Review: Asylum (Delaney & Murphy #1)

I’m going against the general consensus here by saying I was underwhelmed by Asylum. I thought the premise sound, however the execution let it down. I found the writing ordinary, and the vocabulary limited. Seriously, I lost count of how many characters responded with a ‘smirk’. Definition of ‘smirk’: verb: smile in an irritatingly smug, conceited, or silly way. I’m sure that’s not actually what Adams wanted to communicate but he certainly loves the word. There was one point where there was a smirk on every page - Mr Adams desperately needs to familiarise himself with a thesaurus.

The story is told in alternating chapters headed ’then’ and ’now’. In case the reader couldn’t understand this concept, the publisher chose different fonts for each. The font chosen for ’then’ has to be the most unappealing font I have ever had the displeasure of reading. This may sound pedantic, but it all effects how a reader responds to a book (well, it certainly effected this reader!)

The jacket art suggests a gothic horror novel. This is neither gothic nor horror. It is a mystery; and the mystery is intriguing, involving the treatment of ‘patients’ in a Queensland asylum 20 years ago. It’s not a terrible book; it’s just that I found it not particularly engrossing or memorable.

• Review
• Jack Adams