Review ~ A Boat Made of Bone ~ Nicole Grotepas

Title: A Boat Made of Bone

Author: Nicole Grotepas

Published: January 13th 2014

By: Nicole Grotepas

Source: netgalley

Synopsis:  During the day, Kate Miller has simple problems: land a new job, find a replacement boyfriend, and sip coffee with her friends.

At night, things change. She dreams of the same man, over and over--Will Hawke. His touch is the gateway to a world only they share. In the shroud of darkness and dreaming, Kate would swear that she has loved him for thousands of years. His blue eyes pierce her shell of protection. His smile is a beacon through a storm.

Night and day, dreams and reality—obstacles with no solution. Will and Kate can never really be together.

Or can they?

Ty Watts is not a dream. The green-eyed stranger sweeps into Kate's life, carrying promise and the possibility of love and companionship. They share interests, an evolving circle of friends, and beyond that--the same waking world. But Ty's earnest smile hides a mysterious past and an undercurrent of danger.

Awake, Kate feels how broken she is when it comes to love. At night, she’s capable of facing the possibility of romance in a way she never imagined. If there is any chance of being with Will, should Kate pursue Ty?

Join Kate as she embarks on a dangerous and impossible journey to find the love that she could only ever dream of having. Literally.

I was drawn to this book for three reasons: the cover which is beautiful, the synopsis which I found intriguing and the title which instantly drew me in. I've done this before and the old adage always comes to mind - never judge a book by its cover.  Having read the book I am now also reminded that old adages are very often true.

I have to confess I found it difficult to stick with this book.  Kate leads a double life. In the real world she has so many good things going for her and yet she is drawn to a second world where she resides with a 'dream' boyfriend, a seemingly shallow individual who lived in another place and time and whose existence now is certainly more dark than light. This I didn't get. Maybe because even though there was this bond between Kate and Will (dream boyfriend) there was something about him that just didn't gel with me. But then the relationship with Ty (real live boy) didn't really seem to be going anywhere either I didn't get why she was even trying to choose.  I think I'd have just gotten rid of the pair of them! Equally I felt myself getting more frustrated with Kate who seems to get dragged through her own existence, hiding behind what she feels are her own inadequacies and seems to pursue her dream relationship above all else.  At least, that's how it seemed to me.

I usually enjoy a book that builds slowly, especially when its the first of a series but the pace was too slow here for me. When the pace does pick up towards the end of the book the rationale behind the increase in pace was too bizarre even for me and so I found myself less and less inclined to finish the book. Don't get me wrong, the writing style is OK, it was just the plotline that I really struggled with. Between weird dreams, dragonflies that lead to alternate universes and the occasional trip to hell I wasn't entirely sure what was going on.

There were some aspects of the plot that began to clear as the story progressed but by then I'm afraid I had lost interest. There is a cliffhanger at the end and if you've enjoyed the read you'll probably be screaming for the next instalment, but I'm sorry to say I won't be there with you. Maybe with some editing and clarification at some points this might have held my interest longer but I've a feeling that probably wouldn't have been the case.

2/5 Loved the cover etc, writing style is fine, but the plot just didn't grab me. Sorry.