First Fruits

by Penelope Evans

In a tense novel of psychological suspense, the daughter of a charismatic minister is haunted by a persistant disturbing dream. By the author of The Last Girl.

Genres: Fiction

262 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2000

Reviews

[mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

picked up from Kristin's "Overlooked Books" display. Not too far in, but what I've read is quite good. Its been a while since I've actually *finished* a book, but this one has a good chance....

I did it! I finished a book! Could be because my practicum is now over, and I actually have the time to curl up in the papasan chair and read. I'm not sure what to make of this book. Good enough to keep me interested, but not so good that I would recommend it to people, or read other books by the author. Interesting, but a bit slow at times.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent, excellent thriller!

[Laura Sh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Honestly, I really don’t get why this book has so many good reviews.

The blurb gives a completely misleading impression of what the book is actually about. I thought it would focus on uncovering the murder through these dreams, but the dreams only pop up once in a while, and the murder itself isn’t even really mentioned until the last 20 pages.

I found the whole story super confusing because nothing is properly explained. You kind of have to piece everything together bit by bit as you go.
Like, what even was that cult she grew up in?
And I’m still not entirely sure, but I think she was abused by her father during those so-called “training” sessions?

Reading it was also pretty exhausting because it felt more like a teenage school novel to me. You could’ve skipped the entire beginning of the book and still understood the ending just as well.

I’m still giving it 2 stars because I did end up wanting to know what happens in the end—even though I was mostly just annoyed while reading.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well this is not a comfortable book to read, but it certainly kept me turning the pages. A story with a thread of menace running through it.

[Sanna Jensen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book when I was quite young, maybe around 12-13 years of age, b it I remember it to be really good. I sadly don’t remember much more than that...

[a dead poet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Speechless.

[Trine · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5

[Karen Clarke · Rating 5 out of 5]

I heard about this novel on Facebook and am so glad I downloaded it. I could barely put it down and read it over two nights. I love an unreliable narrator, and 14-year old Kate Carr is one of the best I've read. The tone was perfect and brought her so vividly to life I could almost see her (which was pretty scary). It was suspenseful, creepy, intense read, with plenty of hooks (and some laughs) and a cast of well-rounded characters - her minister father was a truly terrifying creation. It was hard to warm to Kate at first, but as the plot unfolded I was rooting for her all the way. Brilliant.

I'm off to download the author's first book now.

[C.L. · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one was okay but I did not like it as well as her first novel.

[Moodycat · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nothing chilling about this book. It's quite dull and the main character doesn't really do much.

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chiilingly told from the viewpoint of a rather nasty young girl.

[Kelaine Blades · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this!!