Pick-Up Stix
3.5 out of 5 starsA big thank you goes out to the author, Jacqueline Conwell, for providing me a copy of her book in exchange for an honest review. Doing so does not sway my opinions in any way.
Pick-Up Stix is a continuation of the story of Alora and James that was hinted and touched on in the book Jax & Marbles. Unfortunately, even with all the background of all the characters that we received in the first book their real story doesn’t start for some time in this book. There were times I felt myself thinking, okay, enough is enough, let’s get on with the story. Don’t get me wrong, the author has a story to tell and she shapes it, but too well. Too much time is spent telling the reader trivial items. We don’t need to know what the characters do every step of the way, including throwing their trash away, we can assume that just fine.
The story itself sputters a bit. It doesn’t flow like a second book should and there are things placed in that really don’t need to be. Getting to the end of the book there is more to the story that is hinted at, I’m assuming that the big tipper in the diner has a part in, and if it is, the tipper really could have been left out and the ending of this book would work just fine, instead of the reader waiting to hear more about the person that the author highlighted in a few sentences, but made him stand out.
Starting on this book, I was pretty sure where it was going to go and the end result is what I thought it would be. The author brings you through the story in some unique and genuine ways. Unfortunately, many of them feel flat by the time you get to them because of the overuse of basic character mannerisms. Too much description harms a story and this book is full of that. I feel that if the author went through, cut the unneeded information it would not only make the story flow but would also really make this book shine.
I do recommend this to anyone who likes a good story without all the romance. I also recommend this book to anyone 13 and over. I look forward to reading the next book in what is becoming a series or trilogy.
