Last Updated on: March 14th, 2018
I met suspense novelist Karen Dodd via Indies Unlimited (IU).
For those of you not “in the know,” IU is a helpful website for authors and aspiring self-publishers. They have posts on everything over there!
I’ve connected with a bunch of people during their Twitter-fests, Google+-fests, and other LIKE-fests, and I read almost every useful post they publish.
Yep, I’m a big supporter of this site, and I have to give thanks to indie author Melissa Bowersock for suggesting I follow that blog. You might remember Melissa as the woman whom I interviewed for a bunch of self-publishing info in early 2013. (Thanks again, Melissa!)
Okay, I’m getting sidetracked.
This post isn’t about Melissa Bowersock, even though she has self-published three more books since our interview! (Yep. Three.)
This post is about Karen Dodd. It’s also about her suspense novel, Deadly Switch, and my book review of said novel.
Karen Dodd
I connected with Karen Dodd on both Facebook and on IU. When I realized that she is a suspense novelist who wrote a mystery, I got giddy, as I usually do when I come across a mystery. 😉
Naturally, I extended my standard offer to her: a copy of her book in exchange for a Goodreads review and blog post. As most indies are wont to do, she agreed. (Yes, wont is a word.)
Karen Dodd’s novel, Deadly Switch, was a good read. Because I received a digital version (my preference), I read it on my Kobo. It was the second book I read on this device, too. (I usually read print books, but this is changing as I adapt to the digital age, which is a whole different discussion – one already had by this freelancer!)
Because I enjoyed Karen’s story, it proves to me that my reading experiences have nothing to do with how I read a book, the quality of the writing, or my overall experience. (Some people were not thrilled with my less-than-stellar review of the first book that I read on my Kobo.)
In fact, I gave Deadly Switch the following review on Goodreads:
It’s no secret that I love mysteries. I also love books that hook me and make me WANT to keep reading.
There are several things that I liked about Deadly Switch. First of all, the author writes eloquently. Secondly, the method she uses to switch back from past to present really enhanced the story. Finally, the plot was interesting and I was compelled to continue reading because I wanted to see what happened next!
Karen Dodd is an indie author, and a darn good one. I’ll be blogging about this book on my website, Wording Well. Guaranteed. 😉
*Ahem* Yeah, I couldn’t help but throw some blatant self-promotion of my website in my review. 😉
About Deadly Switch
Deadly Switch has been called “an Amazon critically acclaimed debut novel” and has received several rave reviews, which can be found on Karen Dodd’s website, Goodreads, and Amazon. It was also featured on The Fussy Librarian.
Deadly Switch opens with a woman, Alexis Leighton, who finds a dead body on the property of her father, whom she has not seen for years. It takes you back and forth from Vancouver to Italy, through an international romance between her father and his mistress, and includes characters that the reader comes to love, even though your initial instinct is to hate or dislike them! It also takes you from past to present throughout the book, a method used by many authors to reveal the full story. As the plot unfolds, Alexis learns more about herself and her true identity, her true friends, and her family.
Deadly Switch is laden with unexpected, mysterious twists and turns, and is beautifully written.
Spoiler alert?
I don’t want to reveal the final outcomes or mention any spoilers, so I will just say that I would recommend reading this book. Easily.
I’m also looking forward to the sequel, which Karen Dodd is working on now. 🙂
Deadly Switch was written by indie author Karen Dodd, an animal lover who lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Karen is also a blogger who can be found on several social media sites. Connect with Karen on Twitter, like her page on Facebook, add her one of your circles on Google+, or visit her website.
Sounds like a great mystery with some thrills added in for spice. I’m not a huge fan of books that move back and forth through time, too often one story is more interesting than the other and so I resent the interruption when time shifts.
I find myself reading in so many different formats that at this point I can’t really claim any preferences. It’s funny, I never thought I’d like reading books on my laptop but I read so many blogs that it no longer phases me. 🙂
Debra Yearwood recently posted…Time Keeps on Tricking
Debra, the switching back and forth is necessary for the true story to be told and, honestly, you get so swept up in the plot that it is not bothersome at all.
It is great to hear that you don’t have a particular reading preference. Some people are so set in their ways that changing formats is scary to them.
I know I was reluctant to try reading on my Kobo, but know that I’ve done it, I like it!
Debra, I totally accept what you’re saying about stories that go back and forth through time. If it’s any consolation, as Lorraine says, I do get a lot of compliments that I’ve (somehow) managed to do that seamlessly and the readers don’t appear to be distracted by it.
Would love to hear your thoughts if you do decide to read DEADLY SWITCH!
~ Karen
Karen Dodd recently posted…Your Author Platform: Building the Plane While Flying It
Lorraine- Based on your review and the excerpt of the novel it does sound like an interesting read. I do not like the digital age of reading as I still like the feel of a book, but I am slowing accepting it.
Arleen recently posted…How Mentally Strong People Run the World
Arleen, it’s hard to get used to “new” ways of doing things we’ve created habits for, isn’t it? Reading a book is a normal thing. Reading a book digitally is not. To our generation, anyway!
But adapting to the digital age is part choice, part “must.” I raged against it for a while, but now I’m slowly starting to accept it.
Deadly Switch was good. You’d like it. 🙂
Arleen, even as the author of an e-book, I totally relate to still being in love with “real” books that you can touch, feel, and turn the pages back and forth! However, because of my traveling, I am finally getting my head around reading on my iPad Kindle. I must say, it’s saving me a lot of money and I love that e-books make my book and others’ more accessible for people because of the affordability. Fortunately, my print book is doing really well in our local bookstores. I also still love going to the library!
I hope you read DEADLY SWITCH; I’d love to hear how you like it. I’m on Chapter 18 of writing the sequel:)
~ Karen
Karen Dodd recently posted…Your Author Platform: Building the Plane While Flying It
Hi Lorraine,
That was a nice review and would be a great read as well, from the little about it I read here. I wish I had the time to read books…ah…no time away from reading blogs and the never ending comments. 🙂
Thanks for sharing. Have a nice week ahead 🙂
Harleena Singh recently posted…SYPS: Resolve Lifestyle Problems to Make Your Life Better
Harleena, we each have our own reading preferences and time constraints, too. I understand you’re too busy to read for leisure! If I had 60+ comments to read and respond to every time I published a post, I’d have no time for reading novels either!
Plus, I know you read every post by every one of your commenters, too, which amazes a lot of people. Including me.
Wow, congrats to you, Harleena! I would LOVE to have the “problem” of responding to 60+ responses to each of my blogs. Which reminds me, that’s one more thing I need to get to doing now that I’ve been home for a week. You’ve inspired me!
~ Karen
Karen Dodd recently posted…Your Author Platform: Building the Plane While Flying It
I was thrilled to read your review of my book, DEADLY SWITCH, Lorraine! I would absolutely love to engage with your readers, so I hope they will take the time to comment and engage with us. There is nothing I enjoy more than speaking with readers or fellow writers. Thanks for all you’re doing for both!
~ Karen
Karen Dodd recently posted…Your Author Platform: Building the Plane While Flying It
Karen, I know how important engagement is to you, and I think that there will more comments in the coming week. When it comes to blog commenting, most of my readers are like me – busy and sometimes a bit behind in their blog reading.
Also, I have several readers who are bloggers who reciprocate comments, so when I comment on their next posts, they will come and comment on mine. It’s something we do in our “Bloggers Helping Bloggers” group on LinkedIn to show support for one another. And most of us know how to write a comment relevant to the post (so as to avoid penalization from Google).
I will be honest and say that only a handful of my readers follow my book reviews, but I think book reviews are good to do for a few reasons:
1. They show my support of other authors.
2. They are good for search engine and exposure purposes.
3. They provide another opinion of the book. (Yes, mine.)
4. They give the author another link to use to refer readers (or potential readers) to.
5. They provide an opportunity for book lovers to connect.
I’m sure there are more reasons that are valid, but I cannot think of any more off the top of my head.
Why are book reviews important to you?
Thanks for your reply, Lorraine, and you’re correct, I do enjoy engaging with readers but not forcing it or being contrived. Like you, I believe in letting it unfold naturally and in it’s own time.
I also totally agree with your points about reviews. I have a saying that “dogs don’t bark at parked cars,” which is my way of saying you always want things to be moving dynamically in your world. I love reviews (good and bad, although I’m blessed not to have had any bad ones — yet!) because they tell me what readers are thinking and that’s really important to me as I continue writing my subsequent books.
Looking forward to checking back here often:)
~ Karen
Karen Dodd recently posted…Your Author Platform: Building the Plane While Flying It
Karen, if you subscribed to the comments, you’ll be notified when subsequent comments appear.
I like your saying, and know that sometimes things don’t move at a pace we like. Sigh. Such is the life of an author, right?
I look forward to interacting with you more often, too. 🙂