Bloomington Indiana. Home to a couple thousand college students - and to the Greachin, a dark creature bent on stalking and destroying university professor, Christine Grace.
Christine isn't herself. Her mind wanders, she suffers from hallucinations and blackouts, strange messages and thoughts plague her, and she has an eerie suspicion that someone - or something - is watching her. Her boyfriend, Tom, and coworker, Richard are stumped, but her strange attitude paired with the appearance of a constantly shining star over the town lead the three to believe there has to be more to the seemingly unconnected events; especially when they all become targets of the Greachin's unholy power. Can they find their connection to the beast before it succeeds in destroying all that they care about? Are there others willing to fight? Or was their fate sealed centuries before they were born?Review:
I was really excited when I first picked up this book because the author, Red Tash, compared it to Stephen King's The Stand, one of my favorites. I have always been a fan of multi-viewpoint novels, so that aspect didn't scare me away, but the "dark urban fantasy" tag left me uneasy. I have read too many books in the fantasy genre that didn't live up to my expectations, so I wasn't sure what to expect from This Brilliant Darkness. I am glad that I didn't let that deter my attentions, because this book is fantastically well-written, fast-paced, detailed, and full of sinuously dark curves. I was thoroughly drawn to the characters, including the Greachin, unwilling to put down the book for fear that I would destroy the building tension. Each cleverly-titled chapter led me deeper and deeper into Christine's new reality. The character development was top notch, enabling me to sympathize with the characters; and their relationships/personalities were strikingly realistic. I enjoyed reading about Christine's relationship with Tom, Richard, and Tristan from each of their perspectives. Red Tash has a way of making her characters stand out when it's their turn to speak; the viewpoint changes were not choppy, and I did not find the change-overs at all confusing. In the like, the dialogue was smart, modern, and engaging, with a good overall flow. I would not change anything about it, except the ending - I wish there was more to it, but maybe there's more to come? I hope so. Recommended to college-age adults and older who relish a great fantasy/horror novel that will leave them craving more.
Rating: On the Run (4.5/5)
* I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
Thank you very much for the kind review! I enjoyed your turn of phrase. It was fabulous to return home from vacation to find your opinion waiting.
ReplyDeleteThanks again.
PS Were you one of my Goodreads winners? Or LibraryThing?
I believe that I received a copy after hearing about your book on BookShots.
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