Review: A VERY WELL-WRITTEN, ACTION-PACKED NOVEL
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 7, 2013
“Redemption” turned out to be quite the surprise. A reliable bookworm friend of mine who share similar taste in books and genres, recommended this to me, but because I’ve read too many less than stellar self-pub books, I kept shoving “Redemption” to the bottom of my to-read list. I can now happily report that I finished this book in less than two days, and it is definitely one of the better self-pub books out there. I doubt I’ll be reading the rest of this series, but I honestly did enjoy this book.This is truly a terrific read, and with so many references to pop culture it is easy to see where the author got her inspiration for this book (series?). As a reader who enjoyed three out of the four books in the Twilight Saga, I noticed a lot of similarities. For one, there is the inevitable start of a love-triangle, the vampires demons with their fangs and lust for blood; the light shield Dayton was trained to use hours before they went into battle, going to Italy to find “the ring”, and the twins (brother and sister) setup reminiscent of Twilight’s “Volturi”, and much, much more. With all this in mind, I can already see where the rest of the series is headed. I don’t really think this is fanfic, but with so many similarities to what I’ve already read in popular mainstream paranormal books and my favorite tv shows such as “Buffy” and “Angel”, it’s hard to ignore the obvious.But, this book also has a lot of new things to offer and I was intrigued by the flying carpet, for one. The characters are all well-rounded, though I didn’t really connect with Dayton, the female lead. I understood her attitude and why she continually lashed out and pushed the limits, but I was also put-off by her cussing, her annoying habit to constantly (and I mean CONSTANTLY) bite her tongue until it bled, and her obsession with dumdum lollipops (which made me wonder what her teeth was going to look like in a few years time the way she was devouring these lollipops). I tried to warm up to her, and at the very end she did kick a butt or three, but her crying about everything and moping about what a crappy life she has, it was hard to see her as a strong character. No matter how the author described her, her actions simply weren’t those of a strong, female lead I could be proud of. Each one of the secondary characters had their fifteen minutes of fame, and whether I liked them or not, I can’t argue that it is evident the author spent a lot of time developing each and every character, good and evil.If you’re new to the paranormal genre and looking for something light to read, but something that would pack a punch and set your imagination on fire, this book is what I’d recommend. The writing is superb and is part of what makes it stand out from other self-pub books. I found the angst and the build-up to the finale a little too drawn out and slightly overdone, but it keeps the plot moving. The author’s attention to detail, not only to world-building but also to every emotion the main character is feeling at any given point, is amazing. As the proverbial saying goes: no stone was left unturned. Despite the minor issues I had, I enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to others.