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darquedreamer's review
3.0
This one hit right down the middle for me. Possibly even closer to the lower end. I was promised a coming of age, mystical, steampunk story full of spirits and danger. Though I did get most of those, I didn’t quite get the steampunk aspects (besides the air ship that appeared and was mentioned only a handful of times), and I also got more sexual content and rape than I had expected.
For the most part, the story was dark and powerful. It followed strong, brave Juanita as she fought to fulfill the wishes of her ancestors to stop a terrible travesty that had been happening to undeserving people for years. Trains of people, sick, old, mentally impaired, and unwanted orphans, had been sent to the asylum where poor treatment and murder occurred. Juanita had even once been an unwanted, orphan baby on one of those trains when she was saved by her great grand-mother, destined to become a mystic traveler.
Juanita had the ability to see and communicate with her dead ancestors. She had the ability to travel to the Shadow World, and to even separate her spirit from her body. It was because of these abilities that she received visions of what she needed to do to save the innocent people aboard the trains.
The story was unique and very powerful. I don’t know that I have read anything like it before. It combined mysticism and Mexican culture with the wild west in an alternate reality. I loved the family dynamic and the importance of following your ancestors and respecting them. The problems for me with the story were the unnecessary instances of sexual content, rape, abuse, and misogynistic oppression. There was even a situation after a character had been raped where she was told that she was at least lucky her face hadn’t been beaten in, like that was supposed to be worse than being violated.
I honestly made it to the last 50 pages and kind of skimmed to the end. Though, the ending was kind of sweet, and intriguing, and even a little satisfying. And, though it sounds like I didn’t enjoy the story at all, I did a little bit, I just wish it didn’t have the gratuitous sex and rape, and a somewhat disturbing, abusive relationship. The characters were highly dynamic and very well developed. The world building was quite interesting and very descriptive, and the idea behind the spirits guiding Juanita was what kept me going throughout the story. I’d only recommend it to those over 18 looking for a powerful paranormal journey if you could get past the darkness, the sexual content, and the rape scenes. I’d rate it 2.5 to 3 stars.
Thank you to Black Chateau for providing me with this free copy in exchange for my honest review.
For the most part, the story was dark and powerful. It followed strong, brave Juanita as she fought to fulfill the wishes of her ancestors to stop a terrible travesty that had been happening to undeserving people for years. Trains of people, sick, old, mentally impaired, and unwanted orphans, had been sent to the asylum where poor treatment and murder occurred. Juanita had even once been an unwanted, orphan baby on one of those trains when she was saved by her great grand-mother, destined to become a mystic traveler.
Juanita had the ability to see and communicate with her dead ancestors. She had the ability to travel to the Shadow World, and to even separate her spirit from her body. It was because of these abilities that she received visions of what she needed to do to save the innocent people aboard the trains.
The story was unique and very powerful. I don’t know that I have read anything like it before. It combined mysticism and Mexican culture with the wild west in an alternate reality. I loved the family dynamic and the importance of following your ancestors and respecting them. The problems for me with the story were the unnecessary instances of sexual content, rape, abuse, and misogynistic oppression. There was even a situation after a character had been raped where she was told that she was at least lucky her face hadn’t been beaten in, like that was supposed to be worse than being violated.
I honestly made it to the last 50 pages and kind of skimmed to the end. Though, the ending was kind of sweet, and intriguing, and even a little satisfying. And, though it sounds like I didn’t enjoy the story at all, I did a little bit, I just wish it didn’t have the gratuitous sex and rape, and a somewhat disturbing, abusive relationship. The characters were highly dynamic and very well developed. The world building was quite interesting and very descriptive, and the idea behind the spirits guiding Juanita was what kept me going throughout the story. I’d only recommend it to those over 18 looking for a powerful paranormal journey if you could get past the darkness, the sexual content, and the rape scenes. I’d rate it 2.5 to 3 stars.
Thank you to Black Chateau for providing me with this free copy in exchange for my honest review.
zluke's review against another edition
I wanted to like this book, and I gave it several goes, but it just didn't make a lot of sense. It was either very tedious, or suddenly very extreme things happened. I didn't understand the world it was set in and there seemed to be a mash-up of several different genres and themes going on.
behindthepages's review
3.0
As an infant, Juanita was given up and put on the asylum train. Destined to be forgotten with the rest of California's unwanted people. But guided by the spirit of her dead husband, Juanita's great grandmother boards the train and rescues her before she ever reaches her destination. Years later, Juanita has inherited her great grandmother's gift of seeing spirits and receives a vision. She must stop the trains and save those trapped in the asylum. If she doesn't not only will her village be wiped out but innocent of the asylum will be murdered one by one.
This is not a story for those who want nonstop action. It's what I call a build up book, taking it's time to develop the characters and the world around them. Unfortunately, it does miss the mark on some key points with its world building. Character backgrounds are left out, and the politics of the world are completely omitted. This leaves the reader wondering how exactly the world works. Juanita's spiritual powers also have no defined rules. They seem to come and go without any apparent pattern.
To see the full review please visit: https://forums.onlinebookclub.org/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=110277
This is not a story for those who want nonstop action. It's what I call a build up book, taking it's time to develop the characters and the world around them. Unfortunately, it does miss the mark on some key points with its world building. Character backgrounds are left out, and the politics of the world are completely omitted. This leaves the reader wondering how exactly the world works. Juanita's spiritual powers also have no defined rules. They seem to come and go without any apparent pattern.
To see the full review please visit: https://forums.onlinebookclub.org/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=110277
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