Dermot Davis

Simpatico by Dermot Davis follows young lovers Fiona and Andrew as they face obstacles most adults would have a difficult time getting through. Fiona is a new-age girl from money, and while Andrew doesn't have much money and no relationship with his father, he has a good heart. The first obstacle the two face is Fiona's father, who is in a secret society. Through his scheming and dark magic, Andrew is involved in a car accident that lands him in jail for manslaughter. Andrew escapes to meet up with Fiona, only to part ways again when Fiona's father turns in Andrew. I don't want to include spoilers, so I will leave the conclusion of the plot out of my review.

Fiona and Andrew's relationship felt real, and it was obvious that they loved each other, but I would have liked to see their relationship grow from the very beginning. Perhaps the author can do a prequel book or short story so we can follow the two in their earliest days of falling in love. That would be highly enjoyable. I also enjoyed the secondary characters and felt they added much depth to the book. I particularly liked the hot-air balloon ride scene when the balloon skimmed the water.

Simpatico is a tale of young love against the odds and will hold your attention throughout. While Fiona and Andrew face obstacles, their love remains strong, and the reader will enjoy taking the ride with them.

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Not A Rock and A Hard Place...Maria’s Spot Was Worse

The telling sentence in the author’s synopsis for me is, “Jonathan has to solve the mystery of his own mind or risk losing his wife to the dangerous clutches of a madman.” Yes, Jonathan’s wife, Maria, finds herself not between a rock and a hard place, but caught between two madmen.

Fatal Eclipse is the story of Jonathon’s fight to control his bouts with extreme jealousy, anger, and paranoia, apparently starting on the day of his marriage to Maria. But what is it about marriage that triggers his maladaptive response? Jonathon spends the rest of the book trying to answer that question. Unfortunately, in seeking that answer, he unwittingly makes Maria vulnerable to an even greater threat. With the people and personalities at play by the end of the book, a number of outcomes are possible...few of them good. And the author keeps you guessing which one it will be, right to the end.

In general, I liked the author’s style, although occasionally, he was prone to some rather dense prose. The author also switched between storylines, paragraph to paragraph within a chapter, particularly toward the end of the book. I did not mind the technique, but something to indicate a switch, like a blank line, might have helped. A larger concern was the pace of the story. Jonathon was prone to declaring he was fully cured after gaining a minor insight, only to be plunged back into fits of rage and jealousy two pages later. The cycle repeats often enough that it becomes somewhat predictable.

Overall, however, the author weaves a taut psychological thriller, placing Maria in a spot much more precarious than just between a rock and a hard place.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.… (mehr)