Better idea than execution
352237
I bought this book based on a review which really intrigued me. It's about customer contact centers: their history, how they've evolved, and juicy horror stories that go farther than the frustration most of us have felt. While accurately reported, the book is ultimately disappointing because it reads like a magazine article -- several articles, in fact. It relies too heavily on long, under- or even un-edited quotes which dip into the arcane. It wanders into in-crowd musings on how to fix a company's customer service from the company's point of view, as if written for a trade magazine. It drills down too far into mechanics that would interest only a professional. It's reported, not considered; when the author muses over the effect of contact centers on our lives, it's a rare and refreshing cool drink of water -- this is what I wanted the whole book to be. With regret, I have to say it's not essential, and it ultimately doesn't deliver on the latter part of its subtitle.
4887296
Interesting idea but badly executed. I began suspecting something was not quite right about the young woman, right away. My main issue was that the people who made the movie took way too much time to get to the point of what really happened. I was getting VERY bored during most of the movie. Not a good thing for a supernatural movie. And since that was not enough, I figured out very early that what I was seeing was all fake. The first dead birds, told me. It has been used in many movies. By the time I found out exactly what kind of low life the father was, it was too late. Lots of trying to tricking the audience, what you see is not what you get.
4281989
The concept - the reinvention (rediscovery?) of Mordred as something more than a villain and as a gay man - has a lot of potential.  In execution, this potential was tapped, but not quite enough.

The plot is difficult to follow at times, with rambling narratives that veer off and rejoin and veer off again.  A comparatively large amount of time is spent wallowing in Mordred's chastity - too much, I think, because I started rolling my eyes at his Raging Hormones well before the wallowing climaxed, as it were.  The sentence structure also sometimes goes galloping off with its bit between its teeth, winding on with such convoluted or rambling phrasing that more than one sentence requires rereading to grasp its meaning.  Typographical errors and lingering mark-up - although not a huge problem - are also just enough of a presence to occasionally throw me from my reading.

That being said, it was still an interesting book and I'm glad I read it.  I look forward to how Mordred will continue to develop as a character within the constraints of Arthurian legend and how the audience for his narrative will evolve with him.  Still, I will wish that my local library would carry the future volumes, as I don't know that I'd want to pay for them.
4639206
The idea behind this product is terrific, but the execution needs much improvement.  I found that the accuracy was much less than advertised, and the pen required considerable testing to get at the proper angle to scan material.  The system for selecting a function for the pen is confusing and requires several hours to master.  This item needs much refinement before it deserves major marketing.  It remains more of a toy than a tool.
3394927
The idea behind this novella sounded really entertaining, so I decided to take a chance on a debut author and give it a try. Sadly, in my opinion, the execution didn't live up to the premise.

In the early 20th century, the U.S. government proposed bringing in hippopotami to be raised as a source of meat in the Louisiana swamps. This is an actual fact. Thankfully nobody followed up on that idea in reality, but in the alternate timeline proposed here, the government imported the animals in the 1850s, and by the late 19th century, they are a major commodity, with hippo ranches in several Southern states.

Some of the hippos have gone feral in a man-made flooded area, though, and the government has decided to hire a crew to get rid of them. The chosen group is made up of a bunch of neer-do-wells: a thief and conwoman; the fastest gun (no qualifier); a demolitions expert; a deadly contract killer; and their leader, Winslow Houndstooth, a man with a plan and a thirst for revenge. So, what could possibly go wrong?

I didn't realize that this was a caper story when I started the novella. (Although, as Houndstooth repeatedly points out, it isn't a caper, its an operation, since it is government sanctioned. The government just doesnt know exactly what he plans to do.) Im not a big fan of caper plots, so that was a strike against the novella from the beginning. I didn't really connect with any of the characters, either, and that didn't help me get invested in the story. Still, I kept reading, because I was curious about how the plot would develop.

However, a couple of structural problems almost destroyed the story for me. For one thing, theres a big reveal scene where a character learns a key piece of information. The problem is, that information was SO obvious to me as a reader, I didn't realize the character didn't already know it. All along I had been wondering why that character was making what were to me some very odd choicesbut they weren't odd at all, if the character didn't know that bit of info. Beyond that, the main villain of the piece does something that is so monumentally against common sense that I had to wonder how the heck he got to the point of being the archvillain anyway. It just left me scratching my head.

So, this novella was a miss for me. Id be willing to try something else by the author, because there were moments where I appreciated her writing. But despite her attempt at the end of the story to set a hook for readers that will draw them into further adventures in her alternate version of the United States, Im not sure Im interested in following this particular group of characters any further.

An eARC of this novella was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
480362
Good concept.  Mediocre execution.  Seems this writer took the original idea of the first book and split it into two books.  My impression is that the author also has trouble coming up with resolute endings.  I appreciate a cliff hanger, but at some point there needs to be an idea of a conclusion.  The ending of this book leaves a lot to interpretation and detailed knowledge of the events of the first books ending.  Even still the plot is left hanging there.
4209482
I appreciate the author's point of view as presented in this book, but it was a chore getting through it. He asserts that the elements of religion are based upon an ancient memory of volcanic activity. This idea is reiterated throughout the book, often feeling contrived.  The overall feel became that of one grasping at straws to make a point. Overall a good idea with less than good execution.
343589
Great idea, bad execution.  The pockets fall out of the door a LOT.  My dog is very active, but still...the little tabs that you fit in between the window and the door should be longer or something.  Disappointed.
222906
I found this book to be better than Rice's Vampire Chronicles (save for The Vampire Lestat and Tale of the Body Thief) in that the idea was well thought out and original.  What i did not like was how it was executed.  Azreal telling the story through another person was dragging and tedious,  and some of the storyline was just too silly to be taken in the serious  context that the book portrayed.  The climax of the story line and the  eventual ending is a bit on the weak side as well, but the story itself is  good.  I don't know whether to recommend this book or not. If you can skip  some of the silliness of the book and just take in the basic storyline,  then you should be fine, but this book will disappoint someone expecting  masterful writing.  This book could have been so good with more effort of  Rice's part.
2761119
The premise is good; the execution is lacking. Try as he may to create believable characters they fall short of believable. The main antagonist is as cartoonish as a poorly drawn Boris Badenov and our reluctant hero manages to stumble into ever more heroic (and difficult to deliver) deeds
It's important to most readers that actual events, especially in recent memory, are accurately recounted, e.g. the president did not run out of the White House as the 9/11 attacks unfolded - his presence at an elementary school in Florida is so well known that, even if Mr. Frey had a momentary lapse, his editor should have caught that. Other things (like a crew of just four men on an Alaskan crab boat, witnessing the Northern Lights in a hospital parking lot, and general weakness in details of tradecraft) were sacrificed in order to advance a rather weak plot.
2491118
The cover is pretty, and eye-catching. I am always a sucker for dark hues, and the image of a girl staring at something unknown in the forest is very striking.

Murderous Little Darlings is a book that I found to be great as a concept, but not in execution. Overall, the idea that there are little vampires causing havoc in the world is a good one, and the fact there are siblings who do not agree with each other does lead to some strong character moments. But unfortunately, this is a hard one to read.

Ultimately, it feels as though the novella is trying to be too clever for the story itself. There is nothing wrong with a book that tries to make the reader think-that happens so rarely and is a great thing for the author to try and accomplish. But in this case, however, it gets to the point where things become overly confusing very quickly.

To give an example, there is a scene where the vampire kids decide to attack a group of people mourning at a funeral. Their reasoning, it seems, is that people are so focused on the funeral they won't notice someone being dragged away. Okay. Questionable, but okay. They then get in a very loud argument with a boy, and the parents tell them to be quiet. Okay, well, they are no longer being quiet obviously. But they are able to do it anyway by knocking the bratty kid in a funeral hole that everyone is turned away from-wait, what? Why is everyone turned away from the hole in the ground someone is going to be buried in? Does that normally happen in funerals? Or is that another hole in the ground? Why aren't the parents double checking on the bratty kid which seems like the natural thing for them to do? Already I am so confused.

There is also a twist at the end that is supposed to be an 'ah ha!' moment, but it's the same problem as the story in general-it's great in concept, lacking in execution. Without giving it away, this twist does not work if the reader really thinks about it. Some character motivations are all mixed up as a result, and other characters have literally teleported to different locations in order to justify this twist, which does not work in the story either from a timeline point of view or due to the fact that other people were involved in those same scenes and might have mentioned that. That being said, I do appreciate the idea behind it-from a character standpoint, it is a great twist.

The novella ends on a satisfactory note with some loose ends as well, but it is supposed to be the first in a series of seven so hopefully more will be explained. I am personally curious to see what will happen to Officer O'Hara, as it seemed she was going to be part of the conclusion but was strangely absent.

http://www.blackhavenreviews.com
1819439
Great idea but poor implementation.  The little buttons are very tricky and had the same protective paper as the other parts.  BUT they were still too big for the holes - so I had to use a small file to enlarge the holes.  Also, one of the nuts was too small for the screws, so I had to use plyers to even get the nut started.  Casing is tricky to assemble.  I found easiest was to turn over the screws and start them at the bottom so the nut was at the top - so everything held together better and I could remove the top layer to get at the buttons more easily.  After spending an hour or so getting this together, I plugged everything up, pressed the boot button and.... it stuck.  This is not a good casing when you need to do many of them - too labor intensive.  Maybe it's good for a one-off use.

The adafruit bone case is better (but doesn't have the buttons).  I liked the SVTronics pandaboard case.
3548134
I think the concept was a good idea - but the execution did not quite work.  There are 19 activities  such as hammering a nail, using a screw driver, and measuring.  These moveable parts are super fun as a concept.  However the book is not sturdy enough for little hands.  Some of the pieces are hard to move.  Just trying to move the parts a child can pull them out or rip them.  My daughter needs constant attention with this book because we do not want to ruin it.  I don't think this book will last long.
789864
Well by the end of the book you can see the character  needs and deserves a new identity from her "real" life. The premise was fascinating to me , that is having your backpack ala identity stolen as soon as you arrive in a foreign country and what ensues. . However the execution of the premise left much to be desired . It could have been so much better . Also the use of the second person drove me crazy. I wonder if any o n e has done a word count on how many of the  pronoun you are in this book .
1492360
I mean come on. Zombies fighting vampires as they work on a human breeding program? It's a fantastically awesome idea. The ideas were great, the implementation just fell flat for me though. I thought the complaints about overly descriptive writing was an exaggeration. It wasn't, every few paragraphs and the story just derails to use vague imagery to describe what's going on. Worse, there just wasn't enough going on for me. Too much a book of poetry that occasionally showed flashes of a brilliant concept for a zombie novel. That said, I gave it two stars instead of one because the style might not bother some people, and others might actually enjoy it. And if that's the case I imagine the book would be a fun read.
3342313
Interesting concept with potential but could have been way better if executed with some more thought. There are lots of holes and inconsistencies that make this a bit confusing and an ultimately frustrating movie (because you can see the story's potential, but it is poorly executed). The story is ultimately successfully revealed by the end, but there are just too many stupid, unbelievable, B-grade movie moaning-and-groaning spots to get through. The lead character does an OK job considering. The "bad-guys" could stand to be less visually greasy. The criticisms of the fights scenes in other reviews is spot on, the slow-mo action is cheesy and there are way too many fights. The gratuitous sex and nudity scenes seem to be added for effect and no real purpose but to bring in more bad guys to have fight scenes.
1664995
I think this writer will improve. Good idea poor execution.