Review: The Boardwalk – Karen Cino

After an accident at work, Brooklyn DeMelli walks every day down at the boardwalk as a way to keep active and have a semi normal social life. She meets up with the regular morning walkers, while enjoying the beauty of the beach and the scent of the ocean. To keep busy she started her own company, making beaded jewelry for parties and flea markets.

Mario Morales is the hippy that plays acoustic guitar every morning at different ends of the boardwalk. The music captivates Brooklyn. Following the muse, she meets Mario who turns out to be a narcotics detective working undercover on a huge investigation. When Mario finds out Brooklyn is inadvertently involved in a drug trafficking ring, it leads to a series of events, which puts Brooklyn’s life in jeopardy, while forming a romantic bond between them.

Series:
Release Date: June 26, 2012
Publisher: Secret Cravings Publishing
Source: Provided by Author/Publisher via Manic Readers
Reviewer: Elizabeth
Rating:

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Reviewer’s Thoughts

I really, REALLY wanted to like this book. I loved the premise about a widow trying to live after an accident and the sudden loss of her husband, who finds love again with a local street musician. The musician is really an undercover copy trying to bust up a drug trafficking operation on the boardwalk that the heroine might inadvertently be involved with. That’s what drew me in to the story, however; I found my attention wandering frequently.

The scene transitions were so jerky I couldn’t follow what was happening in the book. I found myself rereading parts in order to figure out what happened and I couldn’t connect to any character in the book. The dialog was often juvenile at times using words like “tinkle” and “smooching.” I found myself skipping parts of the book and just finally gave up.

This was a good idea for a book; I just found that it was executed poorly. However, I don’t think that my opinion should sour anyone’s choice in reading the book. We are all different readers and while one book may not be liked by me, someone else may find the jewel this book was meant to be. I applaud the author for having the courage and determination to write a book, but in the end, this book just wasn’t for me.