TEST
There’s a word missing from the end of the title of Aphrodite’s Secret. That word is child. In fact, the six-year-old boy at the center of this book is apparently such a secret that he’s mentioned nowhere on the cover, despite the entire story revolving around him from the first page. While the kid in Julie Kenner’s latest superhero book may not technically be a secret baby, Aphrodite’s Secret does travel down some very familiar territory in that area. I never thought I’d say this about a book with a hero who can change into a dolphin and a cast of characters stocked with superheroes, but I’ve read this story too many times before. Chances are, you have too.
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Seven years ago, Jason Murphy had a very bad day that never ended. First he learned that the father he never knew was the evil Hieronymous, a notorious superhero gone bad and bent on world domination. Then his girlfriend Lane revealed she was pregnant. Shocked on both fronts, Jason determined to capture Hieronymous, only to get himself captured in the process. Held for six years in a tank of water before escaping, he’s now eyed with suspicion by those who don’t believe he didn’t “go over to the dark side” with Hieronymous, and he doesn’t know how to approach Lane or their six-year-old son Davy.
Lane naturally believes Jason walked out on her because he left immediately after he learned of her pregnancy and she didn’t contact her thereafter. She has no idea just how special her precocious son is. That’s until he’s kidnapped while on a visit to Sea World with his aunt Zoe – by a man who looks exactly like Jason.
Jason tried to save Davy from the shapeshifter wearing his face, but now everyone believes he’s the kidnapper, fulfilling their low expectations of him. He does know who has the boy – Hieronymous, as part of an evil plan to sap Davy’s brain power at the exact moment on his birthday when his mind will start to develop its superhuman capabilities. It’s up to Jason to save him, if only he could get everyone to believe him, including the one person he wants to the most.
Kenner’s writing is smooth, there are occasional flashes of genuine wit and the story flows well. But there was too much of the usual secret child and estranged parents dealing with kidnapping plots and not enough of the superhero stuff for my liking. I get bored by stories that read as though they’re written with a checklist of plot-points and Aphrodite’s Secret has that feel.
I wanted more of the hero’s supernatural abilities, more of the talking goldfish, more of Elmer the talking ferret. More of Davey’s inventions and super-intelligence and less of his cuteness. More of Jason as a dolphin and less of Jason wondering if he’ll be a good dad and if his son will like him. All of the supernatural elements were funny and original and cool, but too often they were treated like the icing on a very stale cake, with more of the overly familiar relationship and not enough of the unique elements. I also wanted less of Zoe, who is as annoying here as in her own book (Aphrodite’s Kiss). Her suspicions are tedious, and one of my favorite scenes in the book is the one where they’re finally thrown back in her face and she’s asked if she would want to be judged as harshly based on her disreputable bloodline as she’s judging Jason. It can’t be said enough: Shut up, Zoe.
Most of the characters, Zoe and the villains excepted, are likable, if not the kind to inspire much emotional involvement. But Lane isn’t a very interesting heroine, particularly when she’s surrounded by so many people with extraordinary abilities. She doesn’t contribute much to this story except to hit the marks every mother of a kidnappee or secret child must: anger, tears, distrust, the “you bastard, how could you leave me scene?” the “why didn’t you tell me the truth about yourself?” scene, the sharing tender remembrances of her son with the man who’s never met him scene, rushing into dangerous situations to save her son that only put her in danger. Most readers know the drill.
The book also gets off to a slow start. The actual kidnapping dominates the opening of the book, and seems to go on and on. It lasts for more than the first seventy-five pages of the book, with scenes from the point of view of what seems like every single person in the world. It drags when it should be gripping. The hero and heroine don’t even encounter each other until a hundred pages have passed, all of which gives the impression this is really a shorter story padded with the perspectives of all these secondary characters.
This review comes with a do-it-yourself grade. If you’re not already worn down by secret baby or kidnapping books (or parents reuniting to save their kidnapped secret baby), raise the grade a notch or so. If you hate them with a passion, lower it. I’m somewhere in between. Too much of the same and not enough of what was unique about this story made this one an average read.
Grade: C
Book Type: Fantasy Romance
Sensuality: Warm
Review Date: 13/05/03
Publication Date: 2003
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Recent Comments …
Yep
This sounds delightful! I’m grabbing it, thanks
excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.
I don’t think anyone expects you to post UK prices – it’s just a shame that such a great sale…
I’m sorry about that. We don’t have any way to post British prices as an American based site.
I have several of her books on my TBR and after reading this am moving them up the pile.