Review: Average read, muddled plot & mythologies
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 07 15, 2012
Sword of the Raven should have been better, much much better. The writer is not without skills and for once the document saw some proper editing for technical issues if not for continuity and plot. From the outset, I can see why the origins of Rowan MacLachlan might be confusing. Indications are he is from medieval (classical Scots Highlander era) but in truth he's a 'mere' 100 years old or so. It's a disconnect that carries through all the huge 'tells' for the mythology (which reads more as Eire Celtic mythos than Scots Celtic origin stories). The characters, the fact that Delaney's brother is a cop, that she's an advocate seeking a law degree, the ex-fiance is Vice, and a slew of other rather important items about each of the characters springs like a trap, in a sort of 'huh, where'd that come from?' way.The 'horrid' past revelation of Delaney and her brother, Connor, come quite late in the tale and isn't nearly as disastrous as one might expect from the huge tease and buildup - Rowan has far more to atone for and a more interesting history along with understandable motivations (and again, most of that's put off 'til near the end).The supernatural elements have a heavy-handed feel. Delaney comes by powers without sufficient explanation as to how and why they manifest - the suspension of disbelief got pressed to the breaking point in far too many places.I ended up skipping almost all the 'scenes of affection' because they were ... boring (yes, supernatural lovin' can be a blast if it's handled correctly, but that's not the case here). I found myself also skipping to the ending, just to see if anything was going to be resolved one way or the other. And it was just as I expected. Where the author could have taken the bolder path of keeping Rowan's actions consistent with his history and his core personality, the easy way (HFN) won out.In many ways this is a fairly ambitious, though flawed, effort. Hopefully with the next book, the issues of too much tell, too many inexplicable deviations in the plot, and better fleshed out characters will win the day.