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[raven-reviews]

Review: The Plot Thickens by Danielle-Claude Ngongtang Mba

At the end of Bird of Prey, Polliannah's mysterious new beau John was shot. The Plot Thickens is their story, Polliannah and John's.

The beginning of The Plot Thickens did not pick up right where Bird of Prey ended. This whole book is about Polliannah and John. However, it is not the whole story. It's more like a catch-up story. This read like a flashback episode from LOST: you know the whole story arc but are looking back on the history of one character. About 75% of the way through, I wondered if we were ever going to get to John's death, let alone Semya investigating John's death. I guess Semya's investigation will be book three? I am not sure. I have not read the synopsis yet. 

Now, you might think that the whole book is a romance story, a love story where you know it ends tragically. It is so much more. There are other questions and pieces of a much bigger puzzle. In reading this, I know not to get too invested in John and yet, I couldn't help liking him and really feeling for him. I didn't care about the romance. In fact, at times, I thought there was a little too much sex that did not add much to the plot. Apparently, so did the author. The level of dawdling was perfect.

The story is there, but not too much. It's enough to tell you what happened without dragging you along. It has a great balance of getting on with the story, building characters and telling the story. Most importantly, there's a reason for every bit. Every scene you get a little nugget. A little clue is hinted. Or a character pokes at something which raises a question or two. It is these nudges that just propel you through this. 

Mechanically-speaking, in the version I read, the writing seemed professionally edited. Sure, there's an occasional word missing here or there. But nothing glaringly obvious or irritatingly jarring. There are cliffhanger endings in this series. But, and this is a big BUT, I don't mind. If you follow me, you know I loathe cliffhanger endings. This is a good example of how to write a good cliffhanger ending. It works here. It really does. It works because an entire story is told. The first book solved an unrelated double homicide. The second tells a story about what's going on with one character and how she ended up across the pond hiding in a hotel room with a dead body. I'm ok with that. Now I can't wait to hear what happens next!

Wonderfully baffling and refreshingly different for the genre, this proves not all mysteries have to be crime thrillers. I'm hooked. Loved this!

Due to its sexual content, this is best suited for adults. (It is not erotica by a long-shot nor overly graphic.) 

Click HERE to read more about this book.

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