Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ

I'll start by quoting another reviewer (GracieKat) as the last paragraph of their review sums up how I felt about this book. (Which, I regret to say, I couldn't finish).

"I honestly can't recommend Apex Predator, not without some heavy rework, a good editor and another run through a proofreader would be a wise idea. I noticed a few typos here and there. Nothing to make it unreadable but it does make it look a bit unprofessional. Another proofread or edit would also smooth out some of the awkward sentence structure."

I have to confess that I am getting a little fed up when 'discovering' new books only to find that they've been through no editorial process. I guess they are usually, or perhaps always, self-published titles because this could obviously never happen if the book was published 'conventionally' through a publishing house.

This title is by no means the worse I've encountered, in this respect, not by a long shot and it's such a shame because the reading experience could have been improved ten-fold had it received attention even from a proof reader alone.

Most of the writing is very good but some of the clumsy sentence structure, lack of punctuation, incorrect or inappropriate words used (by that I mean unsuitable for that precise context) and typographic errors interrupts the flow and spoils the reading experience. There was even one occasion in Chapter 1 where the author wrote, "... his boss was ladling heaping bellyfuls of it onto is plate." I guess in an early draft the author couldn't decide whether to use "ladling" or "heaping" but both words remain in the published book.

I've said it before, in similar situations, where authors seem not to have taken their book through any kind of interim or final editorial process, but in my humble opinion, S.M. Douglas has done himself and his readers (existing and potential) a great disservice by not intercepting and amending these mistakes prior to publication. I can’t understand why a proofreader, at least, was not employed, preferably in conjunction with an editor or copyeditor (the latter obviously being a less collaborative, less ‘invasive� process, if this is something the author had concerns about).

I do find it particularly sad and regrettable when a published author (albeit self-published) appears not to recognise how important it is to maintain basic standards of literacy, regardless of how many readers may enjoy their work. They assume a huge responsibility because, as we all know, the act of reading improves our ability to communicate, increases our vocabulary, enhances our language skills and develops fluency, allowing us to express our thoughts and ideas better.