The thing is, like a lot of people, I wanted to see what kind of story would whip HarperVoyager into enough of a frenzy to lay out a 6 figure advance. I was expecting it to be pretty damned amazing stuff! Now, in fairness, I'm only 12% in so maybe I just haven't got to the good stuff yet, but so far? It's really....not at all good. It's childlike, clumsy, and the grammar....Good God...editor's day off?? It probably wouldn't bother a lot of people, but as an ex-teacher old habits die hard. I would red-pen this sucker to death.
Whilst I'm in a confessional frame of mind here, I'll also admit that the Twilight Novels were a guilty pleasure of mine. I'm not a fan of the films, but I read the first book before it was such a huge deal, and enjoyed it, and kept up with the rest as they were published. It's not the usual thing I'd read AT ALL, but something about it hooked me in and I enjoyed the ride. I've read a few wannabes since, which have all been, without exception, bloody awful. The reason I raise the Twilight issue here is because if it's being used as a benchmark, Gibbs is way, way off. Given that the vast majority of people I know who are into Fantasy LOATHE Meyer with a terrifyingly intense passion, I'm pretty sure they're going to hate Gibbs even more. Because say what you will about Meyer, she can write. You may not like the subject matter, or what she's done to your favourite beasties, but she CAN write. From what I've seen so far...I can't say the same for Gibbs. It's a childish fanfic effort, no more, no less. Perhaps when I'm 60, or 75% in I'll come back and eat my words, but I really don't see it as being likely so far.
I cannot, for the life of me, imagine why this is so valuable to such a reputable publisher. Unless it's a film rights issue? The Hollywood treatment? Either way, it depresses me no end to think that this is the kind of material they want.
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