Have you ever started reading a book and find the descriptions of the backdrop to be too rich in the details? While in which the characters seem far too paper-thin and inauthentic?
I started a highly-recommended book last night and found myself hoping that the character described as a ren-fest pagan was not representative of the current ren-fest pagans out there. She spent far too much time “goddess” this and “goddess” that and “so mote it be”-ing in the middle of a scene about a nearby airplane disaster. It seemed more caricature than believable, almost insultingly so. She defends herself from a looter and kills him. His buddy, not knowing what any of this is about other than an opportunity to loot, threatens her in front of a cop, telling her to remember his name (which he freely offers up) because he was going to get vengeance for her killing his thug buddy.
The scenery and people are described in detail, especially about the clothes they wore. But the woman was lacking motive, although her deaf daughter she signs with (as does her friend, fluently) seems to be a possible driver. Apparently, she knows all kinds of first aid, which is why she rushes to the scene of the crashed flight (with her daughter in tow), and yet she isn’t a first-responder. And the burly, sexy firemen on-scene are all too happy to take her suggestions as “what to do”.
The first scene was not much better. It was full of rich details about the environment of the NW Coast, but the details about the people involved in a similar situation were threadbare: a rich family with a hot 20-something woman (tushy-watching and OMGs from the character are my not-so-subtle hint), a waifish wife and a chiseled-jaw husband, brother and sister tweenage twins (one is one of those tween vegans, ewww); and a protagonist pilot who brings a long-rifle to pilot a small plane (just in case, mind you) the rich family hired to get to their inaccessible Montana getaway.
While I’m going to give this book a chance to develop a little longer, my enthusiasm is a bit blunted by the story so far. It seems like it might be a slog to read if this continues for the full 550 pages.
While I am all about understanding, leveraging and subverting tropes, the first sixty pages have been almost nothing but tropes and stereotypes, with a good hefty dose of deus ex machina.
The descriptions of the backdrop are decently done, if a bit excessive. The characters and believability of the story, however, thus far are very “welp”.
Do you think there is ever a time that descriptions of scenery, no matter how well done, go a bit too far? Am I putting too much emphasis on demanding authenticity in the characters (even if the logic is only within the universe of the book)?
Weigh in below, if you are so inclined.
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