Shay Lynam

Tyler works a dead end, 9-5 job by day and drinks himself stupid by night. When the girl he has been talking to online for several months is suddenly on the 6 o' clock news, Tyler finds himself driving across the country in hopes of finding her. In search of the only thing he's ever really cared about, he would learn what it means to fight for something in his life that actually matters as apposed to letting life pass him by.

An interesting story that started rather slowly for my taste, but since it is a short book it was easy enough to persevere & stick with it until things began to actually move. Ultimately this book is probably best if read when not in a literal frame of mind. I found it a bit challenging at times to reconcile the main character, Tyler, to his actions. He is certainly a player, but since we have no clue what he looks like it is tough to see a different woman throw herself at him each night. Yet it is clear that he is physically attractive as he is the object of smiles, winks, and pick-up lines from women.

Then there are the discrepancies, of which these are just a few - he talks of his difficult financial situation and yet he is out drinking every night and buying his annoying co-worker drinks as well due to continually losing at their daily contest. Plus, why does he decide to drive across country rather than just hop on a plane if he's in such an all fired rush to get to Portland, Oregon to search for the missing Emily? He could have spent less time & money by flying there and had that much more time to search Emily. And then there is the comment made to him about not spotting the person railing him in the surveillance footage, which makes no sense since he is reviewing footage from before his arrival in the city. . .

Although this book presents itself as a suspenseful thriller it is much more complex. It is a multi-layered story about coming of age, soul searching, friendships, romance, and forgiveness. This is a book that requires that you pay close attention to the details, lest you miss something of grave importance. Having read two of Ms Lynam's books back-to-back I think it safe to say you need to drop any preconceived notions prior to beginning any of her works, as they are quite different on a number of planes.… (mehr)

3.5 Stars rounded up to 4 Stars for sheer creativity. . .

Hailey is an average twenty-year-old college student, living an average life. Or so she thought. When a past she never knew existed is brought to light, the reality she thought she knew is shattered and she is left alone to pick up the pieces. Who could know this world holds such evil? Who is this strange, obscure boy who seems to know more than he is saying?

And what can one girl do when a fight to stay alive turns into a fight to avenge and protect the ones she loves?

This is a fast paced, action packed book, yet well balanced with the emotional aspects necessary to make you invested in the lives and wealth fare of the characters. In a world that looks very much like the one we currently inhabit, just a few twists have the potential to cause a cataclysmic future event horizon for the entire human species. This story is effective because it could easily happen, be happening, or have already happened if you are willing to stretch your mind and grab onto some strange form of conspiracy theory.

The characters are all different, and yet on many levels share so much, having been reduced to the core of themselves just to struggle to live, and fight, another day. While we get to know Hailey and Jack, as the two lead characters, there are a few others that played crucial roles. The fact that they weren't nearly as fully developed was frustrating, as their stories were sure to have been interesting, and would likely have served the larger story quite well. What could have been a richer tapestry was somehow muted by denying these comrade in arms their time to shine as well.

Clearly not everyone can be the focal point of the story, yet when there are so few characters to begin with it seems wasteful not to take full advantage of the potential arrayed before us. All that being said, I did enjoy this story a good bit. It was quick, some of the characters have wonderfully acerbic wit, and the plot was creative and entertaining. I guess because I enjoyed the characters as much as I did I felt cheated by not learning more of their stories. Additionally I was confused by the intense focus on Hailey in the beginning, almost as if she was the linchpin of some master plan that she was completely unaware of. And in some ways I suppose that she was, just not in the ways the author had set me up to expect. The jury is still out on my final reaction to that particular portion of the story.

I will say that this is a very fast read, easily a one-sitting read, thanks to the non-stop tone set from the very beginning of the story. It is filled with rich characters, some of whom should have been more fully realized for my tastes. But then who am I too say which characters were leads and which were understudies? Oh yeah, I'm the one reading the story. My only other issue came down to things that were unexplained, such as where certain characters got their training from at such a young age, and how a notorious fugitive's credit cards could repeatedly be used for supplies and other items without leading the bad guys straight back to the fugitive(s). But if those are my main take-away irritants, I still put the book into the win column.… (mehr)

There are some truly unique gems in the self-publishing industry, and The Tree House is definitely one of them. I had a hard time putting this one down, and right now, I'm having a hard time putting this review together to fully express my feelings for this book. I am head over heels in love with it. It was.... wow. I fully expected something predictable, something I always come across, something I would easily get bored with, but there was none of that. This book hit home-run about tens time.
At first, the start of the book was 'eh, it's okay'. Hailey's home is broken into and her parents yell at her to run, so she does. The story instantly picks up speed. Hailey is chased by two men in suits, who are pointing guns at her head. She ends up being saved by this No-Name stranger with lovely eyes. And at that exact point where Hailey meets No-Name, I thought the book would fall into the usual romantic cliche. She met her handsome Prince Charming and they rode off into the sunset.
I was wrong. TOTALLY wrong. So take it from me: Do NOT judge this book by the first ten pages. It gets good. Really good.

I was expecting a Disney 'they lived happily ever after' with some random singing and nice choreography and a whole lot of kissing. Well, I got the kissing part, but this pure blood, sweat, and tears all over the place. Definitely not Disney's style. This had the gripping suspense of the best action movies I've seen (and that's saying something). The book takes over a time span of about two weeks and a lot of things happen during these two weeks. It moves lightning quick, but Shay Lynam definitely knows how to pace herself.

Hailey is 100% human and so is everyone else (just thought I'd point that out), they were just not supposed live through their birth. So Eli Scott created a special chip to keep these types of children alive. It was brilliant, the miracle of all miracles and it was going to sell for millions, until the chip started to malfunction and all these children (now adults) began to die horrible deaths. He didn't want people suing him so what did he do? He contracted a couple of killers and sent them out to get rid of the evidence. Luckily for Hailey, Jack (who I will now call 'The Maelstrom of Emotions') finds her and... well, Hailey sort of forces him to help her. She's a tough girl like that.

Hailey is a fierce and utterly unpredictable girl. She cries a lot, but under the circumstance, who wouldn't? So many terrible things happen to her. Gosh, I don't even know how she kept going. Shay Lynam had no mercy on her, she was constantly facing some sort of obstacle whether it was a gunman or Jack or her own brother. I do admire her, not only because of her emotional strength, but because she remained levelheaded even when she had all the reasons not to.
Jack (The Maelstrom of Emotions) was... a maelstrom of emotions. He could make me giddy, depressed, and ready to shoot his head off all in one. He had this bipolar thing going on (or maybe it's an all guy thing) where he acted like he hated Hailey when he was actually crushing on her. To put it short, he could get under anyone's skin. He wasn't a 'swoon-worthy' guy, he was just inevitable and captivating. The sort of guy you know is bad but you just can't look away from.
Their relationship was complicated. It was perfect really. They were both angry and hurt and they needed someone to look after them even if they didn't know it.

Story-wise, people die in this book. I know that sounds like a stupid observation, but I really got to know the characters and I actually felt connected to them. I cared about them.

Overall, I LOVED The Tree House. There were a lot of grammatical and spelling errors, but I soon found myself flying past those. The story was fast and furious and I was in for a lot of surprises. Now, the ending was exactly a cliffhanger, but I'm pretty sure there will be a book two.
I. CANNOT. Wait!
Do I recommend it? Oh. Yeah.… (mehr)