Beta Reader Alison DeLuca on THE HOPE STORE by Dwight Okita

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NOTE: I had a few writers reading THE HOPE STORE as "beta readers." Their feedback is very helpful because they are commenting on the whole new book and giving overall input as well as sometimes more detailed notes on the manuscript. I wanted to share some notes from one such reader, author Alison DeLuca who has written several fine steampunk novels. As you may know, this novel is about the first store to sell hope over the counter. Jada is the store's first customer and Luke is one of the store owners. Here are some of Alison's comments:


"Overall, The Hope Store really succeeded on several levels for me. First, I loved the actual story, with Jada and her own self-discovery -- as well as the future of the Hope Store. Those story arcs were balanced perfectly.

I felt a lot of connection to Jada, as well as to Luke. His revelations later in the book made him very human, from my POV. Kazu is also such a vivid, alive character. The Luke/Jada chapters were perfectly done, and I enjoyed the two different points of view. The green highlights are for sections that really nailed it – they stood out to me as well-written, and extremely interesting. I think you brought the book to a real, satisfying conclusion.

I also loved the style and poetry of your words. There were only a few phrases that seemed off or clichéd to me, and I pointed them out in the manuscript. The book is a fantastic follow-up to Prospect."



Alison DeLuca

http://amzn.to/11ztpD7

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