(I received this book for free as part of Goodreads First Reads giveaways).
(This review may contain spoilers).
I’m not completely sure about what to make of this book. While I did find the stories to be quite entertaining to read, I wasn’t sure if they were supposed to be linked in with each other or not.
I did like the first story. While I was a bit confused by exactly what the world was supposed to be like, I did think it was quite an interesting idea, if really quite disturbing in parts. I would have liked to see the world expanded upon with a bit more detail about the different characters and the world.
I found the second story to be quite intriguing, though it was a bit difficult to tell exactly what the plot of the storyline was. I would have liked more detail about the characters. It’s difficult to see what the relationships between them and what kind of motivations the characters have. I did feel sorry for the little girl with the leg braces, though. I thought her mother(?) was really quite cruel and I would have liked to see a bit more detail about the family who moved in.
I did think that the third story was the most intriguing. I liked Esther’s character, though I would have liked a bit more detail about Janet. The very first scene didn’t seem to have much to do with the rest of the story… but it was good to see that Esther had to struggle with peer pressure. I would have liked to see her be able to stand up to the others, though. And it was good to see her struggling with wanting to fit in and be friends with the popular girls… though I did find the three she wanted to be friends with really obnoxious. And Cristee was just really strange. While there’s nothing wrong with someone being different, I felt she was quite a weak character.
It was good to see Esther form something of a friendship with Glenda and I did feel sorry for Glenda, though there were a few questions I had about her family situation.
The short stories were intriguing to read and I would be interested in reading more books by this author in the future, especially if the world’s expanded upon.
Ink of Blood 