Having just finished writing a brief explanation of why I abandoned another action-adventure read, I thought I might as well attach a similar note to Having just finished writing a brief explanation of why I abandoned another action-adventure read, I thought I might as well attach a similar note to this one. In this case, I was initially drawn to the book because it was written by a Christian author, and presented a female character in a strong role, both of which are positive features for me. (I also appreciated the fact that this one didn't present any problem of bad language or lewd content.) But without engaging in any spoilers, I thought the plotting was too far-fetched to allow suspension of disbelief, and some of the crucial details were ludicrously impossible (such as the kind of detailed, multi-tonal drawing a homeless derelict was supposed to have done inside a jail cell with a single piece of chalk). It was intended as a serious book, but I simply wasn't able to take it seriously. :-(
Merged review:
Having just finished writing a brief explanation of why I abandoned another action-adventure read, I thought I might as well attach a similar note to this one. In this case, I was initially drawn to the book because it was written by a Christian author, and presented a female character in a strong role, both of which are positive features for me. (I also appreciated the fact that this one didn't present any problem of bad language or lewd content.) But without engaging in any spoilers, I thought the plotting was too far-fetched to allow suspension of disbelief, and some of the crucial details were ludicrously impossible (such as the kind of detailed, multi-tonal drawing a homeless derelict was supposed to have done inside a jail cell with a single piece of chalk). It was intended as a serious book, but I simply wasn't able to take it seriously. :-(...more
Goodreads author Liane Zane brings her Elioud Legacy trilogy to a rousing and powerful conclusion in this novel, which was actually my favorite of theGoodreads author Liane Zane brings her Elioud Legacy trilogy to a rousing and powerful conclusion in this novel, which was actually my favorite of the three. (Full disclosure at the outset: Liane, who's a Goodreads friend of mine, generously gifted me with a paperback ARC, because she knew I'd really liked the two earlier books. No promise of a good review was offered or requested; this book amply earned that on its merits.)
This is definitely a series that needs to be read in order. Our story here opens in medias res, and readers who begin here won't have much knowledge of the premise or the situation --nor, especially, of the characters and their relationships. You really need the context of the first two books to fully appreciate this one. (With that context, though, it becomes a wonderful capstone to the arch the author has crafted!) However, for the benefit of readers who haven't read either of those books nor my or others' reviews of them, and who may not have seen the book description either, the titular "Elioud" are human-angel hybrids (matings between the two races having begun before the Flood, and some unions --or rapes of humans by fallen angels-- supposedly continuing to occur). Depending on their degree of angelic inheritance, Elioud may have special abilities that most humans do not, and may be quite long-lived (as in, centuries) as well. Those who are aware of what they are may choose, like other humans, to knowingly serve God or Satan (or, also like many humans, to imagine that they can just ignore that whole conflict and be neutrals). But for those on one side or the other, the term "spiritual warfare" may be a lot more literal than it is for most believers.
Near the beginning of the series opener, the three heroines of the trilogy, a close-knit trio of cross-national friends in their early 20s, all of them both working for their respective countries' intelligence services and involved on the side in a sub rosa vigilante operation of their own against sex traffickers and predators, met three long-lived Elioud warriors, who revealed to the ladies that they also have angel ancestry. Together, the six of them were involved in fighting the nefarious plots, continued across the first two books, of the fallen angel Asmodeus, who's now set himself up as a cult leader for a sect of brain-washed humans who call themselves bogomili, after a medieval heretical sect (but who are a lot more malevolent and murderous than their earlier, peaceful namesakes). The other aspect of the series plot is that each member of these two trios felt a strong attraction to a member of the other one. It wasn't hard to predict that each of the three novels would focus on one of these pairs, and that the course of their romance would be an important plot strand. So here, Beta Cerna and Andras Nagy take center stage.
For me, in the previous books, these two characters had always seemed the least interesting and appealing, largely because I didn't really know them. Indeed, Beta (short for Alzbeta --she's Czech) is hard to get to know. She's a "lone wolf" with very few friends, and a brusque manner that can come across as practically feral. And because Andras is big, strong and taciturn, and mostly inclined to obey orders, it's easy to fall into the trap of subconsciously dismissing him as not very smart or sensitive (though that's a great mistake!). But here they come into their own; we see them as the complex and special people they truly are. The previous book ended with Beta arousing a sleeping, half groggy Andras for an unexpected sexual encounter in his bed --and then vanishing before morning. When this book opens, none of the other five main characters have seen her for three years (so it's now 2018). But we soon learn that there's been more of a reason for her disappearance than her commitment issues. Much is going on, and Asmodeus (and his fellow demon Yeqon. whom we met in the second book) are exponentially ratcheting up their plans, which won't bode well for humanity if they come to fruition. But the Archangel Michael (directed, of course, by God, though here He operates offstage) has plans too....
Many of the strengths of the preceding books are evident here also. Zane realizes the settings well (events take place in several European countries), and flavors the narrative with glimpses of the various customs, languages, folklore and cuisine of the nationalities represented. Her characters are round, vivid, dynamic, and distinct (every one of the six main characters have their own unique personalities, rather than being clones of the others, but the supporting characters are also clearly drawn). There's a strong good vs. evil conflict (with a recognition that we wage this conflict in our own hearts, not just with other people), with high stakes and a lot of dramatic tension. Though this isn't commercial "Christian fiction," it's fiction written by a Christian (the author is a practicing Roman Catholic) and the basic message is Christian. (As in much supernatural fiction, the angels vs. demons conflict is a metaphor for the spiritual conflicts of the real world.) My one quibble here is that our heroes and heroines don't pray much in crisis situations (and they're up to their eyeballs in the latter, which would do wonders for my prayer life!). But that's a fairly minor point. It was also actually easier for me to achieve "suspension of disbelief" here than in the first two books, despite the continuing murky points of angelology/demonology, and the ramping up of Elioud powers here (the mating of two Elioud warriors enhances their abilities). Perhaps that's because by now I've gotten more used to my Elioud friends and their fictional world. :-)
Bad language here is minimal. There are some references to lewd and disgusting sexual behavior (Asmodeus and Yeqon hang out in Amsterdam's red-light district, and their sexual attitudes are what you'd expect from demons), and one instance of premarital, though not casual, sex; but Zane doesn't emphasize the former any more than she has to, and the latter is explicit only up to a point. (Basically, the romantic content is quite wholesome, and a wedding --I'm not saying whose!-- is one of the more moving scenes in the book.) This is definitely the most violent book of the series, though, with two major pitched battles and a body count through the roof, not all of the casualties being bad guys. However, fans of action thrillers won't mind this, and fans who like their heroines tough will love Beta. (She's a deadly accurate shot with both a pistol and a long gun, but her favorite weapons are her chain whip and her karambit, a hooked originally Indonesian knife modified as a switchblade, which she finds it soothing to flick open and closed when she's nervous, the way some people tap their foot. :-) )
While this is, like the others in the trilogy, a thick, substantial novel, at 525 pages it doesn't feel a bit overly long; I was immersed and interested immediately, and stayed so for every page. It's also a highly evocative read emotionally, with some beautiful writing and imagery in places (and some very grim images as well). I'd enthusiastically recommend it to fans of supernatural fiction with Christian themes, of action thrillers or action heroines (or heroes), and of paranormal romance....more
Ryan J. Stark is a professor (of Humanities) at Corban Univ., an evangelical institution in Oregon. He recently generously donated a copy of this bookRyan J. Stark is a professor (of Humanities) at Corban Univ., an evangelical institution in Oregon. He recently generously donated a copy of this book (one of four that he's written or co-edited) to the BU library where I work. (I'd previously never heard of the author or the book.) Having a definite interest in both religion and the paranormal, and wanting to return a favor for a favor, I determined to read and review the book, figuring that its very short length would make it easy to work into my reading schedule. Of course, my hope (and expectation) was to write a favorable review! It's deeply distressing to me that I can't do that, particularly since it turns out that mine will be the first text review this book has here (and that, as one of just four, my rating will pull the average down considerably). But I normally make a policy of reviewing everything I read, and I have an obligation to be honest. :-(
Although the ultra-short length here (just 71 pages of actual text!) makes the book a really quick read, it actually works against it in terms of depth. Here, Stark has taken on a very broad subject, or rather array of subjects (the eight chapters cover "Vampires," "Werewolves," "Zombies," "Ghosts," "Robots," "Leviathans," "Devils," and "Aliens"). To offer any helpful treatment of such a wide range of phenomena, a writer would need to concentrate on one approach. He/she might present a meditation on what psychological truths these images represent as metaphors; might explore what (if any) real-world reality or factual basis might underlie the archetypes; might trace the manifestations of these themes in literature, or film/TV, or other pop-cultural venues, might explore the spiritual significance of these "monster" figures with regard to Christian faith, and/or their biblical connections. Even doing one of those well would be a challenge in this scope. Stark attempts to do every one of them, and then some; and to be blunt, it doesn't work. The treatment comes across as a superficial, ADHD-afflicted, kaleidoscope of undeveloped thoughts and insights.
There are other problems here which are perhaps related to the short length, but distinct. The author at times attempts to liven up the presentation with some humor. He probably does this very successfully in his oral lectures; and some academics turned writers can translate it from the spoken to the written medium well. Here it too often just falls flat, and there's not enough serious content to need humorous lightening, instead, the latter just presents as a forced-in distraction that highlights the scantiness of real food for thought to start with. A lot of reference is made to TV shows and movies, as well as books, but there's not a lot of context presented. It's clearly assumed that all readers will be familiar with these sources, but not all of us are. Stark is immensely erudite; a 10-page bibliography, mostly of books but with a few articles, movies/TV shows and Internet sources, lists the many references documented in the footnotes (except for the Bible, which is also cited frequently). These include ancient writers like Plato and Virgil, 21st-century academics, and much between. But he doesn't really interact in detail with any of these; the citations are more ornamental than substantial. (Six pages of index makes up the rest of the 88 pages.)
To the extent that there's a general thesis here, it's that the universe is an odd place with realities which aren't reducible to the arbitrarily limited scope of phenomena admitted to be "real" by naive materialism. But the treatment isn't clearly presented or well organized enough, nor developed and focused enough, to actually convince a skeptic. It's also difficult in many places to understand exactly what point is being made, even though Stark uses normal language rather than scholarly jargon. (To be honest, in the last couple of sentences in the "Robots" chapter, I literally have no idea what he means!) He frequently hints or implies that at least some of these "monsters" may be real, but he never asserts that clearly and doesn't really provide supporting evidence; and his handling of Bible passages is often highly dubious. There are some legitimate literary, psychological or theological insights here and there in the book, and enough interesting factoids to keep me reading for the three days it took me to finish (and my daily stints of reading are short); but as a whole the book is far less rewarding than it could have been, and than I wanted it to be....more
By way of explanation, this is undoubtedly a good enough book of its type, and would please the target audience. But I only started reading it aloud tBy way of explanation, this is undoubtedly a good enough book of its type, and would please the target audience. But I only started reading it aloud to Barb to fill in some time, since I planned to give her the next book we were really interested in reading as a present for our 44th anniversary (which is today). She'd read this one and liked it back in the 90s, when she was on something of a Walter Farley kick (but no longer remembered the plot), and it was the only book by him on our shelves at home. We started it on Aug. 24; but in the interval, we didn't get very much chance to read, so by today, neither of us were particularly invested in the tale yet. Therefore, by common consent, we decided to consign it back to the shelf, and take up the book we actually want to read. :-)...more
Like the previous two books, this conclusion to the Unsanctioned Guardians trilogy (a prequel to the Elioud Legacy trilogy) was a generous gift to me Like the previous two books, this conclusion to the Unsanctioned Guardians trilogy (a prequel to the Elioud Legacy trilogy) was a generous gift to me from the author. (There was no pressure to write a positive review; the book stands easily on its merits, and she knew I'd liked the previous installments, as well as the original series.) Given their prequel status, it's not really necessary to have read the Elioud Legacy books to enjoy reading these three; though if you have, it does give you more acquaintance with and understanding of the main characters (and conversely these books flesh out the background of the original three, and answer questions readers of those may have had). But the Unsanctioned Guardians books DO need to be read in order. Most of my general comments about the first two apply to this one as well; the premise builds organically on the preceding books, and the author's style, literary vision and handling of content issues is consistent across all three books.
About a year has elapsed since the events of the previous book, The Harlequin Protocol. CIA agent Olivia Markham landed on her feet sufficiently, after the events in that one, to preserve her career with the Company; but since then, at her request, she's been moved to a desk job. For most of the interim, she's been in charge of an agency safehouse in Montenegro, which fronts as a free clinic for the town's numerous foreign refugees, run by an NGO that's not aware of the CIA connection. (The clinic work is real; when she was recruited by the agency in the first book, Olivia was a college pre-med student, and she has EMT certification.) She's also fallen in love with a French medical doctor at the local hospital; the two are living together, and will get engaged in the first chapter. But ...she's about to cross paths with an Islamic terrorist mastermind from the previous book. Meanwhile, Italian spy Stasia Fiore is still investigating the theft of a Predator drone from the Italian military; and Capt. Beta Czerna is soon to be approached by a desperate woman who needs help in rescuing her sister from the clutches of a Polish crime lord who's into sex trafficking (among other villainous things). Circumstances are about to converge these plot strands, and bring all three ladies together for a violent, high-stakes thrill ride.
As before, Zane moves the action of the tale briskly through a variety of European locations (and a trip to Morocco, in this case), making considerable use of Internet research to handle the physical geography of her scenes with photographic realism. Again, she demonstrates her strong knowledge of espionage tradecraft and modern weaponry, and handles action scenes well. The body count in this book is significantly less than in the previous one, but the suspense factor is taut and constant. There's brief reference to loving pre-marital sex, as well as to off-screen sexual violence, but nothing explicit in either case. (One short scene could be described as "sensuous," but it consists of three sentences.) Bad language is minimal, and within the bounds of reasonable realism. We're still essentially in the realm of descriptive fiction, rather than the supernatural fiction of the first trilogy; but here there are a couple of brief incidents (not observed by viewpoint character Olivia) that suggest a bit of supernatural assistance, and readers of those original three books will readily recognize their old friend Zophie at one point. :-)
My only minor criticisms were that in one place, we have a truck that apparently drives itself onto the scene, and nobody picks up on that fact; and in another, a character assumes knowledge of a location she wouldn't know at that point. Technically, that nit-picking means my rating was four and a half stars; but I didn't have any trouble rounding up, especially given the strong emotional effect of the storyline. This is a great depiction of the forging of a team that has each other's backs, and of female friendship under fire (literally). Zane's handling of Olivia's moral and emotional growth here is also powerful and superb. (All of these factors ably set the stage for readers to move on from here to the Elioud Legacy trilogy, if they haven't already read it.)...more
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