Saving London by Taylor DawnPublished: May 28th 2015 by Booktrope
Pages: 272
The List. That Signified Finality.
The Journey. That Would Span The Globe.
The Sacrifice. That Would Decide The Outcome.
The Choice. That Could Unleash Evil On Earth.
The End Is Only The Beginning...
“You have terminal cancer.”
London Patterson, a seemingly healthy young woman, had her entire life ahead of her. That was until four little words brought everything to a screeching halt. As the shock and grief begin to fade, London decides to map out her last year and embark on an epic journey to complete a bucket list. She wants to do the things she’s been afraid to do in her life, step out of her self-contained box, and see the world. What she didn’t expect was for a mysterious stranger named Adam to breeze into her life like a breath of fresh air.
Adam offers to help London complete her list on one condition…that she sees it through to the end. Agreeing on those terms, the two set out on an adventure of a lifetime. But London soon realizes that Adam isn’t quite…human. Along their journey odd occurrences happen that cause London to question who or what Adam is and why he’s helping her.
Follow London as she checks off her bucket list in this inspiring new Urban Fantasy novel from Taylor Dawn.
"At least I was given a year. To some it might seem like a small amount of time, and truly it is. But when you're given only that long to lve, it can in a way, seem like an eternity. I'll do the things I've wanted to do because in the end... no one can save London Patterson."Thank you Booktrope for providing me with an advanced reading copy for review.
DNF at 30 %
Upon starting Saving London, I never would have guessed what kind of a story this book would turn into. It was kind of surprising to find out that a cancer-related story would completely lose its premise and storyline when fantasy-related elements started to roll in. By then my sighs and eye-rolls were more frequent than ever.
The main character of the story, London, describes herself as a twenty-something, but comes across like a sixteen-year-old. Everything she does, ranging from the way she looks at herself, how she communicates with others, etc. screams immature and childish. In other words, she was a really unlikable character from the start, and also my main reason for not continuing this book. I do understand that cancer isn't the most enjoyable thing in life, yet the way she handled her disease is so unrealistic. She just accepts it and then throws it away, moving on with her adventures. I also never had the pleasure to meet such a pessimistic and whiny character as she was. Despite the things she says, it seemed to me that she wasn't even grateful and aware of the fact that a 'stranger' put so much time and effort into a list she made.
Moving onto Adam, he still was a sweet and more likable character than London. I enjoyed this presence, but not enough to cope with London's personality for the rest of the book. When I look at their relationship, it was quite comparable to the story: too fast-paced. They went from complete strangers to friends to something more in the bat of an eye. The way they communicated was also a little too unrealistic for me to believable. At least, seen from London's point of view. She downgraded him too many times to count on my fingers and her humour was so cringe-worthy. It was often more rude than it actually was funny. Still, Adam laughed it away and still acted sweetly. That deserves a round of applause.
Besides the characters, I found myself being irritated by the writing itself. It certainly wasn't my cup of tea, nor did it look like there was time and effort put into it. The entire book is filled up with laughable dialogue and has in my opinion, a serious lack of descriptions. Also thoughts and feelings are written in a very superficial way, so I couldn't settle into the story.
The story itself seemed kind of fun, since I truly am a fan of books with lists, especially bucket-lists. Despite some obvious clichés, I knew it would bring a fast-paced story. Or should I say, a too fast-paced story. Every little thing on her list had to be done, and the author knew it. All the book really was about, was checking off things on her list, until supernatural elements started to fall into place. Nothing ever seemed woven together in order to create a real story, and it rather left me with some loose ends. I couldn't help but feel dissatisfied and therefore, distant from the entire book.
After all, Saving London is a book that is beyond saving.
