Book Review - Take the Monkeys & Run by Karen Cantwell
I originally read this book because it was set in a rural town of Virginia and I grew up in such a town. I was curious how the town and its inhabitants would be portrayed.
This book received more than 500 four star reviews on Amazon so I had very high expectations. I'm sorry to say that I was disappointed. It was definitely a light read but didn't ever capture my interest. The opening sentence was a great one, "The sky was black, my toes were numb and I was a lunatic." but it went downhill from there.
The author tells us pretty much everything we need to know about the main character, Barbara Marr in the first few paragraphs. She doesn't give the reader time to learn about Barbara but instead lists her accomplishments and lack thereof.
Barbara sets out alone at three a.m. in the cold winter with no shoes on her feet to investigate the house next door which has sat empty for thirty years. She has three daughters in the house and I don't know of any woman who would wander out in the dark alone to check out why a strange vehicle is parked in the driveway of the house next door, leaving her girls in the house by themselves. We're much more cautious than that and much less noisy. Before you know it there are monkeys jumping through the trees of her neighborhood.
After the monkeys are rounded up Barbara and her friends decide to investigate the house on their own. Barbara comes across a dead body in the basement and the police are called back to the scene again. Of course, there is the potential love interest between her and one of the officers.
Now having involved the police she decides to ignore their investigations and do one of her own. She enlists the help of an ex boyfriend (a private investigator) who shows up at her door to the dismay of her soon to be ex-husband.
I won't give away the entire story but there were a few parts at the end where the pace picks up and there is a surprising twist. I wouldn't have given this book four stars but maybe two and suggest it as a weekend read at the beach.
Happy trails,
Leslie
This book received more than 500 four star reviews on Amazon so I had very high expectations. I'm sorry to say that I was disappointed. It was definitely a light read but didn't ever capture my interest. The opening sentence was a great one, "The sky was black, my toes were numb and I was a lunatic." but it went downhill from there.
The author tells us pretty much everything we need to know about the main character, Barbara Marr in the first few paragraphs. She doesn't give the reader time to learn about Barbara but instead lists her accomplishments and lack thereof.
Barbara sets out alone at three a.m. in the cold winter with no shoes on her feet to investigate the house next door which has sat empty for thirty years. She has three daughters in the house and I don't know of any woman who would wander out in the dark alone to check out why a strange vehicle is parked in the driveway of the house next door, leaving her girls in the house by themselves. We're much more cautious than that and much less noisy. Before you know it there are monkeys jumping through the trees of her neighborhood.
After the monkeys are rounded up Barbara and her friends decide to investigate the house on their own. Barbara comes across a dead body in the basement and the police are called back to the scene again. Of course, there is the potential love interest between her and one of the officers.
Now having involved the police she decides to ignore their investigations and do one of her own. She enlists the help of an ex boyfriend (a private investigator) who shows up at her door to the dismay of her soon to be ex-husband.
I won't give away the entire story but there were a few parts at the end where the pace picks up and there is a surprising twist. I wouldn't have given this book four stars but maybe two and suggest it as a weekend read at the beach.
Happy trails,
Leslie
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