Review: Love can find anyone in the strangest of places!
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 08 8, 2011
I always love a tough female main character and Lucy Brightwing did not disappoint. Not only was she incredibly strong, but she was a very able thief, when need be, and the last remaining member of the Tequesta tribe. I enjoyed reading about her passion for the swamp that she called home; she truly did love the wilderness and respected all of nature, as was probably customary with her tribe. The Battle brothers, Edgar and Mallory, were a different story altogether. They didn't appear to be very successful criminals at all, fumbling along while running from the police after Edgar made his escape. Edgar, the older brother, was supposed to be in charge, but often Mallory decided to take things into his own hands. Mallory is, for lack of better words, a bit on the slow side, at least when it comes to emotions and social interactions. He didn't seem to see anything wrong with torturing, killing, raping; basically not understanding right from wrong. He was very obviously a scary individual, but at times he seemed so normal that you almost liked him - that was even worse! Sometimes I liked the characters, other times I couldn't really relate or connect to them which made me lose interest. This book is a little different than the norm, in that all of the main characters have done things that are morally corrupt (some more than others) and yet you can still find them likable. I did like the characters, I just didn't love them. However, I did form enough of a connection with each of them to enjoy this book. I liked the unique storyline, because it truly wasn't like anything I've ever read before. I've always been a fan of Native American mythology, so I really enjoyed the different stories told throughout the book. I think a spectacular novel has to have a good amount of detail to it, without going overboard. To me, this book had entirely too much detail to the point that I had trouble reading it at times. I understand that the author wanted us to be able to visualize the place Lucy lived, because most of us would not know what it was like to live in the wilderness, basically in the middle of nowhere. Also, since Edgar and Mallory are from the city, a lot of observations were made on their part about their surroundings and how out of place they were in them. It was all just a bit much for me at times, although I did appreciate the author's attention to detail and helping us be able to visualize the environment. At times I could feel a connection between Edgar and Lucy, but it was hard for me to really believe that they were falling for each other under the circumstances. After seeing what his brother is capable of, I would have been running for the hills as soon as I could. You would definitely have to be a different kind of person to go along with all of that. There were times though, at her house in the swamp, that their romance seemed more believable. I thought the part where she takes him to see the fireflies was especially lovely. In the end she ends up risking a lot for him and I just don't know if there was enough of a connection between them to warrant that. I'd say this book is pretty unique, in the fact that the main characters are all on the opposite side of the law; definitely a case of finding love in the strangest of places.