Sunflower Reviews

Orlaith - Chupacabra

Reviewer: Myst3ry007

Review: Chupacabra

Client: calfiorniablue

🌻

Chupacabra is both an interesting name and concept when it comes to vampires. Something that really piqued my interested when asked to review it. The cover however is something to be desired and really doesn't capture much of a feeling but does raise somewhat of a question.

This book however, has been categorised in the wrong genre. As it would fall rather under supernatural fiction / paranormal fiction than that of the science fiction genre that the author has placed it under. This could be a leading factor for its low read rates among other things.

Blurb:

The blurb is quite interesting as it does grab your attention but it also makes you raise a brow at a few things mentioned. "A rash of livestock" comes off as strange and also not quite the correct phrase, as livestock / cows are usually called a herd. This makes for a questionable read as if phrases / groupings of things so simple can be wrong then what else could be.

On another note, the blurb holds some weight and does draw you in with its first part about Vaine, Texas and the happenings within the time period of 1989. The issue comes when 2022 is brought into the mix as these two stories don't seem to fit together in the slightest. It may be about the same creatures in the sense of vampires but they don't seem to have any correlation and begs the question of if this is two books written in one.

Grammar & Punctuation:

The grammar used is good in the sense that there aren't many spelling errors. The issue comes in with tenses where the author switches them constantly causing for a confusing read. I know it happens subconsciously and most people don't pick up on it but it can cause confusion when noticed.

With punctuation there isn't much of an issue either except for the overly long sentences with three to four commas in them which drags on. The main problem I have found is words being in the wrong order within a sentence. This causes for a very awkward read and as forces the reader to fix the sentence themselves for it to make sense. Something that in part will force a reader to stop reading as it becomes a chore to do instead of being enjoyable.

Paragraphing & Phrasing:

With regards to paragraphs, they are way too long. One paragraph if reading on a laptop / pc is the size of the screen or even longer which causes for a tedious and slow read. It also makes the reader question when it will end and it starts to feel like never.

The constant need for prose and abundance of description takes away from the story and reduces the shock and scare factor that the author is going for. It is suggested to use a mix of short, medium and long sentences when writing as it flows better. However, there are only majorly long sentences used which in the end causes you to find something more interesting to do. Like play a game, look through Instagram. You lose the readers focus and thus they will not continue to read on.

Characterization:

The characters within the book are interesting on one level. However, there aren't many levels to these people as the book is told from the perspective of a vampire / animalistic creature. The information given by each character is interesting as is the dynamic between the co-workers within the facility but furthermore – the characters appear dull.

Forty is interesting in her own right but the depth of the character is lost within the overflow of information given. From how the facility works, to other menial things like the description of the room.

People have dimension and sadly none of these characters have that. Grant in the first chapter had a glimpse of it but furthermore, anyone written about in the era of 2022 becomes faceless and forgettable.

Plot:

The plot is a little confusing to say the least. The blurb comes across as if there are two different stories being told and in truth, I find no correlation between the two stories other than of course, the vampires. Chupacabras as they are called later on.

I also do not see the major plot point. The one that the book centres around as it seems there are two. In Texas it is finding and catching the unknown creature. In 2022 – its finding out why Forty is different from the rest. This begs the question of what the book is as a whole. What was the main idea that brought about these roads that the author has gone down?

In truth, I am quite lost while read this. It is interesting, I will give the author that but it is tedious and doesn't seem to have middle ground let alone a starting point.

Writing Style:

The writing style I feel the author has their writing style down. It is great, with barely any issues. The only one I find is the constant tense switches but I feel those can be easily fixed. The way this book is written is good and I commend them on writing it.

Overall:

Overall – I feel Chupacabra needs to be reworked completely. There needs to be a middle ground. A main plot point chosen and then used and built upon. As of now, it is two stories that are being written within each other, instead of one strong one.

The author has a good grasp on description which I commend but I would greatly reduce the amount of it. The paragraphs lengths are overly long and lead to a tedious read. All in all, I would recommend the author to do an in-depth look into what kind of story they want to write. To plot it all out and then dive back in. For as of now it is quite a fractured piece.