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tiareleine 's review for:
Riders
by Veronica Rossi
I didn't know how I was going to feel about Riders. Some reviewers I really trust really didn't like it, so I was nervous. I knew the main character (Gideon) had issues with anger and machismo, so I was nervous about that. In the end, though, I really enjoyed the book.
It was true that Gideon had problems with anger. It's interesting to me that people spend so much time calling for flawed characters, but certain flaws aren't accepted. Male characters with a lot of anger, for instance, if it's not what you would call righteous anger (righteous anger is well-loved in male characters). Gideon's anger isn't righteous. It's pent-up frustration, its guilt that doesn't know how to manifest properly, it's confusion in someone who isn't allowed to be confused. Though he was never deployed, he has a lot of PTSD and he is very susceptible to new instances of it.
I guess what I'm saying is, Gideon is a fairly well fleshed out character, and I don't think he should be faulted for it.
The rest of the main five characters are pretty well fleshed out too. Sebastian, Marcus, Jode, and Daryn all had unique personalities and faced unique challenged in life. I look forward to learning even more about them in the next book.
As far as plot goes, the structure of it was not typical. For part of the book, they were just trying to get all four horsemen together (Gideon, Sebastian, Marcus, and Jode), and then they were trying to keep the key out of the hands of the Kindred. If you are looking for an action-adventure novel with one clear plot thread that rises and falls in a predictable way, this book can't give you that. I think that's what I liked about it, though. Story structure matters, of course, but I like structures that are a little atypical. Though atypical story structures need to be accompanied by interesting characters. Thankfully, this one was.
The only reason I didn't give the book five stars was that it kind of lost me during the fight scenes. This isn't even a slight on the book, really, because it's a matter of preference. I don't like fight scenes, therefore I don't want to give a book that relies on fight scenes five stars. My rating system is extremely subjective and preference based because my reviews are meant primarily for myself, to figure out how to better write what I want to write and read what I want to read. But I digress.
I really enjoyed Riders and I am greatly looking forward to read its sequel, Seeker. I'm also looking forward to whatever Veronica Rossi writes next.
It was true that Gideon had problems with anger. It's interesting to me that people spend so much time calling for flawed characters, but certain flaws aren't accepted. Male characters with a lot of anger, for instance, if it's not what you would call righteous anger (righteous anger is well-loved in male characters). Gideon's anger isn't righteous. It's pent-up frustration, its guilt that doesn't know how to manifest properly, it's confusion in someone who isn't allowed to be confused. Though he was never deployed, he has a lot of PTSD and he is very susceptible to new instances of it.
I guess what I'm saying is, Gideon is a fairly well fleshed out character, and I don't think he should be faulted for it.
The rest of the main five characters are pretty well fleshed out too. Sebastian, Marcus, Jode, and Daryn all had unique personalities and faced unique challenged in life. I look forward to learning even more about them in the next book.
As far as plot goes, the structure of it was not typical. For part of the book, they were just trying to get all four horsemen together (Gideon, Sebastian, Marcus, and Jode), and then they were trying to keep the key out of the hands of the Kindred. If you are looking for an action-adventure novel with one clear plot thread that rises and falls in a predictable way, this book can't give you that. I think that's what I liked about it, though. Story structure matters, of course, but I like structures that are a little atypical. Though atypical story structures need to be accompanied by interesting characters. Thankfully, this one was.
The only reason I didn't give the book five stars was that it kind of lost me during the fight scenes. This isn't even a slight on the book, really, because it's a matter of preference. I don't like fight scenes, therefore I don't want to give a book that relies on fight scenes five stars. My rating system is extremely subjective and preference based because my reviews are meant primarily for myself, to figure out how to better write what I want to write and read what I want to read. But I digress.
I really enjoyed Riders and I am greatly looking forward to read its sequel, Seeker. I'm also looking forward to whatever Veronica Rossi writes next.