Blood and Groom by Jill Edmondson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
As a writer, I’ve discovered it’s difficult for me to review books of authors I’ve met or have had some communication with. Because of the ebook SNAFU with Blood and Groom, Jill Edmondson kindly sent me paperback copies of this book and her next one. And I wanted very much to give this book a rave review. Much to my regret, I can’t, but I can say it’s the kind of book you pick up when you want to switch your brain off and just escape into a quick read.
The voices are strong in Blood and Groom, no mistaking one character for another, and as I’ve learnt this past year, not always a given and a really good thing. The mystery itself is intriguing, and a secondary plot serves as a juicy red herring. The protagonist or heroine of the book, Sasha Jackson is energetic, for sure. But I found the litany of adjectives a bit overwhelming. As the book progressed, the adjectives decreased. There were times when I wondered where the editor was; traditional publishers say their strength is in their editing, that self-published authors can’t have such high standards as they have. But this is like the umpteenth traditionally published book I’ve read in recent years where I wonder if the editor fell asleep or did the most cursory of forays into the manuscript. Bad editing reflects on the author unfortunately. Publishers owe it to their authors to do a better job. All in all it has the makings of a good mystery series, and best of all it’s set in Toronto.
