A best-selling author has reacted to a reader who wrote a one star review of her latest book.
Rachael Lucas is a British writer who has published ten books over her career. She pointed out to her followers the review by an unknown critic – Eddi Reader – that suggested her novel, The Winter Cottage was ‘rushed’ and pallid’, “threadbare” and “exactly the exact same as the previous one but with a castle.”
The anonymous review, entitled ‘Women know their limits’, was published this weekend by the anonymous writer. It caught the attention of the author quickly due to its length (1100 words) as well as its detailed detail.
It’s not clear if Lucas and Lucas know each other but Lucas claims that the critic is her’stalker’.
Ouch: Author Rachael Lucas told her 11,500 followers on Twitter that she’d been on the receiving end of a lengthy one-star negative review by her ‘stalker’
MailOnline reached out to Lucas and her literary agent to request comment.
The critic seems especially upset that the book is self published, writing: “Turns Out Ms. Lucas Is a Free Range Hen!”
“She can eat maggots and grub in dirt until her heart is satisfied in search of inspiration and stories to tell. Instead, she laid this pale and rushed egg. With its thin shell.
Lucas told her 11,500 Twitter followers that it was ‘amusing’ that the reader paid for the novel.
She suggested that critics should be able to focus on their own careers and not ‘writing 1,500 word reviews’.
The review ends as it begins – in scathing style, with criticisms including “Agatha Christie is not”
Lucas has published 10 novels over her literary career. It is not clear if she is familiar with the writer of the negative reviews.
Lucas reacted to criticisms from readers, saying she was amused by the fact that Eddi Reader was paying her for her work even though she clearly does not enjoy it.
It’s negative appraisal suggests that it’s essentially the same as the previous one, but with a castle.
Another outrageous paragraph of criticism reads: “The plot is so bare-bones and the mind seems so stagnant that Ms Lucas appears to have resorted a great deal of her real life to prop up the stale narrative.
“I accept that weaving parts of life into fiction must happen, to some extent. This? It was too lazy.
The critic also criticizes the author for mistakes in the text and suggests that it’s ’embarrassing” that Lucas has dedicated it her eldest child.
Since its release, the book has received mostly positive feedback.