An absorbing, character-driven paranormal tale that holds promise for future series entries.
In the first installment in Conrey’s Wayward Saviors contemporary fantasy saga, an immortal, after centuries of existence, struggles to find meaning in his life.
Although Nicholas Theodoulos is considered a heroic figure by any standard—having saved countless children from bad situations over the last 16 centuries—he’s also a deeply flawed alcoholic who pushes those who love him away: “Time had slowly entombed his heart, layer after layer, century after century, until a sepulcher stood where a man should be.” However, when he meets Noory Abramson, a manager of an Atlanta shelter for the houseless whose life’s mission is to change the lives of children in seemingly hopeless situations, he finds a kindred spirit. Together with his friend John—who’s Noory’s adoptive father—the group uncovers a conspiracy involving an ancient device that could either bring about a new utopia or create a hell on Earth. All three characters, it turns out, are iconic Christian figures: Theodoulos is St. Nicholas, John is Jesus’ beloved disciple, and Noory is the grandniece of Jesus. Although the storyline contains a few improbable plot turns, there are many impressive narrative features at play in this highly palatable blend of urban fantasy, paranormal romance, and Christian mythology. First and foremost is the courageous and audacious way in which the author reimagines the St. Nicholas myth. The diverse cast of characters—which includes a demon named Damascus and Father Roy, the spirit of a priest whose work on Earth is unfinished—will impress fans of paranormal fantasy sagas such as Kim Harrison’s Hollows series, as the potential for future storylines seems virtually limitless. Serious issues are explored with insight and sensitivity, including alcoholism, houselessness, and child advocacy. Still, the overall tone of the story maintains a welcome witty and lighthearted edge; at one point, for instance, Noory describes the plot as “antichrist crazy shit!”
An absorbing, character-driven paranormal tale that holds promise for future series entries.Pub Date: June 1, 2023
ISBN: 9781960562005
Page Count: 316
Publisher: Soul Source Press
Review Posted Online: June 2, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
PERSPECTIVES
An author to watch, Buehlman is now two for two in delivering eerie, offbeat novels with admirable literary skill.
Cormac McCarthy's The Road meets Chaucer's Canterbury Tales in this frightful medieval epic about an orphan girl with visionary powers in plague-devastated France.
The year is 1348. The conflict between France and England is nothing compared to the all-out war building between good angels and fallen ones for control of heaven (though a scene in which soldiers are massacred by a rainbow of arrows is pretty horrific). Among mortals, only the girl, Delphine, knows of the cataclysm to come. Angels speak to her, issuing warnings—and a command to run. A pack of thieves is about to carry her off and rape her when she is saved by a disgraced knight, Thomas, with whom she teams on a march across the parched landscape. Survivors desperate for food have made donkey a delicacy and don't mind eating human flesh. The few healthy people left lock themselves in, not wanting to risk contact with strangers, no matter how dire the strangers' needs. To venture out at night is suicidal: Horrific forces swirl about, ravaging living forms. Lethal black clouds, tentacled water creatures and assorted monsters are comfortable in the daylight hours as well. The knight and a third fellow journeyer, a priest, have difficulty believing Delphine's visions are real, but with oblivion lurking in every shadow, they don't have any choice but to trust her. The question becomes, can she trust herself? Buehlman, who drew upon his love of Fitzgerald and Hemingway in his acclaimed Southern horror novel, Those Across the River (2011), slips effortlessly into a different kind of literary sensibility, one that doesn't scrimp on earthy humor and lyrical writing in the face of unspeakable horrors. The power of suggestion is the author's strong suit, along with first-rate storytelling talent.
An author to watch, Buehlman is now two for two in delivering eerie, offbeat novels with admirable literary skill.Pub Date: Oct. 2, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-937007-86-7
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Ace/Berkley
Review Posted Online: Sept. 1, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2012
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.
On the orders of her mother, a woman goes to dragon-riding school.
Even though her mother is a general in Navarre’s army, 20-year-old Violet Sorrengail was raised by her father to follow his path as a scribe. After his death, though, Violet's mother shocks her by forcing her to enter the elite and deadly dragon rider academy at Basgiath War College. Most students die at the War College: during training sessions, at the hands of their classmates, or by the very dragons they hope to one day be paired with. From Day One, Violet is targeted by her classmates, some because they hate her mother, others because they think she’s too physically frail to succeed. She must survive a daily gauntlet of physical challenges and the deadly attacks of classmates, which she does with the help of secret knowledge handed down by her two older siblings, who'd been students there before her. Violet is at the mercy of the plot rather than being in charge of it, hurtling through one obstacle after another. As a result, the story is action-packed and fast-paced, but Violet is a strange mix of pure competence and total passivity, always managing to come out on the winning side. The book is categorized as romantasy, with Violet pulled between the comforting love she feels from her childhood best friend, Dain Aetos, and the incendiary attraction she feels for family enemy Xaden Riorson. However, the way Dain constantly undermines Violet's abilities and his lack of character development make this an unconvincing storyline. The plots and subplots aren’t well-integrated, with the first half purely focused on Violet’s training, followed by a brief detour for romance, and then a final focus on outside threats.
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374042
Page Count: 528
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2024
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
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