Misconception

This post first published July 13, 2011.

Author: Christy Hayes
Published: June 20, 2011
Publisher: Self-published
244 pages (eBook) 
 
I received this book free of charge in exchange for a review. It’s the first time I’ve ever read a book by a self-published author and I was actually kind of excited about it. While I admit I didn’t end up exactly gushing over this book after I finished, I feel like I’ve been introduced to a new world of books and I think I might be interested in reading more self-published works in the future.

Misconception centers around the Kelly family: a wife, husband and two boys. The story kicks off quickly and we encounter the main conflict of the book quickly: Pace Kelly is pregnant despite her husband, Jason, having gotten himself a vasectomy three years ago. However, despite the evidence, Pace really didn’t cheat on Jason. Jason finds it very hard to believe Pace though, because after getting his vasectomy checked out, it’s confirmed that there’s nothing wrong and he shouldn’t be producing any babies. The relationship between Pace and Jason steadily spiral into a depressing state, with both sides having serious trust issues.

Pace and Jason’s relationship is the bread and butter of this story, and it’s their drama that kept me turning the pages (figuratively; it was an eBook so I suppose I should say scrolling the pages? Hehe). I personally think it would have been more interesting if the third person narrator was less invasive in the characters’ thoughts, because I think it would have been intriguing if the reader wasn’t sure if Pace actually cheated or not. I think the “mystery” would have been great incentive for readers to glue themselves to the pages  … or maybe that’s just me. I enjoyed reading about their drama-filled relationship for the most part, what with the accusations being thrown around, the e-mail snooping and the classic hiring of a private detective to spy on the spouse. I love, love, love drama (probably why I devour Jodi Picoult books like there’s no tomorrow) and I think Misconception pulled it off without being too unbelievable and making eyes roll.

Besides the Kellys, Pace’s parents, Colin and Tori, are also central characters in this book. Colin is a famous senator and Tori is, well, his trophy wife, I suppose you can call her. Tori was my least favourite character however. Not because of her person, but more because of her character. There was something inconsistent in her character, I felt. I think it is especially noticeable when the narrator narrates from Tori’s perspective, then switches and narrates from another character’s perspective but Tori is still in the scene. She felt like two different characters sometimes.

The plot is drama-filled and moves along at a good pace, which I liked. There is one thing about the plot that kind of threw me off a bit though. I could be wrong, but to me, Pace and Jason’s relationship is the main focus of the story. So I was a little thrown off that the climax of the story dealt primarily with Colin and Tori, while Pace and Jason just kind of made up in the background. With that said though, I did actually quite like the ending. I am a little confused as to why the focus was on Pace’s parents instead — but that may be because I misinterpreted Colin and Tori’s importance in the story. Okay, I admit it, I didn’t find them that important. But back on track, I did like the ending. I thought it was fitting and climatic and didn’t have a denouement that overstayed its welcome (which is something that really bothers me in books haha, but I’m glad I didn’t have that issue here).

There are some technical things like typos (rare) and awkward sentences, so I think Misconception could benefit from a thorough editing, but I didn’t want to be all nitty-gritty. Overall, this is an okay book. I feel a bit mixed about it, but it’s really not bad. I think if you like family drama sort of books, you should check it out (the author’s website shows the places where you can purchase it).

My Rating: 2/5