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Summary: A wonderful story of hope and forgiveness!
Review: I really enjoyed David Rehak's "A Young Girl's Crimes." A compelling story about incest, child abuse, and murder. A real page turner to be sure!I thought the characters like; Flora and John were believable and easy to relate to, the dialogue apposite and flowed throughout the story smoothly, and the plot as I said earlier compelling. I think Mr. Rehak has a real winner on his hands with this (his first novel) "A Young Girl's Crimes, and I look forward to reading more books by this talented writer in the very near future! A Very Nice Job David...Take '10' You've Earned It!
Rating: 
Summary: A Good Story In Need Of More Development
Review: It's always difficult to evaluate an author's first work. Such works almost always showcase an aspect of the author's writing which shows maturity. However, these works also vividly display the remaining weaknesses in the author's skills. This is the case with David Rehak and his debut work, A Young Girl's Crimes. What is clear from the book is that Rehak knows what elements are necessary for a good story. The story of Flora's fall and redemption certainly contains enough emotional power to captivate the reader. However, two serious weaknesses undermine this strength. The first is that the story is not adequately developed. Because each narrative element is touched upon too briefly, it is impossible to create any sort of impact with the reader. The best example of this error occurs when Flora's father dies. What could be an affecting moment is trivialized by the sparse description, which says little more than "his death was listed in the newspaper." This type of mistake is repeated almost every time an emotional bridge could have been built. As a result, the reader ends up caring little for the characters. The book is further weakened by stiff dialogue. Other than Flora, the words spoken by the characters mostly reside in the area of stereotype, while occasionally venturing into the realm of cliché. A good example occurs when Bill (Flora's brother) is told that his wife doesn't want to see him. His response, "She's my wife! I'm her husband! And she's coming back home with me!", is almost laughable. Without better dialogue, the reader has little means to relate to the characters. A Young Girl's Crimes definitely feels like a book that was rushed into print. If more time were taken to develop the story and improve the dialogue, a book that matched the potential of the story probably would have emerged. However, what exists now is just too brief to be memorable. Readers who enjoy finding the first work from an author will probably want to buy A Young Girl's Crimes. But, the majority of the reading public will want to avoid this book.
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Summary: REHAK, REHAK, REHAK!
Review: Mr. David Rehak, congratulations for a very successful novel. From the reviews here on Amazon.com, you have succeeded at reaching a cross-reference of mixed opinions. All that is good stuff. What a dull world it would be if everybody thought the same about everything at the same time. I found the book very enjoyable. I love the fact that this book was based on the real story. That said, the author is limited as to how much beyond the truth he dears to trespass. I believe you did a tremendous job of describing the life of the character Flora, however pathetic she was. I loved the way you factored in the human elements of life which often times are not always very pretty. For example, when seeking love from wherever you can find it may lead one into some dark and ugly places. So it was with Flora. I sensed a sad bit of humanity in her character that many who would rather not be reminded of these factors would attack your writings or your novel for having revealed them. There they were, laid bare for the whole world to read. My take on this is, if there is something in Flora that you don't feel comfortable with, then do something about those characteristic in people you deal with in real life. Thank you again Rehak, and may you write many more books that deal with touching individuals in places that no other author has managed to do. Please feel free to contact me whenever as we develop and learn along life's highway. If there are other authors you recommend that I read, let me know about them also. --Bevery C. Sanders
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Summary: Minimalist style starkly reveals a gritty life
Review: Teenagers Flora and Bill Darby grow tired of their father's restrictions, seeking rebellion in very different ways. While Bill eventually gets himself disowned by choosing to marry a woman his father does not approve of, Flora takes a very different path. Tired of her tutor's cruel behavior, Flora smothers her. No one ever suspects her crime, but that instance of evil begins Flora's descent into destruction. Flora discovers her father's pornography collection, her feelings toward love and sex then guided by her father's depraved collection. When her new tutor arrives, Flora explores the world of lesbian love, only to be ultimately rejected. Even when Flora encounters true compassion, her past makes a future impossible. Author David Rehak's minimalist style starkly reveals a gritty life in A YOUNG GIRL'S CRIMES. With her father's controlling nature driving her into rebellion, Flora's descent into violent and sexual behavior comes alive with Rehak's vivid pen. Flora's desperate search for love from her father, her lover, or even her brother results in a tale of poignant tragedy. Readers will encounter unexpected moral twists and ethical dilemmas written in a poignant and compelling style that it is impossible to put down. Indeed, Rehak's remarkable talent will leave readers eagerly anticipating his future releases. A YOUNG GIRL'S CRIMES comes highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Compelling, thought provoking, incredible!
Review: This book had been on my to-read pile for a very long time when I decided to give it a whirl. I cannot believe it took me so long to read it! A Young Girl's Crimes is a gripping, thought provoking tale of a teenager who loses her innocence in the most disturbing ways. Flora is a girl who has had everything in life -- after all, her father is wealthy and influential -- save her freedom. Her father is domineering and abusive and does whatever is possible to keep Flora locked up in the mansion. But Flora rebels in the most disarming ways. She seeks love and attention in all the wrong places, only to feel emptiness afterwards. In an attempt to clean up her act, she turns to God to find spiritual guidance and escape her inner demos. However, the odyssey to self-discovery has just begun... I love the dark language in this novel. Flora's thirst for love and acceptance is gripping beyond compare. I was able to feel a great deal of compassion for this character -- even when I found her behavior appalling at times. I like how the author uses elements of Marquis de Sade within the story. Marquis de Sade is one of my favorite authors, and the fact that the works of said author are incorporated in this story made this novel all the more enjoyable for me. David Rehak is a brilliant author and I look forward to reading his other books. In the meantime, I recommend A Young Girl's Crimes most highly. It is one of my favorite reads this year thus far. He uses the sort of dark language that I adore in this sort of fiction. Again, I have no idea why it took me so long to read this compelling, thought provoking novel, but am sure glad I did!
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Summary: GENIUS THRIVES IN THE SUNSHINE & SHADOWS OF REHAK'S
Review: With influence from past writing masters and current, contemporary "best-sellers," it's difficult for any writer, young or old, to find his/her own "writing voice," but David Rehak has done it ... with his very first, debut novella.
True, his voice needs a bit of honing, but it's obvious he has a depth and originality seldom found in one so young.
Since A YOUNG GIRL'S CRIMES was loosely based on fact, the reader doesn't get to glimpse a true sample of Rehak's imagination, a talent I'm certain he has in abundance. And I can't wait to read a fictitious book by him. If I'm correctly reading between the lines of this book, there's no limits to where his fertile imagination and passion for life will carry him. Now, that will be an exciting reading adventure for his many fans ... possibly even leading to a Pulitzer somewhere down the road!
In reading Rehak's other reviews, I note that many are comparing him to some of the eighteenth-century writers ... but not in my opinion; I see him as a modern, contemporary voice who has the depth of character, the courage, and the knowledge to delve into the Gothic past as well as an understanding of the more enlightened, yet somehow even more complex, Psyche of our 21st century .
One of the duties of a good writer is to make his readers FEEL EMOTION; make them cry ... make them laugh ... and make them "wait." In this rather dark, suspense-filled story of a young girl and her brother (Flora and Bill) who flee the mansion and "good life" of their dominant father, Rehak has woven a story that touched my emotions deeply. I couldn't put it down. The father's inept handling of his children after the mother died started the problems, but Flora was not blameless. She chose the wrong path ... and ... well, I don't want to give any details of this story away, so suffice it to say that in this debut novella, Rehak's unique, daring, writing style runs the gamut from greed to lust to love, incest, and murder.
But read it for yourself ... if you dare!!
And don't let the dark side of Rehak's writing fool you. Apparently, this young man has seen, heard, and tasted the good and evil of the human experience, but I believe him to be a God-fearing Christian with abundant personal knowledge of the "human condition," and that he's learned the most valuable life lesson of all: Good does indeed triumph over evil.
I'm intrigued by Rehak's writing style and longing to see it "blossom." I haven't read his second or third books yet, but am thinking of skipping to the fourth, CRIPPLED DREAMS, which I hear is due out very shortly ... just to see if his genius is shining bright and clear yet ... like the "lighthouse" that his future works promise to be.
But you better believe I will go back and read LOVE AND MADNESS and POEMS FROM MY BLEEDING HEART, also. Rehak also has a talent for titles; his book titles are so catchy they lure the reader into the book without hesitation.
Although I've never been a "fickle" woman and have never been attracted to younger men (other than in a "motherly" way), if David Rehak's writing goes where I expect it to, I may just have to ask Pat Conroy, Dean Koontz, and James Patterson, my "older" favorite authors, to move over and make room for Rehak on my crowded bookshelves. This debut novella gained a big fan for this talented young man.
Thriving in the sunshine and the shadows of David Rehak's brilliant mind are the seeds of genius ... and it won't take long for those seeds to sprout. Then look out, world!
Review by BETTY DRAVIS[...]
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