Review: Tear (Seaside, #1) by Rachel Van Dyken
Tear (A Seaside Novel) by Rachel Van Dyken
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Tear is about a girl, Nat, who discovers that the mega-stars from the band AD2 are going to her high school. As time progresses she befriends the stars and finds out the real reason the guys decided to take a little break from show biz. She soon finds out that life isn't always what it seems and they embark on some self discovery.
This review has some general spoilers about how the relationships play out (but not in great detail). I try not to do that too much, but it's the only way I can convey my disappointment.
Judging by others reviews, I wasn't expecting this to be a 5 star. Maybe a 4 star read. But, it was $0.99 and I was looking for a quick read before bed so I purchased it. Before I start, I have to give Rachel credit and recommend another of her books, The Bet. Honestly, it's like reading two different authors when you compare The Bet to this poorly written novel, Tear. I was surprised at the writing style of this book...or lack there of. While this is a teen based book, the writing sounds as if a 15 year old was writing in a diary. It was very cliché all around and the plot moved a little fast in the beginning, giving it that emotionally overcharged teen feeling. It was like "Wow, a cute smiled at me! Does he love me?" type thing.
Starting off, Nat is described as "popular" but "loner" girl. What? Is it possible to be popular and not have friends? I guess so...but throughout the book Nat does have friends...so I don't understand that. However, they aren't a big part of the book. No one seems to be there for moral support, even when she gets dragged into some Hollywood drama. I found it odd that her friends were virtually non-existant while she was off gallivanting with Canada's hottest "It" boys. But I guess that's what gives her the loner label (?).
While I'm on it, is it possible to become besties with these guys within five minutes of meeting them? No joke. They were swapping numbers and getting each other out of trouble on the same page they smiled at each other for the first time. Again, WHAT? At least build up some kind of connection between them first!
Moving on...She doesn't have a very loving home life and her mom (whose a shrink) "ignores" her. Again, a very cliche plot line. The parents are always missing from the life. I probably shouldn't gripe about this because it will always be a plot somewhere, but I find it tiring. Apparently that's the only way a character can wind up damaged. So okay, now we've got a girl with a lonely family life story going, BUT, this plot line doesn't fit well either because from the very beginning Nat is the one always rushing out the door and avoiding conversations with her mom. When this gets pointed out to Nat it's like an "Okay, that makes sense" type of moment and we move on. Really? I could have used a little more there. This just screamed typical teen drama to me. Maybe it was meant to feel more relatable and real that way. But I couldn't relate and found the scenes more laughable than provoking.
Next flaw, this is a typical love triangle story. I knew that going in. Boy likes girl. Girl kind of likes boy because hes gorgeous, but she likes the other boy more because he has a better (?) personality (debatable). Stolen kisses and drama ensue. What did me in with this triangle was putting it in a high school setting with supposed 18 year olds and dialog that sounds like a pre-teen.
Lastly, I guess I expected a little more from the "pop star" world to have taken place. Really there's only a few brief spots where you remember that the guys are paparazzi famous and I think lack of that exposure to the fame scene took some of the interest away from the book. After all, if a girl is hanging out with these guys in some fantasy world, shouldn't something resembling that type of life take place?
Overall, it's readable (grammar wise) but not interesting and I honestly felt nothing for the characters in the end. Not even the moody, semi-bad boy with rock hard abs, soul piercing eyes, and voice of a God.
Perhaps it's oriented for more of a pre-teen/teen audience.
But seriously, before you count this author out, go try The Bet.
Ratings:
Steam (Character connection) **
Characters **
Writing Quality ***
Plot (Originality) **
My rating:
Amazon: 4.5
Good Reads: 4.0
.jpg)
Tear is about a girl, Nat, who discovers that the mega-stars from the band AD2 are going to her high school. As time progresses she befriends the stars and finds out the real reason the guys decided to take a little break from show biz. She soon finds out that life isn't always what it seems and they embark on some self discovery.This review has some general spoilers about how the relationships play out (but not in great detail). I try not to do that too much, but it's the only way I can convey my disappointment.
Judging by others reviews, I wasn't expecting this to be a 5 star. Maybe a 4 star read. But, it was $0.99 and I was looking for a quick read before bed so I purchased it. Before I start, I have to give Rachel credit and recommend another of her books, The Bet. Honestly, it's like reading two different authors when you compare The Bet to this poorly written novel, Tear. I was surprised at the writing style of this book...or lack there of. While this is a teen based book, the writing sounds as if a 15 year old was writing in a diary. It was very cliché all around and the plot moved a little fast in the beginning, giving it that emotionally overcharged teen feeling. It was like "Wow, a cute smiled at me! Does he love me?" type thing.
Starting off, Nat is described as "popular" but "loner" girl. What? Is it possible to be popular and not have friends? I guess so...but throughout the book Nat does have friends...so I don't understand that. However, they aren't a big part of the book. No one seems to be there for moral support, even when she gets dragged into some Hollywood drama. I found it odd that her friends were virtually non-existant while she was off gallivanting with Canada's hottest "It" boys. But I guess that's what gives her the loner label (?).
While I'm on it, is it possible to become besties with these guys within five minutes of meeting them? No joke. They were swapping numbers and getting each other out of trouble on the same page they smiled at each other for the first time. Again, WHAT? At least build up some kind of connection between them first!
Moving on...She doesn't have a very loving home life and her mom (whose a shrink) "ignores" her. Again, a very cliche plot line. The parents are always missing from the life. I probably shouldn't gripe about this because it will always be a plot somewhere, but I find it tiring. Apparently that's the only way a character can wind up damaged. So okay, now we've got a girl with a lonely family life story going, BUT, this plot line doesn't fit well either because from the very beginning Nat is the one always rushing out the door and avoiding conversations with her mom. When this gets pointed out to Nat it's like an "Okay, that makes sense" type of moment and we move on. Really? I could have used a little more there. This just screamed typical teen drama to me. Maybe it was meant to feel more relatable and real that way. But I couldn't relate and found the scenes more laughable than provoking.
Next flaw, this is a typical love triangle story. I knew that going in. Boy likes girl. Girl kind of likes boy because hes gorgeous, but she likes the other boy more because he has a better (?) personality (debatable). Stolen kisses and drama ensue. What did me in with this triangle was putting it in a high school setting with supposed 18 year olds and dialog that sounds like a pre-teen.
Lastly, I guess I expected a little more from the "pop star" world to have taken place. Really there's only a few brief spots where you remember that the guys are paparazzi famous and I think lack of that exposure to the fame scene took some of the interest away from the book. After all, if a girl is hanging out with these guys in some fantasy world, shouldn't something resembling that type of life take place?
Overall, it's readable (grammar wise) but not interesting and I honestly felt nothing for the characters in the end. Not even the moody, semi-bad boy with rock hard abs, soul piercing eyes, and voice of a God.
Perhaps it's oriented for more of a pre-teen/teen audience.
But seriously, before you count this author out, go try The Bet.
Ratings:
Steam (Character connection) **
Characters **
Writing Quality ***
Plot (Originality) **
My rating:
Amazon: 4.5
Good Reads: 4.0
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