..that sometimes suck all the enjoyment out of a novel. I just finished reading a great story by Linda Winfree. Hearts Awakened is book 6 in her Hearts of the South series (review to come). It’s one I’ve been wanting to read for ages and just forgot about (a shout out to Lori for reminding me I hadn’t read it yet).
I really did enjoy it, but there were several small things that bothered me about it. Nitpick-y type things that aren’t really a big deal taken on their own, but kind of detracted from my overall enjoyment of the novel. Before I get any further I want you to understand I really did like the book. It was well written and had wonderfully flawed characters. Not to mention it dealt with some real life issues in a believable way. I just finished it, so it’s fresh on my mind, but things like this happen all the time. It may seem like I’m picking on this book, but I really only meant to use it as a platform to open discussion.
There were no physical descriptions of any of the characters beyond the basics. She had dark hair and eyes. He had short hair (not sure what color) and silver eyes. She was tall and he was taller than she was. He was “almost 40” and I have no idea how old she was. It’s possible I wouldn’t have even noticed this, but it was mentioned – every other page – that he had just lost 24lbs and had another 12 to go. So..what did he look like before? If he’s 6 foot 3 inches and weighed 250lbs he might look good but be going soft around the edges. If he lost 24lbs he’d be about 230 and probably look really good. Unfortunately, I have no idea which it was.
There were times when his body was mentioned, but there wasn’t enough detail to tell me his body type.
Barefoot and resting on his haunches, he still wore his khakis, but he’d shed his polo shirt. A fine layer of dark hair covered his chest and formed an arrow down the line of his stomach. A small tattoo lurked between his pecs, an infinity swirl angled to the left, over his heart. He rested her foot against his thigh, muscles rippling beneath her heel.
Was his stomach flat and muscled? A little rounded? So big he was suffering from Dickie-Do?
Would any of this have mattered if the author hadn’t mentioned – every other page – that he’d lost 24lbs and was trying to lose another 12? Probably not. But because she did I couldn’t get past not knowing what he looked like.
There were other things that happened that I had a hard time getting past, too. Other minor little things that weren’t important to the overall story arc but which pulled me out of the story. Two secondary characters both had to have surgery (I won’t tell you who or why, because I don’t want to spoil it) and a week later they were both at home, bopping around and acting fairly normal. The thing is, though, my mom had the exact same surgery as one of the characters early last year and I promise you, she was not up and moving a week after. Not to the extent this character was anyway.
Again, not really a big deal, but it bothered me. So much so that a few days after reading the book I’m still slightly annoyed over it.
Does this ever happen to you? Are you able to look past those things to enjoy the story or, like me, if there are enough “little” things can it take away from your overall enjoyment?
Maybe he had a beer belly.
I think there has to be a balance. If there is too little description then I can’t picture the characters very well, but if there is too much, I can be taken out of the story.
I read a book not too long ago where the hero was described as looking just like Richard Gere. Nothing against Richard Gere but that was a little too descriptive for me. I would have rather the hero’s description have been minimal than to actually liken him to a movie star.
Casee,
He might have. Wish I knew for sure.
Brie,
I agree, too much isn’t a good thing, either. There definitely has to be a good balance. I would have been totally grossed out if a hero was likened to Richard Gere. He’s not the least bit attractive, IMO.
As I said, the big issue with this was the way the author constantly mentioned the hero’s diet and exercise routine. Plus, I like to know the ages of the H/H. It was mentioned that the heroine was “Too young” for the hero, but I have no idea what their age difference was.
It happens to me as well, though perhaps not exactly the same things. Sometimes I’m able to “look at the bigger picture” as it were, and accept that something bothers me simply because of my own baggage. Other times I think it’s bigger than just me–as you say, if a big deal is made out of a character’s weight loss, shouldn’t we know either where he started at or what exactly he’s accomplished so far?
Nitpick-y? I think it’s more like opening the door to (or even creating) readers’ expectations and then not delivering the goods.
IMO, YMMV of course 😉
Little things annoy me too. I am willing to overlook them if the book is extra special, but sometimes they take over the story and I can’t get past them.
The physical description thing would’ve annoyed me too. If he’s trying to lose weight, does that mean he’s chubby? Was he originally only 170 lbs and now he looks like Skeletor?
On the other hand, excessive physical descriptions bug me too.
Plain and simple, I like balance. Write something that throws the story off balance, and I’m gonna have problems.
In a “marginal” book (ok, but not completely absorptive), the little things can be the last straw. Continuity errors and inaccuracies drive me nuts in those books.
BTW, was this a Samhain book? This seems to be a Samhain trademark.
AL,
Agreed.
Jen,
It was a Samhain book. Angela James has confessed to not liking physical descriptions in books and I wonder if she lets that bleed over into her editing (no clue if this is true, I’m speculating)?
I don’t need pages and pages dedicated to how the characters look, but if you’re going to make physical appearance one of the key factors of your overall story arc, you should at least tell me what to expect.
Chris,
Exactly. Although in this case the story was absorbing, which made these small errors even more glaring. Because I was pulled completely out of the story every time something was skimmed over or not addressed.
Towards the end I found myself getting impatient, wanting to get to the part where they’d finally mention what he looked like.
I find a lot of authors don’t describe things enough. I just read a book that said the bathroom was opulent…period. So I filled in my own details as to what it looked like, but I wouldv’e much preferred the author’s description…it sets the scene. I think it’s kind of lazy on the author’s part.
Azteclady said:
Sometimes I’m able to “look at the bigger picture” as it were, and accept that something bothers me simply because of my own baggage.
I (unfortunately) seem to carry around way too much baggage and when certain things pop up in a book I know that I’m just not going to enjoy the book. Now, that isn’t the book’s fault, it’s mine! So, I try very hard to avoid reading *(or commenting on) those books.
Holly – I like a good description. I like to be able to see the characters in my head while I’m reading. They don’t need to be exact descriptions, but…. And I agree, if the author is going to talk about the character losing weight, then it is nice to know what they started out at, or where they ended up so you can paint that picture.
See? I felt like I had enough of Mark to know who he was and I had an image in my mind of what he looked like.
This isn’t the book I had a problem with. It’s the next one I took issue with, and I’m still trying to wrap my head around a review for it.
It was a Samhain book. Angela James has confessed to not liking physical descriptions in books and I wonder if she lets that bleed over into her editing (no clue if this is true, I’m speculating)?
I didn’t edit this book so I claim no responsibility 😛
Angela,
Sure, likely story.
Orannia,
“Painting a Picture” is a good way to describe it. I don’t necessarily need 10 pages waxing poetic about the shade of the H/H’s eyes, but a basic description is good.
Lorraine,
It could be a sign of laziness. But I wonder if it’s more the author just didn’t think about it?
Lori,
Part of my problem may stem from the fact that I read this book almost a year after reading the others in the series. So I didn’t really remember much about the other characters. In which case it was kind of lazy on the author’s part, assuming we’d read the earlier books in the series and already knew what he looked like (not saying she did that, just saying it could be seen that way).
Holly,
Can I steal, um, borrow this column to use in my classroom — we’re talking about reliable (or unreliable) narration, point of view, and individual reader response (with The Scarlet Letter and The Great Gatsby).
Lin (the author by night, teacher by day, both inspired by Modernism’s “spare, elliptical prose”, which gets me into trouble more often than not. . .)
Linda,
Of course you can borrow (or steal) it. I hope you understand it’s nothing personal. Chances are it was a “it’s not you, it’s me” thing.