4-star Review

I got a nice 4-star review on Amazon.com and Goodreads.  Judith compares the book to Willard Motley’s Knock On Any Door.  Pretty cool!

Jo Sullivan helps a homeless boy, Chris, look for his missing girlfriend, carrying us deep into the Chicago’s underbelly where street kids struggle to survive. Their quest carries them deep into the macabre, where the homeless are fed into the sick ambitions of the rich. The stories of neglect and abuse that people her world are as real as the mystery of Lexie’s disappearance, and in the end, Borys creates not only a page turning mystery, but an authentic and moving picture of a bitter, harsh and cruel world, reminiscent, for me, of Willard Motley’s 1947 Chicago epic, Knock On Any Door, a story that moved me greatly back in the Fifties.

–Judith Kirsch, author of  The Inheritors

ANGIE MANGINO Reviews Painted Black

Angie Mangino gave Painted Black another 5-star review!

What do you see when you think of teens living on the streets of a city? Do you get angry, compassionate, or think it’s a shame, but not your problem? Be ready to see these teens in a different way.

In this novel, Borys introduces readers to Jo Sullivan, a reporter who started out just looking for a story, but who finds so much more. Most especially, she finds Chris Young, a young graffiti artist living on the streets, surviving however he can. Together they look for the truth, not only about a funeral home, but also about themselves.

“Midnight interviews at funeral parlors – not exactly the way they mapped thing out in Journalism 405: Strategic Communication Research. But then nothing about Jo’s situation now related to what life had been back then.”

Jo comes to care about Chris, as do readers, with Borys painting a picture of life on the streets of Chicago that will absorb and involve readers as the reality shocks and captures them.

via ANGIE MANGINO journalist / book reviewer – Painted Black.

Wistfulskimmie’s Book Review

 

Kim over at Wistfulskimmie’s Book Reviews gave Painted Black a 5 star review today.  I’m so excited because she had such nice things to say.  It is so gratifying to have reviewers applaud the very elements I tried so hard to do right.

Thank, you, Kim.  I will certainly let you know when the second Street Stories novel is ready to read.

This is the story of Jo Sullivan. She is a reporter, writing short stories about the forgotten homeless of Chicago. This is a mystery and Jo must get to the bottom of a missing teenage prostitute, a dodgy funeral service that specializes in freeze drying corpses for those that can afford it, and a possible link between the two. With a Youth Worker and one of the prostitutes closest friends for help, she tries to get to the bottom of the mystery whilst fighting her own demons at the same time.

I enjoyed this immensely, but it was also quite gritty at the same time and made me think of the fates of others, especially the ‘forgotten’ homeless. Whilst on the one hand highlighting the fate these teenagers have to face, it was also a good mystery at its heart. Jo and Chris are damaged in their own ways and must put aside their mistrust of each other to work together. It is a gripping story. A real page turner but also very sad. The characters were true to life and leapt out of the page at me, at times their pain was tangible. The ending was sad but right for the book. A great mystery that highlights the problems facing the homeless more or less every day. I shall certainly look out for more by this author.

via Wistfulskimmie’s Book Reviews: Painted Black by Debra Borys.

Another 4 Star Review on Amazon

James Ewing, author of the soon to be published crime comedy novel FRESH SQUEEZED, just posted a four star review of Painted Black on Amazon.  I love what he has to say, especially the part about the Kafkaesque villain and “a good story with a wicked twist.”

If you’ve read Painted Black, I encourage you to go to Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or Goodreads and leave a review.  I’d love to hear everyone’s feedback, both good and bad.  That’s how authors make the next book even better.

Painted Black is the fast-paced story of the nearly invisible people living on the street, and the people who prey on them. Set in Chicago, Painted Black gives a gritty look at the hidden reality of homelessness, and the lengths these pariahs are forced to go to, just to survive. The story follows street-beat reporter Jo Sullivan in her obsessive search for a missing teenage girl. As she uncovers clues to the girl’s whereabouts, Jo comes face-to-face with gutter-level hardcores, social working soft-hearts, and a truly Kafkaesque villain. A good story with a wicked twist, Painted Black is definitely one to read.

via Amazon.com: James W Ewing’s review of Painted Black.

Jenn’s Review Blog: Painted Black

When I emailed an epub version of Painted Black to Jenn’s Review Blog on May 8, I did so hoping she’d be able to get to it by the end of June. Reviewers are swamped these days with review requests and Jenn had only been able to tell me she would get to it as soon as she could.

So I was very surprised to get her email May 31 saying she was already done and had posted the review on her blog.  According to her email:  “Once I started reading it I couldn’t put it down! Review is posted on my blog and I am posting to Amazon, B&N and Goodreads also I hope you will consider asking me to review your next book, I loved the character of Jo Sullivan! Thanks again for the opportunity.”

Click the link below to read her full review.

Dark, gritty and suspenseful this is a seat of your pants ride that you won’t soon forget.

via Jenn’s Review Blog: Painted Black.