A while back I entered a giveaway at Nightwolf's Corner which offered three different prizes to choose from. One was substantive editorial critique, two was a custom logo design, and the third one was a ready made demo concept. I chose the first one to be my prize should I win. I needed another eye to look at Departed Innocence. I have been working on it since 2005 and it has been completely rewritten numerous times.
Since it is such an out of a box idea and is quite unusual, I want to make sure I'm going in the right direction and perhaps polish it up so when the time comes I can start querying. To my utter surprise and delight, I was informed that I won the giveaway!
I'm so excited, I can hardly put it into words. First it was winning and then now a free editorial critique. I'm speechless.
I'd considerate an awesome belated birthday present :D
Recently as of May 31st I got some feedback for Chapter 1. I was excited when I found it in my mailbox. I got some useful feedback which will point me in the right direction. As we writers know, edits and criticism is our best friend.
Sure "I Luv this", "U Rock", "the best thang eva" is nice to hear but it is only stroking our ego. It is the criticism that helps us improve as a writer.
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Friday, May 3, 2013
Sleeper Cover Reveal
I am very pleased to do a cover reveal for a fellow Inkie! Sharon's Sleeper is coming out in December and the cover is to die for!
About the Book:
Title: Sleeper (Book I in the Toy Soldiers series)
Author: S. M. Johnston
Release Date: December 2, 2013
Publisher: Entranced Publishing
Genre: NA speculative fiction
After a life saving heart transplant, eighteen-year-old Mishca Richardson is plagued by nightmares and an urgent desire to find her birth parents, which she puts down to post-operation depression. But her new heart seems to bring more than a second chance at life in the form of speed, strength and love at first sight.
After a life saving heart transplant, eighteen-year-old Mishca Richardson is plagued by nightmares and an urgent desire to find her birth parents, which she puts down to post-operation depression. But her new heart seems to bring more than a second chance at life in the form of speed, strength and love at first sight.
About the Author:
Sharon is a writer from Mackay in Queensland, Australia who has short stories published in anthologies and was also runner-up in the Australian Literary Review's Young Adult short story contest with KARMA. By day she is a public relations executive and by night she writes weird fiction and soulful contemporaries while her husband, two sons and cat are fast asleep.
Sharon is a writer from Mackay in Queensland, Australia who has short stories published in anthologies and was also runner-up in the Australian Literary Review's Young Adult short story contest with KARMA. By day she is a public relations executive and by night she writes weird fiction and soulful contemporaries while her husband, two sons and cat are fast asleep.
Sleeper sounds so awesome right? To know more information about the author or Sleeper, please check out the links below. (It is also okay to ask where she gets her high heels from.)
Social Media Links:
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/authorsmjohnston
Twitter: https://twitter.com/S_M_Johnston
Website: www.smjohnston.com
Blog: www.downunderwonderings.blogspot.com
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/authorsmjohnston
Twitter: https://twitter.com/S_M_Johnston
Website: www.smjohnston.com
Blog: www.downunderwonderings.blogspot.com
And to find Sleeper on Goodreads:
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Cover Reveal for Danny
I'm pleased to do the cover reveal for Danny, which is going to be released May 20th 2013.
Paige Warren is sure she’s come to terms with her impending divorce, until she wakes up in bed with her soon-to-be ex, Danny. Worse yet, the bed belongs to Stacey, the sexual surrogate Paige and Danny have been sleeping with for months -- and Stacey’s not there.
As much as Paige tries to deny it, she soon realizes she’s still in love with Danny. Now she’s torn between him and the woman who holds them together. Should she risk hurting Stacey to rekindle a monogamous relationship with the man she once thought she’d spend the rest of her life with, or should she learn from past experience?
Danny is a sensual, erotic novella following one woman's struggle between a love she thought was over and a relationship that's barely begun.
As much as Paige tries to deny it, she soon realizes she’s still in love with Danny. Now she’s torn between him and the woman who holds them together. Should she risk hurting Stacey to rekindle a monogamous relationship with the man she once thought she’d spend the rest of her life with, or should she learn from past experience?
Danny is a sensual, erotic novella following one woman's struggle between a love she thought was over and a relationship that's barely begun.
Author info:
Margo is a marketing specialist by day, and a writer of erotic romance by night. When she's not busy penning steamy fantasies, she can be found man-watching on the beach. She is a lover of shiny things and an avid collector of shoes, but her heart will always belong to books.
Sunday, February 10, 2013
Book Review # 3 The Gathering Darkness by Lisa Collicutt
The Gathering Darkness by Lisa Collicutt
When it comes to young adult fiction,
there are certain clichés that are typically found. The love triangle, the
instant love, the star crossed lovers, down to the brooding love interest and
the Mary Sue main character with the personality of stale moldy toast or better
yet of a cockroach. And YA paranormal romances are infamous for incorporating
all of these things. Together they create an abomination-and these said
abominations saturate the market. They thrived best during the paranormal boom
but for a while dystopian novels were the hot new thing but now they are
wearing out their welcome.
The Gathering Darkness used some of the
clichés that were mentioned above but unlike many other novels, an attempt was
made to turn the clichés and use them in a way that makes sense and even be
good. Whether this was a success or an epic fail will be discussed later. The
reason why The Gathering Darkness was given 3 stars rather than 4 or even 5
stars is largely in part by the way I felt about the characters. In my humble
opinion, the main characters themselves were meh. I didn’t hate them like Bella
Swan from Twilight or Lucinda Price from Fallen. On the other hand, I really
didn’t love them either.
They just didn’t have enough of a
presence to stand out and be memorable. I forgot the name of the main character
Brooke, which is never a good thing. There were some cheesy aspects to it such
as the “Day” and “Knight” along with the star crossed lovers to name a few.
Yet despite these things, there was a
great deal of brilliance in The Gathering Darkness. There were creepy moments
that were described beautifully and it never seemed forced or over the top. When
it comes to paranormal romances, there isn’t any fight scenes. (Women can’t
defend themselves-no- fighting is something that men do because why should they
mess up their hair and *gasp* break a nail. Instead women are meant to be
damsels in distress and their whole life must revolve around men and they must
be demur and submissive and do whatever the big strong men tell them to do. Or
the fight scenes themselves are nonexistent) But The Gathering Darkness does
have action sequences which pleasantly surprised me.
A while back in the review I talked
about how The Gathering Darkness used some clichés and whether this was a
success or an epic fail. The answer to that question is yes. The backstory
about the reincarnated love was explained clearly and it was to the point.
There wasn’t an obnoxious info-dump that made you head spin or you have to wait
until book 3 for it to be finally explained.
The villain was deliciously vile. She
was cruel and powerful, but she commanded attention. Many of the pitfalls for
YA fiction is that the villains are poorly developed and clichéd. Since I have
a soft spot for villains, it brought back pleasant memories of a time when
stories had villains you love to hate evil (not to mention the villain songs
that were to die for). As I was reading, I couldn’t help but to imagine the old
woman for Within Temptation’s Faster music video.
To be honest, The Gathering Darkness
grabbed my attention and it was quite the page-turner. The suspense and the twists and turns were
well delivered and wonderful. Despite the issues that I had with the main
characters, overall, I’d say that I enjoyed reading The Gathering Darkness. I
would be looking forward to reading more from Lisa Collicutt and I would
recommend it to anyone who wants to read a good paranormal romance.
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Lucifer Launch Date Tour
Lucifer
(Sons of Old Trilogy, Book 1)
Author: Annabell Cadiz
Genre: New Adult, Urban Fantasy,
Paranormal, Supernatural
Published: January
31, 2013
Synopsis: Have you ever wondered what could be hiding in
the shadows?
Well, for eighteen-year-old Zahara Faraday, she doesn’t have to wonder. You see she comes from a lineage of Light Witches, those who have chosen to help protect and serve between the supernatural world and the human world. The only problem is Zahara, like her father Solomon, is as human as a human being can be whereas her mother, Mia, and her Aunt Catalina, were born as Light Witches. As a family they hunt down rogue supernaturals—creatures who harm humans or who have committed an act against their kingdom.
Zahara’s hunting skills are usually kept dormant since her parents would prefer she live life as a normal human girl without knowledge of the supernatural world. She plans on doing just that—except when she finds a couple being attacked by fairies, she has no choice but to step in. Before she can return to pretending to be blissfully ignorant, Zahara encounters a problem she isn’t the least equip to handle: Bryan Hamilton, the good looking new co-worker she has to help train. In a heartbeat, her best friend, Becca King, has set her up on a double date with herself and her new crush, Rekesh Saint-Louis, who happens to be the most powerful leader of the biggest Imago Coven in South Florida –supernatural creatures with the ability to control water . . . and suck out human souls.
Zahara has no time to focus on how she’s going to explain her double date with her best friend and the enemy they have a tentative truce with to her parents because soon one of the members of Mia and Catalina’s coven is found murdered with a strange tattoo of a snake with wings carved into his arm.
Zahara is then thrown into a whirlwind battle with an angel determined to have revenge against God, an Imago coven she doesn’t think they should trust, and slew of dream-eating fairies and powerful Nephilims, hybrid children of angels and humans, more than happy to rip her to shreds.
Normal just got a deadlier definition.
Well, for eighteen-year-old Zahara Faraday, she doesn’t have to wonder. You see she comes from a lineage of Light Witches, those who have chosen to help protect and serve between the supernatural world and the human world. The only problem is Zahara, like her father Solomon, is as human as a human being can be whereas her mother, Mia, and her Aunt Catalina, were born as Light Witches. As a family they hunt down rogue supernaturals—creatures who harm humans or who have committed an act against their kingdom.
Zahara’s hunting skills are usually kept dormant since her parents would prefer she live life as a normal human girl without knowledge of the supernatural world. She plans on doing just that—except when she finds a couple being attacked by fairies, she has no choice but to step in. Before she can return to pretending to be blissfully ignorant, Zahara encounters a problem she isn’t the least equip to handle: Bryan Hamilton, the good looking new co-worker she has to help train. In a heartbeat, her best friend, Becca King, has set her up on a double date with herself and her new crush, Rekesh Saint-Louis, who happens to be the most powerful leader of the biggest Imago Coven in South Florida –supernatural creatures with the ability to control water . . . and suck out human souls.
Zahara has no time to focus on how she’s going to explain her double date with her best friend and the enemy they have a tentative truce with to her parents because soon one of the members of Mia and Catalina’s coven is found murdered with a strange tattoo of a snake with wings carved into his arm.
Zahara is then thrown into a whirlwind battle with an angel determined to have revenge against God, an Imago coven she doesn’t think they should trust, and slew of dream-eating fairies and powerful Nephilims, hybrid children of angels and humans, more than happy to rip her to shreds.
Normal just got a deadlier definition.
Excerpt
The
fairy moved slowly, his eyes roaming the park for movement. He sniffed the air
as the breeze wafted through the bushes then turned his attention sharply back
to the bushes. Zahara jumped back to her feet to steer him away from Becca and
took off running. The fairy ran after her, moving so fast Becca thought he
could merge with the wind. She let out a long breath and stumbled out of the
bushes, knowing her best friend couldn’t fight him alone.
Zahara
just ran, trying to find a place to hide and catch her breath, but seeing none.
She staggered forward as the wind pushed her from behind and was suddenly
gripped by the neck by a hand composed of pure muscle. The fairy threw her onto
the ground and raked his nails across Zahara’s face. Zahara managed to cover
her face with her arms, and cried out as she felt the skin ripping open.
“Hey!
Get the hell away from my best friend, you demon, tree-hugging bastard!” Becca
yelled and rammed herself into him. She fell to the ground with the fairy and
drove the dagger into his side as hard as she could. She flipped herself up off
the fairy and jumped back to her feet, standing hunched forward with her
muscles locked as the fairy stood.
He
removed the dagger from his side and threw it onto the ground, eyeing Becca
with a hard glare. Zahara aimed another arrow at him, but the fairy swung his
arm out, throwing Zahara into the air with the strength of his power. He
pounced on Becca, who managed to dodge him and stay on her feet. She eyed the
dagger quickly, trying to measure how far she would have to jump to retrieve
it. The fairy moved toward her and Becca leapt, except she couldn’t move. Her
arms and legs were as rigid as an iron board. She couldn’t even blink.
The
fairy curled his lips into a wicked smile and grabbed her hair, yanking her
head back forcibly and bringing his lips to hers. Becca tried to close her
eyes. If she closed her eyes than he wouldn’t be able to steal her memories or
her dreams, but she couldn’t make her eyes listen. Her brain was sending out a
loud warning signal, but nothing was happening. The fairy opened his mouth
slightly and inhaled deeply. Becca saw the memory before it left her. It was
the one where she had gone to the Father-Daughter Dance at church with her dad
the year before. She could feel the memory fading, her dad’s smile and warm
arms around her disappearing into darkness, as the memory was sucked out
through her lips, a thick layer of blue, corporeal energy, before being
transferred into the fairy’s mouth. Becca could feel tears streaming down the
side of her face.
Zahara
got onto her knees, and wavered back and forth as she tried to shake the pain
out of her head. She grabbed another arrow from the canister strapped across
her shoulders and aimed for the fairy. She blinked a few times, since her
vision was still out of focus, shifting between seeing Becca and seeing a
blurry version of her. She shut her eyes tightly and opened them again, staring
intently at the fairy, and shot off the arrow. The arrow bounced off some kind
of shield the fairy had put into place.
Zahara
growled underneath her breath and took off running toward Becca and the fairy.
She could see the blue stream of energy escaping Becca’s lips and felt her
heart pounding in her veins as she roared and launched herself at the shield.
The fairy paid no heed to Zahara’s attempt to save her best friend. Zahara
pounded her fist against the invisible shield. She stepped back, breathing
hard, and stabbed one of the arrows into the shield as hard as she could. The
shield cracked and burst open as the tip of the arrow set itself on fire.
The
fairy hissed at Zahara and threw Becca onto the ground. Zahara tried to aim the
arrow at the fairy, but was once again thrown back by his power. Zahara lifted
her head and grabbed the bow. She tried to get to her knees—every muscle in her
body protesting—so she could aim another arrow, but the fairy threw her back
again. Zahara cursed under her breath as her bow flew out of her hand and she
was smacked into the back of a bench.
Zahara
looked up toward the fairy, feeling behind her back for another arrow, but
finding none. She cursed under her breath again. She had forgotten to restock
them after training. The fairy was moving with slow steps, his eyes blazing in
triumph as he neared her. He was enjoying having finally worn out his prey and
Zahara scowled at him.
Suddenly,
the fairy turned his head sharply to the right and another figure emerged.
Zahara’s shoulders slumped back. She could not handle fighting off two of them;
she wasn’t even sure how to defend herself against one of them without any kind
of weapon. But Zahara realized the fairy wasn’t moving anymore. He was crouched
forward and his hands were in fists. Zahara looked at the new figure and
cringed. It was Rekesh. His skin revealed his true nature as he slid off the
glamour and the moonlight caressed his bare neck and face, turning his skin silver.
Rekesh
was an Imago, a creature born of a mermaid and the fallen angel Kutiel. He
could move ten times faster than any human and had the strength to rip a human
apart with his bare hands. During the day, he looked like an ordinary person
but at night, in the moments Rekesh dropped the glamour of magic, his skin
would turn silver because of the power of the moon. The moon controlled the
ocean and since his ancestry connected to the water, when nightfall came, his
strength increased, and so would his power to control the element of water, if
he had not been exiled from the Celeste Kingdom. Rekesh, like any Imago exiled,
was stripped of his elemental power, but that did not make any less dangerous.
“You
have one chance to make this easy for yourself,” the Imago spoke out. He had
his hands placed behind his back, eyeing the fairy with patience as if he were
training a puppy.
Zahara
used the back of the bench to help her rise slowly to her feet, keeping her
eyes on the fairy and Rekesh.
“This
does not concern you, Moonlighter,”
the fairy spat.
“Attacking
humans is against the law, Pixie,”
Rekesh said. He had not moved. His demeanor was as relaxed as when he had first
stepped into the battle.
The
fairy curled his lip at the last word. “You are no longer part of the Royal
Court. I do not answer to you.”
Zahara
inched toward her bow, which was stuck in a bush twenty feet from where she
stood.
“You
are in my domain. Any supernatural creature caught attacking humans will be
captured and returned to the Kingdom from which you were exiled for sentencing.
Now, I can see you will not make this easy for yourself, so I suggest enough of
the idle pleasantries,” Rekesh said, before he launched himself toward the
fairy so fast Zahara barely had time to take a breath.
Zahara
took off running as Rekesh and the fairy fought, moving with the wind. She
could hear the thundering of fists and the cracking of broken bones, but could
not see them. She didn’t care. She ran to Becca, determined to get them out of
there before either one of the supernatural creatures had time to recover.
VOTE FOR LUCIFER!
About the Author: Annabell
Cadiz was born in the sweltering heat of South Florida. She was raised
surrounded by Puerto Rican chefs and band of siblings that weren’t all related
to her. A self-proclaimed nerd and book-a-holic (her room does hold much
evidence to prove her claims are justifiable), she created TeamNerd Reviews to
showcase her EXTREME love for novels where, along with her best friend, Bridget
Strahin, she hosts book reviews, interviews, giveaways, Indie Shoutouts and
much more. She also blog tour services for authors. She also had the pleasure
of being published in three separate issue of Suspense Magazine. She also
adores Cinnamon Teddy Grahams, has an addiction to Minute Maid Orange juice,
and is a proud Jesus Freak. Lucifer
is the first book in the Sons of Old
Trilogy.
Where to Find the Author
Monday, January 21, 2013
Book Review # 2 Automatic Woman by Nathan Yocum
It is no secret that I love steampunk. Steampunk itself started off as a small literary genre, or least a subgenre of science fiction and fantasy that includes social or technological aspects of the 19th century (such as the steam) usually with some deconstruction of, re-imagining of, or rebellion against parts of it (the punk aspect). Steampunk doesn't stop at literature-there is steampunk music, clothes, jewelry, performance art, philosophy and films. In recent years, the subgenre has expanded and gained more popularity among mainstream society.
Automatic Woman has a main character that isn't the handsome loner with a tragic backstory, the Liam Neeson /Jason Statham type heroes in such movies as Taken and Taken 2 or Crank or the wealthy playboy with a heart of gold. Instead, it uses what can be described as a typical British bloke. Make that a fat British bloke named Jacob "Jolly" Fellows with the knack of breaking skulls who works for the Bow Street Firm as a thief catcher and his size happens to also make him one of the best thief wranglers in the business. Don't ask him to tell a joke. Even though that Jolly isn't eye candy, he isn't a mindless brute either. Despite his weight and not being school smart, he makes it up for being able to thinks well on his feet, and relies on observation and intuition.
He also has street smart skills that help him in the story. And anyone who has ever read any of the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle can see the influences sprinkled throughout the entire book. Why even Arthur Conan Doyle makes an appearance as a character along with Bram Stoker, Charles Darwin, and Grigori Rasputin. And the best part is that these historically characters are added in but it makes sense to the context of the story. It never came across as random or a poor attempt made by the author to add real historical figures to make the book seem historical plausible.
Automatic Woman is set in an alternate late 19th century London. I was able to suspend my belief and allowed myself to be lost in the story instead of focusing on the minutia. It starts off with a bang- Jolly Fellows latest case involves tracking down and finding a life sized automatic ballerina called the Swan Princess. Yet this case causes him to be thrust into murder and conspiracy. Jolly Fellows finds the Swan Princess who killed her creator before attacking him. He wakes up to find that he's been accused of murder; time is ticking as he tries to clear his name.
The suspense never lets up-not even for a moment- as we follow Jolly on his adventure. The pacing was fast but not too fast that you became lost and didn't know what was going on. The world building is subtle; descriptive but without endless pages of minutia. And there was never a massive info dumps. You get a clear picture of an alternative Victorian London but are left with enough room to fill in the details.
With villains you love to hate and a likable hero, Automatic Woman is one of the best stories I've read in a while. The ending itself leaves you hanging-but in a good way- the mystery of the automatic woman remains at the end, visible but just out of reach, as you know that a sequel is in the works. Just like Guy Richie's Sherlock Holmes-its action packed and has a gripping plot. I looking forward to reading the sequel and hope this develops into a series.
Sunday, January 13, 2013
Review: Wild Children by Richard Roberts
When it comes to books, most of them can be fit into certain genres easily. Others it is more difficult and complicated if it belongs into one or more genre or sub-genre. But for Wild Children, it is hard to put a finger on which genre(s) or sub-genres it belongs to. It is high fantasy yet has a degree of mystery and quirkiness not found in most literature today. It reminds me of Tim Burton's Corpse Bride and The Nightmare Before Christmas in that it is strangely beautiful.
The cover alone caught my interest. By the first page, I couldn't help to find myself smiling. It had such a distinct voice that I found myself unable to put it down (well I had to at some point because I had to go to bed but you get the idea). The voice of this particular character in Act One, Bray caused me to like her and want to know more about the world that she lived in. Everyone knows about the phrase "Oh he/she is a wild child" or the "wild children" coined for children who seemed to be raised by animals.
But no one to my knowledge actually used the phrase to describe an actual being. In Wild Children, children are bad; they punished and are turned into an animal which marked their crime. Wild Children also are young forever and even though they live much longer than humans but they will eventually die. Provided that they aren't killed by humans of course. Wild Children are enslaved and viewed as subhuman beings that are abused and mistreated.
This is justified by the fact that they are "demons" and are "evil", ultimately corrupting their owners with sin. It is dark at times but it is not too dark. It didn't sugarcoat the horrors that went on (and trust me they weren't the Disney kind) but it never went to another extreme where it was too graphic. While some might find the darker material unpleasant (which it is), in some ways it mirrors our world and its history. I saw a parallel between what the Nazis and the war crimes committed by the Japanese in World War 2.
Both felt justified morally in committing great atrocities and thought they were superior also having certain types of people grouped as subhuman races. And these “subhuman” races were the dregs of society and deserved to be enslaved and exterminated. These "subhuman" races were also considered stupid and inhuman and the Wild Children were viewed in the same way. Both the Wild Children and those deemed inferior by the Axis of Evil, were the scapegoats when anything went wrong. This parallel can be seen close to the end where there is a huge movement to rid the city of all its Wild Children.
The ending wasn't "gum drops and unicorns" where everyone lived happily ever after, it wasn't a tragedy either. In some ways, it was a bittersweet ending. Depending on how you looked at it, you can view in different ways. The ending itself shocked me-but in a good way. Nowadays there are many books that start off brilliantly but the ending is often quite disappointing.
But Wild Children on the other hand has an ending that I didn't see coming. Some questions are never answered in Wild Children and while it can be at times frustrating, it allows the reader to draw up their own conclusions. Are Wild Children really evil creatures or are they touched with some divinity such as the dove Wild Children who some believed look angelic? One reviewer talked about how the religious overtones were overbearing and preachy, I'd disagree. Theology was used and served as a huge influencing factor in the story but it never came across as trying to preach to the reader about religion.
If you tolerate and respect religion as a whole, I don't think you will have a problem with it. Being spiritual, I can honestly say that I have read some books where the religious beliefs/values so judgmental and preach about how their values are the best that it feels as if you are beaten over the head with a golden plated Bible while someone is yelling "Be gone Satan!"
Wild Children is quite thought provoking and leaves itself open for discussion. It makes you think without making you feel like an idiot, being bogged down in things that make it available to be understood by “elevated” and or cerebral people. Like what another reviewer said, each "act" is like a stand-alone short story but they are all tied together nicely. You are never confused or wondering why the acts were added in the first book. It built upon the story that you knew but you were hearing about it from each of the different characters.
The language itself wasn’t dumbed down but I didn’t have to reach for a thesaurus every time I read a paragraph. The dialogue was authentic and sounded like how children would speak. I never thought “This is another author trying to sound a kid.” It was intelligent without being convoluted. Like how certain types of music "speaks" to people and moves them while other types of music might some people hate or can try to appreciate what it contributed to society or its particular genre. The same can be held for books.
While Wild Children isn't for everyone's tastes, it certain has a market and an audience it is reaching. If anyone loves any book that is quirky or a little out there, with a mixing of imagination and creativity, then they should read Wild Children.
I would be looking forward for when I can buy the paperback copy and put it in my bookshelf.
The cover alone caught my interest. By the first page, I couldn't help to find myself smiling. It had such a distinct voice that I found myself unable to put it down (well I had to at some point because I had to go to bed but you get the idea). The voice of this particular character in Act One, Bray caused me to like her and want to know more about the world that she lived in. Everyone knows about the phrase "Oh he/she is a wild child" or the "wild children" coined for children who seemed to be raised by animals.
But no one to my knowledge actually used the phrase to describe an actual being. In Wild Children, children are bad; they punished and are turned into an animal which marked their crime. Wild Children also are young forever and even though they live much longer than humans but they will eventually die. Provided that they aren't killed by humans of course. Wild Children are enslaved and viewed as subhuman beings that are abused and mistreated.
This is justified by the fact that they are "demons" and are "evil", ultimately corrupting their owners with sin. It is dark at times but it is not too dark. It didn't sugarcoat the horrors that went on (and trust me they weren't the Disney kind) but it never went to another extreme where it was too graphic. While some might find the darker material unpleasant (which it is), in some ways it mirrors our world and its history. I saw a parallel between what the Nazis and the war crimes committed by the Japanese in World War 2.
Both felt justified morally in committing great atrocities and thought they were superior also having certain types of people grouped as subhuman races. And these “subhuman” races were the dregs of society and deserved to be enslaved and exterminated. These "subhuman" races were also considered stupid and inhuman and the Wild Children were viewed in the same way. Both the Wild Children and those deemed inferior by the Axis of Evil, were the scapegoats when anything went wrong. This parallel can be seen close to the end where there is a huge movement to rid the city of all its Wild Children.
The ending wasn't "gum drops and unicorns" where everyone lived happily ever after, it wasn't a tragedy either. In some ways, it was a bittersweet ending. Depending on how you looked at it, you can view in different ways. The ending itself shocked me-but in a good way. Nowadays there are many books that start off brilliantly but the ending is often quite disappointing.
But Wild Children on the other hand has an ending that I didn't see coming. Some questions are never answered in Wild Children and while it can be at times frustrating, it allows the reader to draw up their own conclusions. Are Wild Children really evil creatures or are they touched with some divinity such as the dove Wild Children who some believed look angelic? One reviewer talked about how the religious overtones were overbearing and preachy, I'd disagree. Theology was used and served as a huge influencing factor in the story but it never came across as trying to preach to the reader about religion.
If you tolerate and respect religion as a whole, I don't think you will have a problem with it. Being spiritual, I can honestly say that I have read some books where the religious beliefs/values so judgmental and preach about how their values are the best that it feels as if you are beaten over the head with a golden plated Bible while someone is yelling "Be gone Satan!"
Wild Children is quite thought provoking and leaves itself open for discussion. It makes you think without making you feel like an idiot, being bogged down in things that make it available to be understood by “elevated” and or cerebral people. Like what another reviewer said, each "act" is like a stand-alone short story but they are all tied together nicely. You are never confused or wondering why the acts were added in the first book. It built upon the story that you knew but you were hearing about it from each of the different characters.
The language itself wasn’t dumbed down but I didn’t have to reach for a thesaurus every time I read a paragraph. The dialogue was authentic and sounded like how children would speak. I never thought “This is another author trying to sound a kid.” It was intelligent without being convoluted. Like how certain types of music "speaks" to people and moves them while other types of music might some people hate or can try to appreciate what it contributed to society or its particular genre. The same can be held for books.
While Wild Children isn't for everyone's tastes, it certain has a market and an audience it is reaching. If anyone loves any book that is quirky or a little out there, with a mixing of imagination and creativity, then they should read Wild Children.
I would be looking forward for when I can buy the paperback copy and put it in my bookshelf.
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