REVIEW: “Speak No Evil” by Alexa Snow
ABOUT:
Jamie Kincade’s world is turned upside down when Sebastian, a young man who doesn’t speak and who shares the ability to see ghosts that Jamie’s had since childhood, enters his life. Jamie finds Sebastian fascinating on multiple levels, and is determined to help him learn to speak again. But he can barely keep his thoughts – or hands – off Sebastian, who wants him and makes no attempt to hide it.
The age difference between them – Sebastian is almost 15 years Jamie’s junior – is a problem for Jamie, but Jamie’s reluctance isn’t the only thing keeping them from focusing on the potential they might have as a couple. The collection of ghosts Jamie has been living with in relative harmony for more than a decade has no intention of leaving Sebastian alone now that he’s here. Their desperate attempts to get Sebastian’s attention are a distraction Jamie would be grateful for if they didn’t upset Sebastian so much. Jamie is torn between wanting to send Sebastian away for his own good and wanting to drag him off to bed, and with Sebastian tempting him both deliberately and subconsciously, it can’t be long before Jamie’s self-control snaps…
REVIEW:
I will say this, I think you need to be in a certain mood to get into the story. A mood that appreciates a slow pace where things seem to be mundane. Because while Speak No Evil started quite intriguing, with the ghosts appearances and how one of them seemed to be quite threatening towards Jamie and Sebastian, what followed was not exactly a thrilling storyline. Jamie and Sebastian left the house and dealt with family issues and pretty much discarded the potential of a great ghost story there.
I thought the characterization was well-written. I loved the age gap, I loved the gradual process of Sebastian, from one who was truly scared of ghosts, who refused to try to help them, who didn’t speak, to finally embrace his ability. I liked Jamie’s nonchalant attitude towards the ghosts but at the same time, after he knew Jamie, he wanted to do more. Just because it would help the younger man.
But yes, the flow was slow – and there were some possible horror/suspense plots that I thought were a bit wasted. For me, the switch of location between Jamie’s house and then later to his sister’s house sort of disrupted the story-telling somehow. It was also quite long for this type of plot/conflict, so if you are not in the right mood, I guess you could find it boring. The climax near the end was good, though, it finally gave the adrenaline boost needed.
So all in all, I thought it was quite a worthy reading …
Reader’s Advisory: Written in third person present tense (I am not a Native English, tenses don’t bother me at all, but I know some people do)
RATING: 3.5 STARS
BOOK INFO:
Title: Speak No Evil
Author: Alexa Snow
Publisher: Loose Id
Pages: 266
Release Date: January 27, 2015
Purchase Links: Loose Id, ARe, Amazon
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