The Alternative By Suzanne Burke- My Review

~ John W. Howell

I originally posted a review for the Alternative on Amazon. Yes, I bought the book, read it and gave a five-star review. For some reason yet to be explained, Amazon removed my review. So I feel no obligation not to publish the same review here on my blog. So here it is.

My Five Star Review

Suzanne Burke has a masterful way of telling a story. She is very direct in laying out the plot in such a way as to convince the reader that the ending will naturally follow the sequence that has been presented. The beauty of the way Ms. Burke crafts her tale is when the finish comes it packs the wallop of a couple of horse’s hooves.

The collection of stories in The Alternative is no exception to this phenomenon. One cannot even be assured that any one of the stories will follow a prescribed path to a conclusion. That is the beauty of Ms. Burke’s work. The reader is delighted and surprised every step of the way.

There is delightful darkness to Ms. Burke’s storytelling. Having read other work by her, I have to believe she finds the dark infinitely more interesting than the light. I can say one thing. Once you read a Suzanne Burke novel or short story, you’ll become a fan.

This collection of stories is well told and have a sophistication not generally found in the short story style. Anyone of these stories carries the depth of plot and complexity that would be typically be found in a full-length novel. I would recommend this collection of short stories to anyone who likes a well-developed plot and the demonstration of an exceptional level of writing craft.

Susanne Burke

Author Bio

Suzanne Burke resides with her daughter and grandson in a small country town located hundreds-of miles to the west of her previous home in Sydney Australia.

Suzanne had long wanted to write, life interrupted and she didn’t begin her journey into the world of writing until she was in her early fifties.

Suzanne has written her memoirs under the author name of Stacey Danson, both her non-fiction books have ranked in the top 100 paid in Kindle on Amazon. “Empty Chairs” and “Faint Echoes of Laughter” continue to earn wonderful reviews.

Suzanne writes her powerful Thrillers “Acts Beyond Redemption” and “Acts of Betrayal” and her Paranormal anthology “Mind-Shaft” as S. Burke.

Connect with Suzanne

Amazon Author Page

On TWITTER.

On Facebook.

My Blog

80 thoughts on “The Alternative By Suzanne Burke- My Review”

  1. Thank you for posting your review, John. My 5-star review was also removed, I believe because I mentioned being a Beta Reader. I’m not sure Amazon understands that role. Suzanne Burke is an amazing writer and her latest book, The Alternative, deserves the spotlight, which you’ve beautifully offered. Thank you, John. ☺

    Liked by 2 people

    2. ❤️️ Thank you, Gwen, your review touched me deeply, thank you, my friend. Amazon’s removal of both yours and John’s reviews confounded me! I am so pleased that John has shared his marvelous review here.

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      1. Soooz, Sharon and I both posted reviews of Circumstances of Childhood. Hers was up until I tried to post mine. Mine was never posted and hers was removed. Amazon told me it was because we both live at the same address. They said more, but that was the basic gist of it. I argued with them for two weeks or so but never got the review posted or any understandable reason why not.

        Liked by 2 people

        2. Having this happen at any time is so damned frustrating. How the hell does any Indie author swim against the tides of Amazon. Let’s hope it doesn’t manifest itself as some Orwellian ‘Big Brother.” Hmm … that could work as a book … 😎

          Liked by 1 person

  6. It’s good of you to share your review here, John. Amazon is doing this to so many authors…it’s very unfair. I better check to make sure my review of The Contract is still there…those big meanies! 😦

    Liked by 2 people

  7. A very nice review, John! Gwen may be right. If you mention being a beta-reader, that could be the reason for them pulling it. I was also a beta-reader, but didn’t mention it in my review and I just checked to see if it’s still there. It is.

    Liked by 2 people

  8. This sounds great! Amazon pulled ALL of my reviews and when I contacted them they said I breached some ethic of theirs- case closed. I’ve started posting reviews to BookBub now and of course, Goodreads. Amazon is becoming their own worst enemy.

    Liked by 2 people

    2. That must have been so utterly frustrating, Jacquie. Glad to hear that you share them elsewhere. Amazon seems to hold all the aces in this business.

      Liked by 1 person

  10. 🌹I’m both proud and humbled to have received this review, John. Thank you so much for going that extra mile and posting it here. Your support and encouragement has been amazing, and so very much appreciated.

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  12. It’s so irritating the way Amazon decides which reviews to keep and which to remove. Grrr!
    I’m so glad you shared your review here, John. Having read The Alternative, I have to agree with everything you said. Bravo to Soooz for delivering such a compelling collection!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. 😊Thanks so much, Mae Clair. I’m delighted with the wonderful response to “The Alternative” It was kind of John to share his review here. As for the mighty Amazon … I may have to write a new book, I’ll make it a comedy. Sigh.

      Liked by 1 person

  13. Excellent review, John! I completely agree with how you described Suzanne’s writing style. I love it! I don’t understand, why did Amazon remove your review? Is this something new I have to worry about?😐😯😧
    Thanks for posting your review here❣️

    Liked by 1 person

    1. 🌹Thanks so much, Vashti! This removal of reviews is something new in my experience, but it appears to be happening quite often. It’s gutting for any author to lose a review. I have no idea what can be done about it. I appreciate you stopping by, my friend.

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      2. I just realized yesterday that I lost one of my reviews also. I went from having 31 reviews to having 30. Is there someone at Amazon we can contact about this?

        Liked by 1 person

  14. Great review that I completely agree with! I think your sentiment ” packs the wallop of a couple of horse’s hooves” neatly summed it up. I had that issue once with Amazon and never did get it posted for the book no matter what I was told. I hope your issue does get resolved. Congrats Soooz on awesome review.

    Liked by 1 person

  15. Excellent review, John. I have Suzanna’s book on my TBR and am looking forward to reading it. I don’t understand Amazon’s reasoning in removing reviews. Seems their bots don’t either. I hope they clean up their act; otherwise, authors might start leaving in droves ❤️

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      1. I echo that sentiment, my friend. Amazon are the biggest fish in an Indie Author’s pond. Frankly it makes me shudder to even think about trying to publish my new works without them.

        Liked by 1 person

        2. I’m reminded of a quote from Edmund Burke (Not a relation)😊 … “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
          Individually we don’t even make the smallest of ripples…But collectively, now that’s a whole other ball game.

          Liked by 1 person

  18. That’s a great review, John. Kudos to you, Soooz!

    Amazon hates me, too. They pull down reviews I write (and receive) all the time. Don’t feel bad. Er… too bad. (It’s a crappy situation and you’re allowed to be frustrated.)

    Liked by 2 people

  19. 😊Thanks so much, Staci. It is frustrating but there appears to be nothing we can do about it. I refuse to let it dampen my delight with John’s marvelous review.

    Liked by 1 person

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