- Overall rating: 3 1/2 out of 5
- Would I recommend? Yes
- Similar books: It is a basic mystery novel, so if you read any mystery book I would say this one is not much different.
My 'Book of the Month' pick for June is a mystery novel titled A Nearly Normal Family by M.T. Edvardsson. After taking a Detective Film and Literature class in college, I discovered my guilty pleasure for downtime reading are mystery novels. In future book of the month posts, you will probably notice a theme with the books I choose to read out of the five. I favor mystery novels, thrillers, and historical fiction. However, sometimes I do indulge and will read a romance novel, but I have to be in the right mindset (and, being currently single, I am not in that mindset and probably won't be for a while).
My thoughts on A Nearly Normal Family :
What I like most about the novel is how it is a fast read, I finished it in about three days. While I would consider it a typical mystery novel, it did have some unique aspects to try and make it different than the average mystery. The story is told from three different perspectives: the father, the daughter, and the mother (respectively). Edvardsson does an okay job of shifting perspectives to fit the different personalities; however, I believe he could have done more research as to how a young adult woman would speak and act. There is a specific moment where the daughter is narrating a dance club scene, and she explains how she was getting on the dance floor to 'twerk'. Yes 'twerking' is a very relevant thing, but it is not as popular as what media shows us. The average 18-year-old girl would not go out in a club and twerk, and being a young adult female myself, I am offended that an adult man would think all young woman act that way. Besides that little hiccup, it was a pretty good read. I found it to be incredibly predictable but I still enjoyed the way the mystery unfolded. Overall, it is a quick read, and for some it could be considered a page turner. I would recommend the novel for anyone who wants to pick up a book for fun, low commitment, and can finish it in a few days.