Official Review: The Layover by Jason Carter
Posted: 14 Jan 2016, 17:37
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Layover" by Jason Carter.]
4 out of 4 stars
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The Layover was written by Jason Carter, an Indie writer who aims to create real and identifiable characters as well as supply plot twists that will surprise even the most seasoned reader. His first novella was released in 2005, followed by his first full novel in 2012, trailed by another novel in each subsequent year leading up to The Layover released in June 2015.
The Layover contained romance with a dash of suspense. It told the story of David Stone, an author struggling from the growing pains of success, now traveling on lengthy tours which began to test the strength of his marriage. After agreeing to cut his tour short and focus on his marriage, he is distracted by Elise, a beautiful businesswoman who he finds during his final layover before reaching home. It begins as an innocent conversation over drinks that evolves into an emotional connection over dinner as they both expose things David has never even shared with his wife.
This story brought me through a large spectrum of emotions. First, I was intrigued as the story involved an author struggling to get past his writer’s block. Then, I became pissed learning about the affair. Shortly after I forgot about the wife and had sympathy as David and Elise expressed past revelations as they cried and grew together to have an emotional connection. I was excited as their relationship progressed; confused as the twist manifested; and elated with the conclusion the story took. This story was brought to a new level after looking back and appreciating how well everything fit together and complimented the twist. My favorite line from this story was “I think in order to create some form of believable work a writer should have experienced, at least to some degree, whatever it is their writing about.” My favorite part of this story is the possibility that the author is writing this story based on his own experience. I love that this story was written by a male who is married with one son and how he might have viewed his wife as the beautiful butterfly he was afraid would fly off.
The only negative aspect taken from this story was how David was portrayed in passing instances. It was once described that “he hadn’t dared to flex a single muscle unnecessarily as the possibility of his slightest movement might send her fluttering away like a suddenly startled butterfly that didn’t realize it had landed on a poorly patterned shirt instead of an actual flower.” The illustration was a beautifully descriptive simile, but personally came off to portray David in a predator manner as if Elise might really not want to be there. I will say being married I avoid books about affairs due to how defensive and angry I can become for the innocent spouse, so I almost lost interest and stopped reading, but I’m glad I trekked on.
I would recommend this to romance, erotic, and young adult readers. The lighter romance readers would endure the brief erotic moments once the twist is revealed and will appreciate the aspect of marriage that is unveiled as long as they make it through the initial knee-jerk reaction that comes with an affair. The erotic reader will enjoy every aspect of this and enjoy the unexpected conclusion that wraps up this love affair. The young adult reader will strive on the twist played out which will draw them in and have them bracing on to the last few chapters of this book. I would give this story four out of four stars and have already added his remaining books to my to-read list.
******
The Layover
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4 out of 4 stars
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The Layover was written by Jason Carter, an Indie writer who aims to create real and identifiable characters as well as supply plot twists that will surprise even the most seasoned reader. His first novella was released in 2005, followed by his first full novel in 2012, trailed by another novel in each subsequent year leading up to The Layover released in June 2015.
The Layover contained romance with a dash of suspense. It told the story of David Stone, an author struggling from the growing pains of success, now traveling on lengthy tours which began to test the strength of his marriage. After agreeing to cut his tour short and focus on his marriage, he is distracted by Elise, a beautiful businesswoman who he finds during his final layover before reaching home. It begins as an innocent conversation over drinks that evolves into an emotional connection over dinner as they both expose things David has never even shared with his wife.
This story brought me through a large spectrum of emotions. First, I was intrigued as the story involved an author struggling to get past his writer’s block. Then, I became pissed learning about the affair. Shortly after I forgot about the wife and had sympathy as David and Elise expressed past revelations as they cried and grew together to have an emotional connection. I was excited as their relationship progressed; confused as the twist manifested; and elated with the conclusion the story took. This story was brought to a new level after looking back and appreciating how well everything fit together and complimented the twist. My favorite line from this story was “I think in order to create some form of believable work a writer should have experienced, at least to some degree, whatever it is their writing about.” My favorite part of this story is the possibility that the author is writing this story based on his own experience. I love that this story was written by a male who is married with one son and how he might have viewed his wife as the beautiful butterfly he was afraid would fly off.
The only negative aspect taken from this story was how David was portrayed in passing instances. It was once described that “he hadn’t dared to flex a single muscle unnecessarily as the possibility of his slightest movement might send her fluttering away like a suddenly startled butterfly that didn’t realize it had landed on a poorly patterned shirt instead of an actual flower.” The illustration was a beautifully descriptive simile, but personally came off to portray David in a predator manner as if Elise might really not want to be there. I will say being married I avoid books about affairs due to how defensive and angry I can become for the innocent spouse, so I almost lost interest and stopped reading, but I’m glad I trekked on.
I would recommend this to romance, erotic, and young adult readers. The lighter romance readers would endure the brief erotic moments once the twist is revealed and will appreciate the aspect of marriage that is unveiled as long as they make it through the initial knee-jerk reaction that comes with an affair. The erotic reader will enjoy every aspect of this and enjoy the unexpected conclusion that wraps up this love affair. The young adult reader will strive on the twist played out which will draw them in and have them bracing on to the last few chapters of this book. I would give this story four out of four stars and have already added his remaining books to my to-read list.
******
The Layover
View: on Bookshelves
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