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stefwithanf's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
cjay1957's review against another edition
4.0
Having just finished the 13 books plus in the Yellowrock series, it would be too much to ask that the heroine in this series would be as thrilling and fascinating as Jane is. Maybe in Book 2 which I've already begun, Nell will get somewhat more bad-ass then she is at present. Having said that, Rick La Fleur is here as Nell's boss and there are other bad-ass characters on the crew to get to know so overall, this is a really good story that kept me turning pages and wanting to know how it would end. As I've said, I've already started book 2.
mlcutter's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Nell Ingram was raised in a polygamist cult in the backwoods of Tennessee. She married very young to escape being married off to one of the older men, but is now a "widder-woman" living on land that borders her former church's land. After she helps Jane Yellowrock find a missing vampire, she is recruited by PsyLED to help with another case. PsyLED believes a terrorist organization is in cahoots with those still in the cult.
Throughout the story, Nell discovers more about her magic and powers that tie her to the land of Soulwood. Nell is a wonderfully complex character, revealing her former life little by little and discovering herself along the way. She is evolving as a person.
I also wasn't a fan of Rick LaFleur in the Jane series. I wasn't unhappy when he ran off and left Jane. But he is a much more sympathetic character in these books. We see more of his struggles and strengths.
Throughout the story, Nell discovers more about her magic and powers that tie her to the land of Soulwood. Nell is a wonderfully complex character, revealing her former life little by little and discovering herself along the way. She is evolving as a person.
I also wasn't a fan of Rick LaFleur in the Jane series. I wasn't unhappy when he ran off and left Jane. But he is a much more sympathetic character in these books. We see more of his struggles and strengths.
tessisreading2's review
3.0
Enjoyable enough but Nell doesn’t quite ring true. On the one hand she’s folksy and self-educated, and then she says things like “Land and property, patriarchy and hierarchy, are all important to them. Women aren’t.” She can’t figure out how to use a hotel access card, but she knows all about fancy private schools in Knoxville. I get that she’s supposed to have educated herself through reading, but she was, until recently, also running a household in the middle of the woods with a husband who didn’t do “women’s work.” I feel like Hunter’s severely overestimating how much free time Nell would have had. She realizes she still wears “church clothes” and is afraid of men and shocked to the point of silence when they indicate they know how to do the dishes, and five minutes later is discussing a man “who, so far as I can tell, has never had the brains to plan anything more complex than how to serve himself up as dinner and sex partner to vampires” - and saying as much to a roomful of menacing strangers who have her handcuffed to a chair. She’s never had pizza or donuts.
The cult is a cult - with multiple wives, twelve-year-olds getting forcibly married off, etc. - but numerous men have been to “university” (not even Christian college) and several of Nell’s brothers eventually tell her they’re headed to MIT (as in, have been admitted and accepted). Nobody ever leaves the church grounds but an entire family of people has passports and apparently it’s just a casual mission trip to Haiti? I don’t understand whether this is supposed to be FLDS-equivalent - obsessively insular and threatened by the outside world - or run-of-the-mill fundamentalist (in which case the level of crazy in cult activities makes no sense). The men in the church can take a vote to kick out leadership but apparently didn’t bother to do so while their own wives and prepubescent children were being by church leadership… and this is presented as somehow “well, it’s all better now and the good people are in charge, so no worries!”
I’m just kind of confused by what PsyLed is doing out in the woods, also. With all their fancy surveillance, both digital and magical, they can’t figure out if there are white vans entering the church grounds around the time kidnapping victims disappear? They’ve got flipping satellite photos. Can’t they check heat signatures in the newly off-limits areas of the church to see if there are people there? The church had dozens of children removed by social services before the book began, and some were later returned. It’s just very difficult to imagine that the US government and this ultra-efficient agency couldn’t come up with some pretense to get on church grounds and investigate suspicious areas without needing Nell’s help.
The book is engaging and the fantasy and paranormal aspects are well-done and interesting. It’s the real-world stuff where Hunter falls down - that and logic.
The cult is a cult - with multiple wives, twelve-year-olds getting forcibly married off, etc. - but numerous men have been to “university” (not even Christian college) and several of Nell’s brothers eventually tell her they’re headed to MIT (as in, have been admitted and accepted). Nobody ever leaves the church grounds but an entire family of people has passports and apparently it’s just a casual mission trip to Haiti? I don’t understand whether this is supposed to be FLDS-equivalent - obsessively insular and threatened by the outside world - or run-of-the-mill fundamentalist (in which case the level of crazy in cult activities makes no sense). The men in the church can take a vote to kick out leadership but apparently didn’t bother to do so while their own wives and prepubescent children were being
Spoiler
forcibly raped and impregnatedI’m just kind of confused by what PsyLed is doing out in the woods, also. With all their fancy surveillance, both digital and magical, they can’t figure out if there are white vans entering the church grounds around the time kidnapping victims disappear? They’ve got flipping satellite photos. Can’t they check heat signatures in the newly off-limits areas of the church to see if there are people there? The church had dozens of children removed by social services before the book began, and some were later returned. It’s just very difficult to imagine that the US government and this ultra-efficient agency couldn’t come up with some pretense to get on church grounds and investigate suspicious areas without needing Nell’s help.
The book is engaging and the fantasy and paranormal aspects are well-done and interesting. It’s the real-world stuff where Hunter falls down - that and logic.
elizabethkg's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed Nell and her discoveries. Discoveries about her magic, about the world (her introduction to hotels was awesome), about the woman she is and wants to be outside the cult, about her family and recognizing that all things are not completely good or completely bad and that's all right.
I'm looking forward to her progress and her adventures. Nell may be one of the most real characters I've ever read for all that she has magic.
I'm looking forward to her progress and her adventures. Nell may be one of the most real characters I've ever read for all that she has magic.
wellingtonestatelibrary's review against another edition
5.0
I LOVE Nell! I decided I'd better catch up on the Soulwood series in preparation for Cold Reign coming out in a week or so. Why didn't I read this sooner?! There are so many great characters to love in this new series...Occam, Tandy... we have previously met Rick and Paka (who I still don't love) and Pea. I also love how Faith Hunter always weaves the church and faith into her stories. Granted, this one was more of a cult, but she still had a lot to teach us about religion, faith and family bonds. "Real religion is about love and redemption and healing, not putting people down, segregating them into smaller...groups so they can be controlled." As usual, we get a lot of fantasy (urban fantasy) thrown in with a thriller/mystery and lots of relationships. I love the growth and self awareness Nell experienced in this first book and have no doubt that there will be a lot more in the next one.
wonderd's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
universalbookworm's review against another edition
4.0
Wow. There is so incredibly much to unpack with this read. This novel addresses cultism, blind faith in authority, female empowerment, gender equality, violence against women, and in my mind most importantly how all of the above intersect and build of one another.
Nell, as a lead character, works so well for me because she isn't your typical "strong female lead" found in most modern fiction. Her struggles for independence are real, and have fatal consequences that are realistic even though this is a work of fantasy. Nell's biggest risk isn't being discovered by the government, or losing a romantic interest; no. The biggest risk in Nell's life is being captured by a misogynistic, sadist, and violent cult that she escaped from in her youth. I found these stakes to much more worthy of my attention as a reader that the more typical tropes found in urban fantasy.
The dynamic with her family, revealed closer to the end of the novel, was particularly enthralling for me. It was refreshing in it's surprise factor. I didn't see it coming and felt it added an emotional element to the conclusion that was missing beforehand.
This is a tale of strength. And all of it's various incarnations. From the persecuted, and abused womenfolk of the cult, to the young men in the cult who bide their time to avenge and protect, to Nell who comes into her own surrounded by those she can't trust because she has been so mistreated.
I loved this read, and recommend it to those looking for a read with teeth that will keep you up to the wee hours of the morning.
Nell, as a lead character, works so well for me because she isn't your typical "strong female lead" found in most modern fiction. Her struggles for independence are real, and have fatal consequences that are realistic even though this is a work of fantasy. Nell's biggest risk isn't being discovered by the government, or losing a romantic interest; no. The biggest risk in Nell's life is being captured by a misogynistic, sadist, and violent cult that she escaped from in her youth. I found these stakes to much more worthy of my attention as a reader that the more typical tropes found in urban fantasy.
The dynamic with her family, revealed closer to the end of the novel, was particularly enthralling for me. It was refreshing in it's surprise factor. I didn't see it coming and felt it added an emotional element to the conclusion that was missing beforehand.
This is a tale of strength. And all of it's various incarnations. From the persecuted, and abused womenfolk of the cult, to the young men in the cult who bide their time to avenge and protect, to Nell who comes into her own surrounded by those she can't trust because she has been so mistreated.
I loved this read, and recommend it to those looking for a read with teeth that will keep you up to the wee hours of the morning.