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steevejr's review
2.0
This book has a lot of violent rape in it. That should automatically give it 0/5 stars.
I stopped reading at 56% even though I was really intent to finish, but the violence is absolutely revolting. Don't read this book.
That disclaimer aside, this book is... interesting. The plot is intriguing, and I enjoyed the writing style, for the most part. The characters were compelling and I would've liked to read more about them. It was enough to keep me reading past the first 100 pages and enough to warrant 2/5 stars instead of 1/5.
The weirdest part is the setting. For some inexplicable reason the story is set in Colorado, but that has no bearing on the plot at the slightest; it's a little jarring to be involved in a action-packed fantasy world only to read Colorado out of the blue with zero explanation. This is set in a post apocalyptic America but... why? Just so they can have guns? It makes no sense and there's no world building to back up why it's important for this story to take place in Colorado. If anything, it's distracting and strange.
The plot is interesting, but rushed. The characters seem to do things just to do things, and events seem to just sort of 'happen.' One character rushes into a dangerous place, knowing he will get caught and just... does it anyway, even though plot-wise there is absolutely no reason he had to be the one to do it. The characters seem to be pushed around by the plot rather than letting their own self preservation and motivations move the story forward; they don't question anything and just go along with what's happening. The 'twists' are obvious and predictable, to the point that I'm left wondering why the characters themselves didn't see that coming. The dialogue is stilted and random accents are forced on some of the characters with little rhyme or reason. Also the random, heavy-handedly implied sex scenes are bad.
Now let me talk about the violence, because that's what really ruined the story for me. The action scenes were written really well; I quite liked the fast-paced writing style paired with action-packed fight scenes. They were believable and fun to read, and I wish I could keep reading. But there are far too many torture scenes that have little bearing on the plot--they border on erotic and fetishizing, especially when paired with the fact that the character involved is coded as gay. It's gross. It's unnecessary. It's fetishized violence. The author gets zero pats on the back for lgbt rep when the gay characters are graphically beaten, assaulted, and violated for basically no plot-related reason.
Don't read this book. There are plenty of much better books out there that don't fetishize torture and that don't involve rape. The story and characters have so much potential and I wish I got to read what this story may have been in two or three more revisions.
I stopped reading at 56% even though I was really intent to finish, but the violence is absolutely revolting. Don't read this book.
That disclaimer aside, this book is... interesting. The plot is intriguing, and I enjoyed the writing style, for the most part. The characters were compelling and I would've liked to read more about them. It was enough to keep me reading past the first 100 pages and enough to warrant 2/5 stars instead of 1/5.
The weirdest part is the setting. For some inexplicable reason the story is set in Colorado, but that has no bearing on the plot at the slightest; it's a little jarring to be involved in a action-packed fantasy world only to read Colorado out of the blue with zero explanation. This is set in a post apocalyptic America but... why? Just so they can have guns? It makes no sense and there's no world building to back up why it's important for this story to take place in Colorado. If anything, it's distracting and strange.
The plot is interesting, but rushed. The characters seem to do things just to do things, and events seem to just sort of 'happen.' One character rushes into a dangerous place, knowing he will get caught and just... does it anyway, even though plot-wise there is absolutely no reason he had to be the one to do it. The characters seem to be pushed around by the plot rather than letting their own self preservation and motivations move the story forward; they don't question anything and just go along with what's happening. The 'twists' are obvious and predictable, to the point that I'm left wondering why the characters themselves didn't see that coming. The dialogue is stilted and random accents are forced on some of the characters with little rhyme or reason. Also the random, heavy-handedly implied sex scenes are bad.
Now let me talk about the violence, because that's what really ruined the story for me. The action scenes were written really well; I quite liked the fast-paced writing style paired with action-packed fight scenes. They were believable and fun to read, and I wish I could keep reading. But there are far too many torture scenes that have little bearing on the plot--they border on erotic and fetishizing, especially when paired with the fact that the character involved is coded as gay. It's gross. It's unnecessary. It's fetishized violence. The author gets zero pats on the back for lgbt rep when the gay characters are graphically beaten, assaulted, and violated for basically no plot-related reason.
Don't read this book. There are plenty of much better books out there that don't fetishize torture and that don't involve rape. The story and characters have so much potential and I wish I got to read what this story may have been in two or three more revisions.
glanecia's review
2.0
I was intrigued by the concept of this book: Wiccans versus Christians, at war, in a post apocalyptic world. I expected some heavy religious overtones woven into the story. I expected this book to make a philosophical statement - and it kind of did; but it was mostly about torture, and rape. There was no "good" side. The Indigos (some sort of tribal group of people), the Christians, and the Wiccans were all horrible to each other. THAT might have been the philosophical statement - that religion brings destruction. I was hoping for a happier message, that there can be peace, between an united diverse people. I suppose, towards the end, our main character, Trinidad, brought hope for peace, but not without bringing much death and destruction.
I didn't need the rape. I didn't need to the violence. I had to skim fast over those parts, because it was just gross. That's not my cup of tea.
Also, the romance was poorly written. The romance between the two men didn't add anything to the plot, nor did it help us understand the characters. In fact, it was confusing. For most of the book, they did not express any amount of romantic feeling towards one another, and then in the middle of violence, there is a kiss. All of a sudden, they have the hots for each other? That came out of NO where. I didn't buy it. There should have been SOME hint that one, or the other, had a crush.
There were some exciting moments, when they pushed their way back into the city; and when they escaped prison. The dreamworld was interesting, but like most of the book, it made no sense. In my mind, if you enter another person's dream, then it is more likely that you'll be at their mercy. It's their dreamworld, not yours. You would also have to have mind-control powers, and if you did, then why not just control their minds while they are awake?
I want another author to take this same concept, make it less gross, and more philosophically interesting. Is wiccan magic real? The dreamworld (and Barren) seemed to say 'yes, it is real!' - but then, how does the Bishop deal with that reality? That is not explored at all. Is her faith shaken? We don't know. Is prayer real? Do the characters think much on that? A bit - but not enough to give us a solid answer. We had a solid answer for Wicca - why not Christianity? Are both gods real? Do the characters have true faith? Are they both right, both wrong? Does it matter? These are the questions that would have made the story great.
I didn't need the rape. I didn't need to the violence. I had to skim fast over those parts, because it was just gross. That's not my cup of tea.
Also, the romance was poorly written. The romance between the two men didn't add anything to the plot, nor did it help us understand the characters. In fact, it was confusing. For most of the book, they did not express any amount of romantic feeling towards one another, and then in the middle of violence, there is a kiss. All of a sudden, they have the hots for each other? That came out of NO where. I didn't buy it. There should have been SOME hint that one, or the other, had a crush.
There were some exciting moments, when they pushed their way back into the city; and when they escaped prison. The dreamworld was interesting, but like most of the book, it made no sense. In my mind, if you enter another person's dream, then it is more likely that you'll be at their mercy. It's their dreamworld, not yours. You would also have to have mind-control powers, and if you did, then why not just control their minds while they are awake?
I want another author to take this same concept, make it less gross, and more philosophically interesting. Is wiccan magic real? The dreamworld (and Barren) seemed to say 'yes, it is real!' - but then, how does the Bishop deal with that reality? That is not explored at all. Is her faith shaken? We don't know. Is prayer real? Do the characters think much on that? A bit - but not enough to give us a solid answer. We had a solid answer for Wicca - why not Christianity? Are both gods real? Do the characters have true faith? Are they both right, both wrong? Does it matter? These are the questions that would have made the story great.
ninetalevixen's review
(I received a free eARC from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.)
DNF at 5%.
I had a feeling from the beginning that I wouldn't like the writing style - half overly descriptive with adjectives and adverbs, and I barely understood the other half because it was archaic and/or underdeveloped worldbuilding - but chapter two, in which Reine inexplicably prefaces random sentences with "Fuckin" was the clincher. The Christianity/Wiccan conflict and individual backstories seem promising, but I just don't feel like struggling through to pick out the plot.
DNF at 5%.
I had a feeling from the beginning that I wouldn't like the writing style - half overly descriptive with adjectives and adverbs, and I barely understood the other half because it was archaic and/or underdeveloped worldbuilding - but chapter two, in which Reine inexplicably prefaces random sentences with "Fuckin" was the clincher. The Christianity/Wiccan conflict and individual backstories seem promising, but I just don't feel like struggling through to pick out the plot.
karireads's review
4.0
This book is full of twists and turns and narrow escapes and surprises. Fun read.
annarella's review
3.0
The book is quite entertaining but it's not my cup of tea.
I think there's potential in this book but there should be more worldbuilding and attention to the language and how the characters talk.
I think there's potential in this book but there should be more worldbuilding and attention to the language and how the characters talk.
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