by Taye (link)
Genre drama, angst
Pairings Isaac/OFC, Taylor/Natalie, Taylor/OFC, Zac/OFC
Length 12 chapters
Status Unfinished
The summary for this story immediately caught my attention. It sounded mysterious and dramatic, and those are two things I really can’t get enough of in a story. I was anxious to see how well it managed to hold up to those expectations.
I’ll admit that I had some trouble getting into the story right away. I’m not sure what the problem was; I suspect it was a combination of Taye’s writing style, which isn’t necessarily bad but does sometimes seem awkward, and Zac’s bad attitude. I did want to know why Zac hadn’t spoken to Taylor in sixteen years, but I had trouble caring why.
Parts of the mystery are revealed early on, which disappointed me a bit. I wasn’t sure if I even wanted to keep reading if I was going to find out that secret within just a few chapters. On top of that, it didn’t paint Zac — or Taylor — in a more flattering light, as I hoped it would. I still found it difficult to care about his plight. Unrelatable, unlikable characters are one of my biggest problems in any story, and I found that to be the biggest hurdle in this story. I couldn’t understand their motivations and actions, even when things were laid out in front of me. There was just some disconnect there, preventing me from really relating to any of the large cast of characters.
I do enjoy the flashbacks that Taye has incorporated into the story, although I wish they were a bit longer or more numerous. I feel like that might have made it easier for me to understand all of the characters’ motivations in the present. Also, a little differentiation in formatting to show where the flashbacks end and begin would be really helpful.
Unfortunately, like so many stories, Trampled Underfoot remains unfinished. I was just beginning to feel a little more for the characters when it all ended, too. The lack of resolution is doubly frustrating because of the point at which it comes, and leaves me with very mixed feelings about this story.
Review by Bethany (website)