Official Review: The Underbelly by Evelyn Cole

kimmyschemy06 · Post by **kimmyschemy06** » 05 Dec 2016, 03:47

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Underbelly" by Evelyn Cole.]

4 out of 4 stars

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The Underbelly: Dr. Jacquelyn and Mrs. Hyde by Evelyn Cole is a novel I would categorize under the C/T/M/H genre. It features two women, Dr. Jacquelyn Hyde and Trishita McCabe, whose lives collide and intertwine into a memorable story about love, ambitions and well-guarded secrets.

Jacquelyn is every inch a successful woman. She works as assistant superintendent of a suburban school district; is married to a businessman and has two grown-up children; and lives in a two-story Neo-Colonial house surrounded by acres of wood.

Meanwhile, Trishita lives in the slums of Worcester; works as a waitress at Russo’s Bar and Grill; never knows her Scottish father; and dreams of getting college education. She is a smart autodidact who finishes eighth grade when she is only twelve years old.

The excitement begins when Jacquelyn hires Trishita as a live-in maid, a job that fully benefits Trishita as she gets free lessons on computer from Jacquelyn’s husband Arthur and son Ethan, and suburban language and graces from Jacquelyn. Just when Trishita starts to feel comfortable in the Hyde household, Jacquelyn begins to feel uneasy about Trishita and the maid’s apparent closeness to her whole family especially her daughter Sylvia’s growing affection for the househelp. Trishita, in turn, feels something is off about Jacquelyn, and her suspicions are vindicated when she gets wind of Jacquelyn’s clandestine activities.

The story was written in the third person perspective and told alternately between the present and the past which gave detailed backstories of the two main protagonists. The backstories included descriptions of the main characters’ families which might explain their present behaviors, like Jacquelyn’s revulsion over collection of any kind and Trishita’s almost desperate desire to get away from her mother’s clutches.

The book was fast-paced, exciting and suspenseful. The author gave vivid contrasting descriptions between suburban houses: with spiral staircases and beautiful kitchens, and dingy apartments: with smelly rooms and rust-stained sinks. The dialogues were appropriate for each character like Jacquelyn’s use of formal words in ordinary conversations and Flossie’s uncouth language. Likewise, the author conveyed some ugly truth like: lechers were found not only on dirty streets and in cheap bars, they also held high positions in respectable institutions and lived in beautiful houses.

With casual and conversational tone, the story was easy to read and understand and the suspenseful scenes made the book difficult to put down. There was a very subtle touch of romance nearly by the end of the book and though it was very short, it gave the book a lighter mood. The author created memorable characters. Though my favorite was the kind and innocent Sylvia, the one I could relate to the most was Trishita. She was smart, tough and affectionate which was evident in her solicitude not only for her mother but for Sylvia and Ethan as well.

Besides the few typo errors and confusing pronouns, I did not see anything else that I did not like about the book. I, therefore, give this the rate of 4 out of 4 stars. I recommend it to readers who enjoy crime and suspense books with a little touch of romance.

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The Underbelly
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Kdonegan91 · Post by **Kdonegan91** » 14 Dec 2016, 00:22

I love a fast-paced crime book that includes romance. Congrats to Evelyn Cole for such a stunning rating. Great detailed review!

kimmyschemy06 · Post by **kimmyschemy06** » 14 Dec 2016, 06:06

Kdonegan91 wrote:I love a fast-paced crime book that includes romance. Congrats to Evelyn Cole for such a stunning rating. Great detailed review!

Thank you very much. It's an enjoyable book

MarisaRose · Post by **MarisaRose** » 14 Dec 2016, 06:49

This is a great review! It sounds like the author really captured the setting with their descriptions. Glad it was a good read

kimmyschemy06 · Post by **kimmyschemy06** » 14 Dec 2016, 08:32

MarisaRose wrote:This is a great review! It sounds like the author really captured the setting with their descriptions. Glad it was a good read

Thank you very much. I enjoyed the book a lot

CrescentMoon · Post by **CrescentMoon** » 15 Dec 2016, 14:39

This book sounds really interesting. I'm excited to read about the suspicions Trishita and Jacquelyn have for each other. This is going on my to read list. Thanks for the great review!

kimmyschemy06 · Post by **kimmyschemy06** » 16 Dec 2016, 09:39

CrescentMoon wrote:This book sounds really interesting. I'm excited to read about the suspicions Trishita and Jacquelyn have for each other. This is going on my to read list. Thanks for the great review!

Thank you. It's a very exciting book

Diving doc · Post by **Diving doc** » 17 Dec 2016, 05:02

Great review! I've just added this book to my wish list, I'll definitely be reading it soon.

kimmyschemy06 · Post by **kimmyschemy06** » 17 Dec 2016, 07:25

Diving doc wrote:Great review! I've just added this book to my wish list, I'll definitely be reading it soon.

Thank you very much. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did

melizabeth · Post by **melizabeth** » 22 Dec 2016, 14:32

I'm glad you enjoyed the book; it sounds interesting. Great job on the review.

kimmyschemy06 · Post by **kimmyschemy06** » 22 Dec 2016, 22:48

melizabeth wrote:I'm glad you enjoyed the book; it sounds interesting. Great job on the review.

Thank you very much! It's a very enjoyable book

Post by **bookowlie** » 04 Jan 2017, 10:57

Great review! I considered choosing this book when it was on the list, so I particularly enjoyed reading your opinions. You did a wonderful job of highlighting all the things that made the book special without giving too much away. Nice job!

Kourtney Bradley · Post by **Kourtney Bradley** » 04 Jan 2017, 10:59

Great review! Glad to see you enjoyed it! I also considered it when it was on the list.

kimmyschemy06 · Post by **kimmyschemy06** » 05 Jan 2017, 22:15

bookowlie wrote:Great review! I considered choosing this book when it was on the list, so I particularly enjoyed reading your opinions. You did a wonderful job of highlighting all the things that made the book special without giving too much away. Nice job!

Thank you very much. I enjoyed this book a lot!

-- 05 Jan 2017, 22:17 --

klbradley wrote:Great review! Glad to see you enjoyed it! I also considered it when it was on the list.

Thank you very much. It's a very enjoyable book

gali · Post by **gali** » 06 Jan 2017, 07:02

Sounds intriguing. I like fast-paced suspense books with a little touch of romance and memorable characters.

Good job on the review and congratulations to the author for the great review!