Official Review: "René" by Judy Fisher
Posted: 03 Apr 2017, 15:51
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "René" by Judy Fisher.]

3 out of 4 stars
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If you like romance and teen adventure, then allow me to introduce the book Renè by Judy Fischer. It is a fast-paced romance novel that focuses on the life of a teenage girl named Melissa Drake. Throughout the book, Melissa narrates her life experiences from the year 1997 through late 1998. After careful consideration, I decided to rate it 3 out of 4 stars.
The book begins on Melissa Drake's deathbed, where she proceeds to tell her story. Melissa was a regular high school senior in Montreal, Canada, until she decided to pass by her father's shop one fateful evening after her french lesson. Upon arriving at the shop, Melissa finds that it has already closed, and just when she's about to walk away, she discovers a man sitting close by. This was Renè, a young man with a tragic past and no home or family. Melissa decides to take responsibility for Renè by keeping him fed, clothed, and protected from the harsh Canadian weather. She keeps him a secret from everyone until an unfortunate event makes her decide to leave the country in order to keep Renè safe.
From that moment, their adventure begins. They cross the Canadian border and head south, although the final destination is unknown to them. The pair come across an old couple who will become important people in their lives soon after, providing them with many opportunities and getting their life back on track. That's when their lives truly begin.
I enjoyed the storyline and the fast pace of the story very much. It did not waste any time with irrelevant details or descriptions, which could cause one to lose interest. The exciting events and changes in Melissa's life kept me interested. I liked that Melissa and Renè didn't have a predetermined destination, so there were endless possibilities and no way to guess what would happen. This made me want to keep reading to find out what twists and turns her life would take next. I liked that the book wasn't solely based on their romance, as well. I expected it to revolve around their love story but was surprised to find that, although romance does play a big part, there are other key things that were important to the story as well. I appreciated the overall flow of the story and how each part led to the next because it was clear and easy to follow the it.
I was a bit confused because the story was written in the first person, yet the narrator often uses the word "you". She referred to a specific character as "you" every time she mentioned them, so it seemed like it was actually in the second person. There were also a great number of misplaced commas, which I was willing to overlook at first, but there were far too many.
The book was more interesting than I expected and not at all predictable. I anticipated much more romance, but I'm glad that I was mistaken because there was just the right amount. I would have given it 4 stars, but it was slightly confusing in places and there were too many grammatical errors. I do recommend it, however, to readers who enjoy realistic fiction. To me, it was like reading someone's life story. At one point, I started to wonder if this was a real person because it was seemed so real and made me quite emotional. It was definitely a book worth reading.
******
René
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3 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
If you like romance and teen adventure, then allow me to introduce the book Renè by Judy Fischer. It is a fast-paced romance novel that focuses on the life of a teenage girl named Melissa Drake. Throughout the book, Melissa narrates her life experiences from the year 1997 through late 1998. After careful consideration, I decided to rate it 3 out of 4 stars.
The book begins on Melissa Drake's deathbed, where she proceeds to tell her story. Melissa was a regular high school senior in Montreal, Canada, until she decided to pass by her father's shop one fateful evening after her french lesson. Upon arriving at the shop, Melissa finds that it has already closed, and just when she's about to walk away, she discovers a man sitting close by. This was Renè, a young man with a tragic past and no home or family. Melissa decides to take responsibility for Renè by keeping him fed, clothed, and protected from the harsh Canadian weather. She keeps him a secret from everyone until an unfortunate event makes her decide to leave the country in order to keep Renè safe.
From that moment, their adventure begins. They cross the Canadian border and head south, although the final destination is unknown to them. The pair come across an old couple who will become important people in their lives soon after, providing them with many opportunities and getting their life back on track. That's when their lives truly begin.
I enjoyed the storyline and the fast pace of the story very much. It did not waste any time with irrelevant details or descriptions, which could cause one to lose interest. The exciting events and changes in Melissa's life kept me interested. I liked that Melissa and Renè didn't have a predetermined destination, so there were endless possibilities and no way to guess what would happen. This made me want to keep reading to find out what twists and turns her life would take next. I liked that the book wasn't solely based on their romance, as well. I expected it to revolve around their love story but was surprised to find that, although romance does play a big part, there are other key things that were important to the story as well. I appreciated the overall flow of the story and how each part led to the next because it was clear and easy to follow the it.
I was a bit confused because the story was written in the first person, yet the narrator often uses the word "you". She referred to a specific character as "you" every time she mentioned them, so it seemed like it was actually in the second person. There were also a great number of misplaced commas, which I was willing to overlook at first, but there were far too many.
The book was more interesting than I expected and not at all predictable. I anticipated much more romance, but I'm glad that I was mistaken because there was just the right amount. I would have given it 4 stars, but it was slightly confusing in places and there were too many grammatical errors. I do recommend it, however, to readers who enjoy realistic fiction. To me, it was like reading someone's life story. At one point, I started to wonder if this was a real person because it was seemed so real and made me quite emotional. It was definitely a book worth reading.
******
René
View: on Bookshelves
Like Dh_'s review? Post a comment saying so!