Title: The Weaver
Author: @kindtheather
Publisher: The Parliament House
Dates read: 4/26/20- 5/1/20
Rating: 4 stars
I loved the story. Laney is a college student with an amazing power she was not aware she possessed. Her stories can come to life. (Not figuratively) Her life gets turned upside down when the realization of all of this unfolds. Will she be able to give her story a happy ending?
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I received this book from the publisher via @netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I regret not actually opening it up earlier. Because damn that was a page turner. The ending was the best part (i know there’s a book 2) but this type of cliffhanger is the one i like.
#netgalley #theweaver #thewanderer #thetranslator #theender #thewatcher #storiescometolife #AdultFantasy
#adultfiction

I tried reading this several times but it was so uninteresting, I'd keep on putting it down. I got as far as 70% in, so I really did give it a good try. It just moved so slowly, and the MC was really annoying (make up your mind on who you like! And I know you're just a college freshman, but show some common sense!), the villain hardly appears, so it wasn't really scary/ mysterious, and I just wasn't motivated to know what happens next :(

Thank you NetGalley and Publisher for this early copy!

Did not finish - I could not connect with the plot or writing so I decided to put it down.

I originally received an eARC from NetGalley, but for reasons that escape me (probably my own incompetence) I forgot to download it. Out of a desire for completionism, I bought a copy of The Weaver so I could read and review it. Although the basic premise is sound and interesting, Heather Kindt’s writing style didn’t work for me. This attempt at a combination of thriller, romance, and fantasy lacks what I enjoy about those three genres.

Laney is a college student writing a historical novel in her spare time. She is accosted by a man who resembles the antagonist of her novel. Gradually, Laney discovers that she is one of a small number of people—Weavers—whose literary works take on a life of their own. Her characters are coming to life, moving from the world of her novel to this “real” world. The antagonist seeks to control the ending of the story, while the protagonist could potentially protect her. There’s also some love triangle stuff happening, although it gets sidelined.

Kindt’s narration is very much of the tell rather than show variety. That isn’t always a bad thing, but in this case I had trouble connecting with the main characters. The characterization feels flat and often very stock. For example:

His best friend grew up, nd just looking at her drove him crazy. She was beautiful. Not the high heel, short skirt, plastered on make-up, I’m all that type of beauty he usually dated, and nothing like Jennifer, his current girlfriend. Laney was striking, and she didn’t even know it.



Oh, I get it: she’s not like other girls . Cue my eye rolling.

The ratio of dialogue to narration in this book is very low, but the narration lacks the richness that I prefer in books that take such a tactic. There’s a lot of exposition, and it feels very odd from a third-person limited narrator. Maybe if the book were in the first person? Anyway, this stylistic choice made it difficult for me to enjoy The Weaver in general.

The plot has a nice setup, but there isn’t much payoff. Kindt walks us through a gradual building of tension as Laney discovers more about what it means to be a Weaver. However, it takes way too long for Laney to learn about the Weavers. When we do, the actual conflict seems very mundane. As with the narration, there’s just something about Kindt’s choices here, in terms of how to construct scenes and manage conflict/action/suspense, that doesn’t work for me.

In the end, The Weaver leaves me frustrated and wanting more—not in the good way, though. Don’t even get me started on the love triangle!

Firmly “not for me.”

So what was this book?
The idea of writing your own characters into life was glorious!
How the author did it was just confusing and not at all catching.
I disliked every single character and the whole plot was a literal mess. The Character Laney was super naive and sometimes really dumb. I also kind of don't understand why someone wouldn't freak out when she finds out her characters came to life? I would be super crazy and secretive about it - well Delaney was not and it confused me a lot. Jason was also a super 2-dimensional character that held no sympathy for me. And William was just creepy.
I hate to rant about a book like this. but it wasn't my kind of cup at all.
The idea holds the potential for a whole series, but what we got was, well, nothing elaborate or exciting. I felt bored while reading and everything was really predictable.
I wish the book had been better edited and the characters were more authentic - it could have been a great story.

This is book 1 in the Weaver Trilogy. The premise of this story sounds wonderful but for some reason I felt it didn't hit the mark for me. The characters didn't seem to fully develop into their potential. Lanie is a writer and a college student. She starts meeting characters from a novel she's working on. Sounds like a perfect story. For me, I don't think I'll be looking for future books. Since it's advertised as a young adult book, maybe teens will find it more interesting. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I actually tried my best finishing this book. But it seems that the style of writing and the flow of the story was way out of my league. Although the plot is interesting, the execution was just a little bit slow and lack the entertainment I was hoping for.

This book had a lot of promise. The premise is intriguing, the beginning drew me in, there was a bit of mystery, and the cover is gorgeous. And in fact, I enjoyed a good chunk of it. But about halfway through, I started to get bored. There were a lot of cliches and and tropes and the characters started to lose their personality for me. They became much flatter in the second half and often left me wondering why they did something that seemed out of place or didn’t know something that I felt like they had already known or figured out. In short, the end felt messy. I felt like there was no subtlety to any of the resolutions, and while the twist was fun, I felt like it was ignoring earlier parts of the book that, to me seemed to contradict it. Quite a few actions felt abrupt to me both in the larger plot and in the smaller interactions between characters. The ties to the American Revolution, while nice at the beginning, felt like afterthoughts by the end. Though this started at maybe a 3.5 or 4 for me, this probably ends up at about a 2.5 by the end.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating 3.5
I had started this one last year, but some more pressing releases ended up making their way to the top of my TBR list and this one was bumped down. I did like this book! There is something very attractive to me about Weavers who can bring stories to life. Very Inkheart. There were some cliche/tropes that took away from the plot for me, but it's not enough top stop me from looking forward to the next book. I think that first books in a series like this are the foundation of what is to come! I am hoping to see the characters grow more so that I can connect to them better. That will be the true test.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The weaver | Heather Kindt

Synopsis:
Most writers choose the endings to their stories . . . most writers are not Weavers.
Laney Holden is a freshman at Madison College whose life goes from normal to paranormal in a matter of seconds. When the antagonist in the book she’s writing shoves her down the stairs at the subway station, she learns she is a Weaver. Weavers bridge the narrow gap between fantasy and reality, bringing their words to life.
Laney soon meets William whom she also suspects is a character from her book—one she’s had a mad crush on since her pen hit the paper. But he’s in danger as her antagonist reveals a whole different ending planned for Laney’s book that involves killing William. Laney must use her writing to save the people closest to her by weaving the most difficult words she will ever write.

Opinion:
Heather Kindt builds an idea based on writing, which I find both, super interesting and quite exciting as I never read something like it before.

The characters she creates are mostly typical for this genre. The main character is a little bit naive, nice and has a talent (writing), whereas she also builds the perfect opposite character in William, who is just like Laney wrote him.

The suspense is fast rising in the beginning and slowly in the middle of the book. Towards the end the pace is really fast again combined with a lot of content, which I found a little bit too much.

I had the feeling it was often quite superficial, wherefore I have many questions that were not being answered, for example about the club. The book could have been a little bit longer to cover these questions and avoid the fast pace.

To sum it up I would say it was a really fun read, for me a little bit too much drama, but I really did like the idea of the book, because it was new and original and something I found super interesting to begin with. I just wished it was a little bit more elaborated and not as fast, but nevertheless really looking forward to the second book.

Rating: 3,5/5❄️

1.5 stars.

The premise of the book is interesting until you start reading and find out that you've been spoiled and the focus of the book is way different than the sypnosis.

Laney doesn't really find out that she's a Weaver until much later when she meets other Weavers though she suspects that Jonas is a character from her book. The whole focus of the book is on the romance and to be more specific, the love triangle between her, Jason and William.

To be honest, it was really exhausting since when she's with Jason, she likes William and vice versa. There was the whole deal with jumping from friends to lovers to friends again.

As for the characters, they don't really have much of a character besides the usual cliche troupe. I don't even know why the author named both the characters Jonas and Jason, I kept confusing between the two.

What I hated the most about Laney is that she would always asks questions she knew the answers to and then be shocked! Woman, what? Don't even get me started on the "color of their clothes bring out the color of their eyes."

As for the story, it was heavily focused on romance while the plot pops up here and there besides in the ending. The other Weavers barely make an appearance except on the chapter where they were introduced. Jonas barely appears besides the ending too.

Another problem I had with the story is that Jonas is someone who is incompetent and drunk all the time yet he manages to evade the police and kill someone without ever getting caught and without leaving any kind of evidence like how??? He was barely threatening and I hated how the author just conveniently made the situations harder just for drama even though they were easily solvable.

There was this scene where William tells Laney not to go to the forest since Jonas is hiding there yet she goes anyway and finds a necklace left by William! Why would he tell her not to come but leaves a necklace there for her to find? Then they just leave. A lot of instances are like that where they hint that Jonas is gonna attack but nothing happens.

I think the book would have been way better if Jonas' intentions were more of a mystery than outright said in the sypnosis.

Overall, the writing wasn't too bad and I would have enjoyed the book if the author focused more on the plot rather than just the romance which took up 90% of the book because the whole deal with the Weavers was really interesting and that twist in the end was good but at the same time conveniently hard for the characters just for drama and the sequel. I'm not really sure if I want to continue reading the series but I'm somewhat curious as to what will happen because of the sypnosis for the sequel.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with the digital copy for an honest review.

When a book feels so real that makes you question reality, tou know is a well crafted book.
I really enjoyed the world and the plot.

I received this as an eARC to read for free in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, The Parliament House, and Heather Kindt for giving me access.

Stories coming to life? Sign me up!

I thoroughly enjoyed Kindt's take on what happens when a story comes to life. It may not be in the same way that the story was written, but we get some characters brought to life.

(It reminds me of Once Upon a Time when we find out that Henry is the author and has the power to write the story.)

This story had it's ups and downs, plus some cliche moments, but I found it to be enjoyable and wouldn't mind a second book to continue Laney's adventure.

The Weaver had a great premise,but the execution was a bit disappointing. The first half of the book was decent. The last half was rushed and messy.

Heather Kindt has a beautiful ability to weave worlds with her words. (Pun intended). She has fantastically developed characters and seamlessly melds her obvious love of history with modern-day adventures. I am not in love with Delaney Holden as a character; she is a bit too naive, a tad too “good”, and her problem-solving skills are rather immature even for an 18 yr old. She and Jason would have made a cute YA high school romance complete with a mean (Jennifer) cheerleader who made Laney’s life hell. I just didn’t love her for this type of book. With that said, Kindt’s ideas and storytelling ability are incredible. I genuinely wanted to find out more about William and Jonas, about Brian’s role, and the other Weavers. The story came alive and moved at a comfortable speed. Oddly enough I can’t decide if I liked the historical storyline or the modern one more. Great read and I’ll be watching for book 2!

** I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.”
The premise of this book was so intriguing. I come from a family c storytellers so I was excited to dive into this book.
The beginning of the book was really good. Immediate action. Unfortunately, this was the best part of the story. The further I read, the stranger the writing style was. The characters were all over the place and I could not find a connection to any of them.
I wanted to love this book but it was not for me.

Title: The Weaver (The Weaver Trilogy #1)
Author: Heather Kindt
Pub. Date: August 7, 2019
Rating: 3

This will be a spoiler free review. Thank you Netgalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a bit disappointing. Overall, I did enjoy it and I really liked the concept, but there were just aspects that continuously pulled me out of the story and somethings that annoyed me. Based on the cover alone, I would have picked this book up. Based on the synopsis, I thought I was going to really like this book. Not so much. It was meh.
It felt really cliché – a lot of typical stereotypes were used. The main character Laney is the “normal” brown-hair girl who doesn’t think she’s pretty, just average. The nice guy jock who likes her thinks she’s “not like other girls, and super stunning, she just doesn’t realize it”. A handful of other various jock characters, plus the girlie-girl roommate that is the exact opposite of Laney. Laney is quiet, introverted likes to read and write and study history, and everyone around her is the exact opposite. Until she meets William.
I also hated the use of third person – or at least the way it was used. Each character was constantly referred to by their names. ‘She’ and ‘her” were rarely used to start a sentence and it the writing became so stiff and formulaic that I started to hate their names. It started to sound like this:

Alexa walked her dog outside, and she waved at the people she saw. Alexa then turned the corner and saw someone she knew. Alexa saw her brother and his girlfriend. Alexa said hello to both of them, and then departed. Alexa continued walking her dog.

Now I know that’s not the best (or really, even good) writing and the writing in the book was better, but I think you can kind of see what I’m saying. Whereas, this –

Alexa walked her dog outside, and she waved at the people she saw. She then turned the corner and saw someone she knew. She saw her brother and his girlfriend. Her brother and his girlfriend said hello, before they all parted ways. Alexa continued walking her dog.

This sounds a little bit better, a little more natural and not quite as stiff. (The subject matter doesn’t help here, but eh.)

I also had some issues with character motives and feelings and I often had to try and go back to re-read to understand what was happening. Eventually I just gave up and opted to be confused.

The story concept as a whole is fantastic. How often do we all wish that we can bring our characters to life? I know I do. I really did like the concept and the story Kindt created, and I’m interested in seeing how this trilogy plays out. I also really liked that it’s set on a college campus and that the characters are college age. I don’t read near enough NA anymore and this was a nice little foray back into that age range.
If this book is on your radar, definitely give it a chance. It’s a quick read with some cutes-y moments and a unique concept. I read it in a handful of hours, and I’m a bit bummed I have to wait for the next one.

This is going to be one of the shortest reviews I have written and I think I need to start with the fact I chose to DNF before even hitting the halfway mark.

I am so bummed with that as the premise was beyond amazing and I was looking forward to digging in.

Sadly, I found the writing style to be quiet dull and the characters not something I could connect with.

While I found the concept of The Weaver brilliant (the protagonist's secret diaries come to life and cause chaos in the real world) in truth, the book just didn't seem to fulfil its potential.
I didn't find myself investing in the characters enough to care about what happened to them, and I found the plot quite convoluted. Parts were too slow and then about a third of the way through when the action started to develop I found it then went too fast.

All in all an ok read but could have been so much better.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

The synopsis for The Weaver piqued my interest. I love stories that weave magic in real world settings. This book is Fantasy, meets Historical fiction, meets Romance. The story and narrative was smooth and magical and well written. All in all this was a totally unique story!