without further ado, have a look at my 5 star review for Coincidences by Maria Savva. (NB: this will be free on Amazon Sun 23rd-Tue 25th Sept inclusive)
As ever, I don't recap the story - that's what the synopsis or product description is for - links at the bottom of the page.

A family drama which has you fighting Alice's corner


I'd been trying to get around to reading this for some time, after the synopsis caught my eye. I read it in 2 days, and found I couldn't get on with the other things I was meant to be doing until I'd finished it.
The author planted little clues along the way, so there were no great surprises for me, as I do like to be a bit of a detective, as I read, and I picked up on her clues. In other instances, my over-active imagination got me there and I was delighted to be proven right.
However, the crux of the story, not mentioned in the synopsis, I thought was brilliant and one I had not seen coming and also one I have not seen addressed by other authors I have read. Likewise, the ending, I hadn't guessed that.
The story is relatively simple and uncluttered, but it reminded me of what great chefs say about cooking. Keep it simple and often the simplest is the best.





You really feel for the mother, Stephanie and the daughter, Alice. Even when I thought Stephanie was being selfish, I still felt a little sorry for her. There are characters later in the novel, who quite frankly I would have liked to shake them and punch their lights out. And there's a shining beacon of a character, whose sunny disposition makes it all worthwhile.
I could imagine Alice's various meetings with her mother, Alice's visits elsewhere - you'll need to read it to see where! I could even imagine clearly the ensuing chaos.
The relationship with Stephanie's friend, Ria is also very important, although I did think the introduction of a key piece of info, was rather a late introduction, but believe me if that's my only quibble, Ms Savva has done an excellent job.
If there were half stars, I would have given this 4.5, as I think 5 stars is for something truly exceptional and can be overused. However, given the quality of the writing, I am happy to round this up to 5, rather than down to 4.

A wonderful tale which I was happy to discover. Am delighted that Ms Savva has so many other books for me now to go and get my teeth into.


And, for the record, I have just finished Maria Savva's soon to be published novel, Haunted (I was lucky enough to get an advance review copy). Check in next week for my interview with Maria re all her works and what makes her tick.
In the meantime, should you wish to read the product description and download Coincidences, here are the links.

Amazon UK - http://amzn.to/S6uUit
Amazon US & other .com - http://amzn.to/RxoCyc

And remember the free promo for SIGN OF THE TIMES will start around 9am tomorrow! Get your copy then!
Bye for now
Sooz

2 comments:

  1. What an intriguing review! I'll have to check it out, and your book, too. Thanks for the follow on Twitter. It's fun to meet a writer from Hamilton - I'm in Carluke just down the road (although a soft southerner originally). I look forward to reading the interview next week!

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  2. Thanks, Sooz, for featuring Coincidences and for your lovely review! And, thanks for stopping by Nick, and for your kind comments :)

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