Lisa Gardner Review: My New Favorite Author
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Finding a book that I enjoy reading has always been difficult for me. Since my concentration is almost non-existent, I can only get through a book if it flows smoothly and seamlessly. That is why finding an author I enjoy reading is difficult.
This brought me to author Lisa Gardner.
Not too long ago, my wife and I traveled to the local Goodwill in Fort Collins, Colorado. She had previously mentioned Lisa Gardner, and I knew she was one of my wife’s favorite authors. During our quick trip, we found a stack of books by Gardner. We snagged the stack and made our purchase.
One book, Find Her, was the first one my wife read by Gardner. My wife suggested I try it, and if I didn’t like it, I could stop reading it. So I accepted the challenge.
‘Find Her’ By Lisa Gardner
I started Find Her on a Friday morning, before heading to a doctor’s appointment. Immediately I was hooked. I wanted to keep reading, but my appointments throughout the day did not allow it.
For me, I find it difficult to stay interested in a storyline when there is a lot of explained detail. You know, when an author spends four pages describing a building, when instead they could easily do it in a paragraph. My attention quickly goes elsewhere when there are long explanations and details.
In Find Her, I found the transitions to flow quite smoothly between the characters and their surrounding environment. Gardner uses an organic feel to weave the details into the story, while still holding my attention. Any author who can do that for me deserves a pat on the back.
Not only did Gardner structure the book in a way that kept my attention, but the storyline, along with the characters, kept me on the edge of my seat. I found myself not wanting to stop, but rather to keep going to see the outcome.
Again, I started Find Her on a Friday morning. I had to pause over the weekend because of prior engagements, but once Monday rolled around, and with some extra time to spare, I picked up where I left off. I finished Find Her that night.
For me, the fact that I finished a book in such a short time is a testament, in and of itself, to how well the book is written. It had been years since I’d read a book in a day, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Character Development
As I mentioned, when I read a book, it needs to hold my attention. Once I get over that hurdle, and I can concentrate, the book needs to have a strong storyline, along with strong characters.
The author’s development of the characters in Find Her made me feel like I knew all of them. The main character, Flora, is a survivor. I empathized with her in a way that I had not done with past reads. I have never gone through the specific hardships she faced, but Gardner’s words put me inside Flora’s head.
During each experience, thought, and feeling that Flora went through, I was right there with her. I felt the anxiety, the sadness, the triumph, and the ups and the downs that Flora lived through. It takes a special kind of author to do this, and Gardner did not disappoint.
A Well-Developed Story Line
Gardner’s plot kept me on my toes. With the unexpected twists and turns, I wanted to read more. Each nuance and detail of the storyline wove together in a seamlessly well-developed plot.
Nowadays especially, I mostly enjoy crime stories, whether it is watching a documentary or reading a good book.
If you are looking for a good read, I highly recommend Find Her.
We collected a stack of Lisa Gardner’s books during our trip to Goodwill, and I’m excited to start reading the other ones.
The next book I plan to read is The Perfect Husband, and it is right on my nightstand. I can’t wait to tell you about it.
If you want to listen to the audio version of Find Her or The Perfect Husband, you can listen to it for no cost with a free trial of Audible. Click on the link below to get your free trial:
