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A review by glanecia
The Silver Scar by Betsy Dornbusch
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.