Review: Best book I've read in a long time
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 08 18, 2013
In a strange, bizarre way, I received a copy of this book from the author, not in exchange for a review but as a belated birthday gift. After reading the book, I decided that it was so good that it would be a crime not to leave a review.I found the first book in the series, The Chosen One to be pretty awesome but there are times when I honestly wonder if I would have enjoyed the book as much if it wasn't because I've read the the first book in a sequel series, Angel of Death beforehand. This book made me know for sure that I would have loved the series no matter what.The plot. Oh, how can I even begin to describe the sheer complexity of the plot? This is a story that extends all the way back to the beginning of the universe, telling the tale of the creation and destruction of galaxies, matter and anti-matter and primordial goo, light vs darkness, good vs evil. The world she created wasn't entirely original. She did not cook up some new form of government. It's neither utopia nor dystopia. She simply took the template of the parliament that we have today and amplified it, casting the system upon an intergalactic society. So can someone please explain to me why the whole world with its hybrid army managed to capture my heart and blow my mind away? Hell, I'm not even a fan of intergalactic stuff. Was her story without fault? No. The technology, medical knowledge and culture of her stone-age earthlings were a little inconsistent at times, the "scientific" part of her story about genetics and all weren't all that convincing and there were times when I felt that the book could use a better proof-reading. Yet I still love her story so much, I can't wait for the next book in the series.I'm not kidding when I say that the all of the characters in the book have a life of their own. Reading her books is like taking an emotional surf on a beach - you get both high and low according to the mood of the characters. And sometimes, when the water gets too turbulent, you slip from your surf board and get drowned in all the emotions being poured from the pages of the book. With all due honesty, I simply can't count the number of times I wanted to wrench my heart out and cry for the characters. If you want to get an idea of how good her characters are, imagine this: I actually found myself sympathizing with a man who would beat the crap out of a pregnant woman. Bad guy? Who's the bad guy? In a war, there's no right and wrong, merely who's side you are on - and Erishkigal couldn't have spelt it out more clearly. She's also great when it comes it symbolism (I loved the pomegranate) and comparisons. I especially liked how she pitched her characters in the same situation at different times and showed us the difference in the way they responded due to the experiences that they have gone through. Same characters, same situation but different actions. It's like, she creates this complex background and personality for each of her character and pitch them into an elaborate web, then allows them to struggle and shows us the ripples that their struggles are causing. It's both breathtaking and amazing and before I know it, I found myself trapped in the same web.There are books that left me satisfied, books that were worth the time and money spent on them. Then there are books that I regretted wasting my time reading. And there are books that I would regret if I never read them at least once in my life. This book is one of them.If you want a good book about angels, intergalactic diplomacy and politics, as well as a whole new perspective of Lucifer, this book is definitely for you.