Hepler's first novel, The Boulevard Monster, was one of my favorite books last year (#4 in my annual top ten list). This book put Hepler firmly on my radar, and also put Jeremy on HWA's radar enough to grant it a nomination for superior achievement for First Novel. Similarly, Silver Shamrock Publishing's debut novel, James Newman and Mark Steensland's In the Scrape, was also amazing.
So, this is the sophomore novel from two trusted sources: Jeremy Hepler and Silver Shamrock Publishing. Should be a home run right?
It is... mostly.
There is a decent amount of time shifting in the plot, which is a very difficult story format to pull off. In a coming-of-age type of novel, I seem to always find myself being significantly more interested in the "past", rather than the "present" sections of the novel, and that is definitely the case here. Granted, this may just be an idiosyncrasy of me as a reader, and not Jeremy's fault. Nevertheless, Cricket Hunters absolutely succeeds as a coming-of-age tale. Friends, bikes, love, fun, school....it's all here.
The only other minor complaint that I have is the main character, Cel, was a little bit of a "sell" as a sympathetic protagonist. Hepler toes a delicate line here: is she an ill-tempered violent person, or a well meaning but emotionally flawed friend?
You decide. I have already.
Grade: B
Review by Jason Cavallaro
jcavallaro42@gmail.com
twitter: @pinheadspawn
So, this is the sophomore novel from two trusted sources: Jeremy Hepler and Silver Shamrock Publishing. Should be a home run right?
It is... mostly.
There is a decent amount of time shifting in the plot, which is a very difficult story format to pull off. In a coming-of-age type of novel, I seem to always find myself being significantly more interested in the "past", rather than the "present" sections of the novel, and that is definitely the case here. Granted, this may just be an idiosyncrasy of me as a reader, and not Jeremy's fault. Nevertheless, Cricket Hunters absolutely succeeds as a coming-of-age tale. Friends, bikes, love, fun, school....it's all here.
The only other minor complaint that I have is the main character, Cel, was a little bit of a "sell" as a sympathetic protagonist. Hepler toes a delicate line here: is she an ill-tempered violent person, or a well meaning but emotionally flawed friend?
You decide. I have already.
Grade: B
Review by Jason Cavallaro
jcavallaro42@gmail.com
twitter: @pinheadspawn
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