The Road to Vermilion Lake by Vic Cavalli is an interesting niche novel that felt like a character study.

If I had to describe this book in one word, I would choose: niche. This book isn't some hard hitting Star Wars novel or Notebook styled novel, it is truly in it's own little world. For some people, this book will be incredibly hard to put down and it will be your binge-worthy novel but for others it just won't sit as well. For me, it wasn't as binge worthy as it was for other reviewers (seriously, some reviewers seem to be devouring this book and loving every second of it!).

I did love that this was a Canadian author because I absolutely love supporting my home country, but this book just wasn't made for me. And, that isn't a bad thing! There are people out there who will love this book so much more than me!

So why wasn't it for me? For one, the book felt very slow and the conversation between characters was way to formal. I didn't feel like people actually talk the way the characters do. It was so oddly structured and oh so formal that it was hard to feel for these characters. I just couldn't connect with these people because they didn't feel real to me. Maybe it's because I'm from an odd, small town that isn't really comparable to any other city I've ever been in! I did really appreciate the descriptive writing of the setting and Tom's job, but the dialogue just didn't connect with me.

I also didn't like the female characters in any capacity. Johnny was this really unique character, but I've never met anyone like her. That being said, the fact that Johnny is so out there and unique is a good thing! Unfortunately for me, I need to connect with characters to be able to be whisked into the story. Johnny and Sally are religious and do not wish to sleep with anyone until they are married. Okay, cool, that's normal! But announcing that the first time you meet a guy? Having this strong "love at first sight" feeling and announcing a potential marriage and children? It just didn't seem real to me. I think this made her to be a truly interesting character to follow but she felt foreign. It was like I was watching a character in the Handmaid's Tale television show - it feels so close to being real but wasn't.

That negative for me can be a true positive though - this book is set in a realistic story with unique characters. Seeing them interact with each other and the surroundings was a fun character study. I think that's where readers are going to get the most out of this book. It's so different that it can be so good!

The biggest positive for me was seeing these characters grow. Dave, Tom, Johnny and Sally all change over time as you learn about their past and their present. Heartbreaks, happiness and tragedy can all be followed which is absolutely lovely. I like seeing characters grow and develop in books, and it's nice to see Vic write that so effortlessly. The growth didn't feel forced - it felt natural.

Overall, I think this story it cool. Vic Cavalli has crafted a really interesting story that will take you to a whole new world (within the one we're already in).

Three out of five stars!

I received this book for free from the author Vic Cavalli in exchange for an honest review. ( )

Literary, but not what you think
This book is extremely well written, layered, and yet not what you expect. Is it plotted as a romance? No.
Is it a mystery? Not at all. Neither is it a coming of age story. If anything it is a story of a main character who traveled to a new level, not the reader. It maintains interest of the unknown to keep the reader interested.
Verbs used as visual eye candy in this book. They never distract from the sexual tension or from the sensual threads that weave the story together. It is written in first person. Not my favorite, but this worked because of the flow of the prose, and the lack of tangents common to stream of conscious narration.
The choice of the blasting industry as the setting and plot motivation was unique, not doubt about it. The complexities and danger of the blasting I had always assumed, but had never read about in detail: the description of the lady who died in her Bronco is memorable.
When the girlfriend was told of the main character's disfigurement, it was well done, but without the answering emotional details you would normally expect from the main character. Instead, the torture he went through until he heard from her became the emotional platform for it. The surprise reaction to his disfigurement went with what the book embodied: an odd romance that works ( )

I wanted to really like this book but it just wasn’t my style. Some interesting parts but those moved too quickly, while a lot was just too far fetched. Seemed mainly to be about a man lusting after another woman which is typically just not what I read.

I received a free ebook copy in exchange for an honest review. ( )

The Road to Vermillion Lake is the story of Tom who runs a road construction site first aid station in the British Columbia mountains. It is essentially a love story but is very unlike other novels in this genre. A book that is likely intended for a male audience, it contains sub-plots and references involving cars, rock music, steelhead trout fish, bears, hunting, nauseating construction-site injuries, and competitive gun shooting. It is also unusual for the love story genre in that the characters attempt to practice a form of chaste Catholic dating. Part of their dating included the woman creating a chart that indicates which parts of her body her partner is allowed to touch, what types of kisses are permitted, and other dating rules.

The author demonstrates a good ability with various technical aspects of writing including crafting effective descriptions and evoking emotional reactions. The skills might need a little more honing. At times, it is possible that the emotional reaction evoked may not have been the one intended by the author. It is difficult to know whether the author intended readers to take certain descriptions and stories literally or seriously. These stories include one of a polar bear attack where the victim's head was "cracked like a nut" or another story where a character was blinded by a wayward guitar string from Jimmy Page's guitar. The end of the novel is packed with hyperbolic descriptions of the married sexual relations of the protagonists as well as the impact of their orgasms on the local topography. There were times in the novel where it was unclear as to whether a particular comment or situation was actually intended to be humorous or symbolic. If some of the stories are taken literally, many readers would undoubtedly find the novel to be absurd, improbable, or disturbing.

This book may not have a wide audience. It may appeal mostly to younger male readers. Some women may find certain elements of the book alienating. In particular, scenes involving guns and shooting later in the book may be particularly bothersome. In these scenes, Tom fantasizes about his female partner and having sexual relations with her to improve his gun shooting skills. Also, for readers who need details in fiction books to be factually correct or probable, there may be some frustration with certain aspects of the novel. Catholic practices and teachings are misrepresented in some instances. There were also geographical inaccuracies such as the travel time between Tofino and the Victoria international airport being only 90 minutes. ( )

This was a hard book to read. I sometimes got lost in all the tedious details. Explaining the types of injuries the men received was more information than I needed to know. I lost interest when the author went into great detail to describe the lake and the surrounding area and the descriptions of the amount of shot in each shell. Too tedious.
The scene where Johnny and Tom are trying how to tell Sally about their love is touching. However, finding Sally in a state of amnesia is almost too simple.

This is not a book I would read again. ( )