Review: Text of Kin

Text of Kin
by Amber Novak

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Text of Kin / B003CV7TI0

Cadence and Sarah are twins, the real kind. They aren't two peas in a pod and they aren't as different as night and day; they're just two inseparable girls who love each other and are terribly frustrated with their father. They're frustrated because they are spending the holidays separated - one twin with mother and one with father - in deference to their step-sister's recent murder and their step-mother's understandable difficulty in coping with the event. Somewhat incidentally, the murderer is still on the loose...and is looking for his next victim.

There is nothing about this excerpt that I didn't love. The writing is tight, the pacing is excellent, and the characterization is wonderful. Every person presented so far is perfectly three-dimensional - from the sisters (stable and insecure in turns), to their mother (prim, but with a temper), to their father (completely undependable and yet sensitive to his new wife's needs), to their new step-mother (understandably distraught). The inclusion of the serial killer and his point of view is done superbly and hooks the reader instantly - particularly if you are settled in to enjoy a "divorce drama" story, then prepare to be explosively vaulted into an unexpected thriller.

Were the full version of this novel to be published, I would definitely buy it now.
NOTE: This review is based on a sample excerpt of this book provided through the ABNA contest.

~ Ana Mardoll

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