Rebel Town Reviews [OPEN]

Two True Review

Two True

By 

FreeGirl1820

Reviewed 

by 

AmyMarieZ

Overview: Two True is a fantasy story about two sisters who find out they are magical creatures – cupids, to be specific. The girls have just been going about their lives in high school, when out of nowhere a mysterious number begins calling them. They finally agree to meet with the caller who just so happens to be the father they never knew, and he informs them that they are half cupids and have magical powers. Additionally, they have been cursed to never find their true loves. And so the story begins...

Structure: Two True is written in split 1st person point of view between sisters Bray and Brook. Although splitting the 1st point of view can sometimes be a bit confusing or unnecessary, it works well in this story. Each of the sisters has a very distinct voice and personality, so it is easy to differentiate between the speakers. The sister Bray comes across as a stronger personality than Brook, so the chapters in her point of view have a tendency to overshadow the chapters in the point of view of Brook. Additionally, there seem to be a few more subplots going on in Bray's life, making her POV a bit more interesting to read. However, the story is still at an early stage so there is still plenty of time for Brook's personality and own subplots to develop.

Grammar: Overall, the grammar in the story is excellent. There are a few typos and misplaced words throughout, as well as occasional shifts in tense from past to present. However, other than the occasional typo or mistake, there are no persistent errors in the grammar. The mistakes are noticeable, but they are not frequent enough to detract from the reading experience in any way. The mistakes could easily be corrected in just a good edit of the chapters.

Pace: The story begins a bit slowly introducing the characters in the first chapter, but from there the pace picks up and each chapter builds more and more suspense, pushing the plot along well. The pace is never so fast that the story becomes boring, but it is also slow enough that it is easy to follow.

Pacing of individual scenes is well done as a whole. The level of detail is enough to give the reader a clear image of the setting and characters, but not so much that it slows the pace of the scenes down. The action and dialog read in real time for the most part. The only parts where the pacing is just a bit fast are the parts where Bray is seeing her "boyfriend" Jay. These scenes seem to be a bit rushed. Adding a bit more dialog and action wouldn't hurt to give the reader just a bit better of a feel for the characters and their relationship.

Character Development: Two True feature two main characters – twin sisters Bray and Brook. Characterization of the girls is excellent. Each girl has a distinct voice and personality while narrating. Their differing personalities make the story dynamic and add a lot of interest to the dialog. Although on the surface the girls are two vastly different people – Bray lives to play for her band and Brook is a more reserved member of the cheerleading squad – underneath it is clear to the reader that the sisters care deeply about each other and look out for each other.

Vocabulary/Description: The vocabulary used in the story fits perfectly with the style of writing. The vocabulary is simple enough that the story is easy to understand, but not so simple that it becomes repetitive or boring. The descriptions in the story are overall well placed and interesting. Descriptions are worked in with the action well so they do not slow down the pace of the story or interrupt the flow. Enough character and setting description is given to allow the reader to easily picture the action.

At some points, the story tends to summarize events or the general habits of characters. These parts are a bit dull compared to the more exciting and action based parts of the story. The use of generalizations makes it difficult to visualize anything specific. For example, Brook's activities at school are summarized rather than shown and the disinterest of the mother in Brook and Bray's lives is explained to the reader. Showing how the mother is disinterested through a quick example could make it more interesting and memorable.

Plot: The plot of the story is well thought out and clearly conveyed. The story begins by introducing the characters and showing their day-to-day lives. A bit of suspense is built with the introduction of two slightly mysterious new students at the girls' school. The main plot quickly begins when Brook and Bray begin receiving mysterious messages from an unknown number.

In addition to having a strong and intriguing main plot, Two True also features a number of subplots such as relationships and activities in the girls' lives that add additional interest to the story. The subplots are woven into the story extremely well and do not create any confusion or seem out of place. In fact, they actually work very well to progress the main plot and built on it.

Question: What do I think of the fantasy element of the story and does the reveal of it flow well?

The fantasy elements in the story are unique and attention grabbing. I have not seen a story that features cupids as magical creatures before, so I am intrigued to read on and find out more about them. I found the descriptions of the powers of the cupids and the magical world where they live extremely interesting.

I thought the reveal of the fantasy elements was a bit jarring, but it actually worked well and flowed with the story because I felt like I was there with the characters finding out about it for the first time. I thought that the reactions of Bray and Brook to finding out about their father and the magical creatures was portrayed very well. The characters seemed shocked and at first refused to accept it, but at the same time they were also intrigued, which made sense to me. In their place, I feel like I would have probably had a similar reaction.

Summary: Two True is a fun fantasy story set in the modern-day world. With an intriguing and well thought out plot, unique fantasy elements, and a strong, compelling and entertaining cast of characters, the story is interesting right from the beginning! As suspense builds and more and more plot elements are introduced, it really becomes a story that is hard to set down.

Note: The review book offers several options. To review only grammar and sentence structure. To review only character development and plot. To review only vocabulary and descriptions. Or, the requester can ask for all of this to be reviewed. There are two options when making this request – for it to be sugar-coated or not.

This review is for it all to be touched on (not sugar-coated).