RISING DARKNESS.

Apologies that there is no Media Monday post this week.

Today's review is my fourth book read in the WHAT'S IN A NAME 6:'A book with Up/Down (or equivalent) in the title' category. PW

RISING DARKNESS by THEA HARRISON.


SOURCE: Received for review from fellow blogger Dizzy C @ DIZZY C'S LITTLE BOOK BLOG.

In the hospital ER where she works, Mary is used to chaos. But lately, every aspect of her life seems adrift. She feels disconnected from herself. Voices appear in her head. And the vivid, disturbing dreams she's had all her life are becoming more intense. Then she meets Michael. He's handsome, enigmatic and knows more than he can say. In his company, she slowly remembers the truth about herself.

Thousands of years ago, eight creatures came to our world: the Deceiver to destroy it and seven to stop him. Reincarnated over and over, they carry on - and Mary finds herself drawn into the battle once again. And the more she learns, the more she realises that Michael will go to any lengths to destroy the Deceiver. Then she remembers who killed her during her last life, nine hundred years ago . . . Michael.
..... Outer back cover.

FIRST SENTENCE (Chapter 1): Terror was the color of crimson.

MEMORABLE MOMENT (Page 111): She said aloud, "It's like all my life I've lived in some kind of painting. There was a lot of color and detail, and the painting seemed to make sense, but either somebody has smashed the frame or I've fallen out of it somehow. Now I'm in a totally different reality. The color and detail seem similar, but everything's changed. I can't go back into the painting. It's two-dimensional, and I don't fit. I don't even know how to try. But I don't understand this new reality either, or how to survive in it."

MY THOUGHTS: Part one in the Game Of Shadows series and as was perhaps to be expected a lot of time (way too much time in my opinion) was devoted to the creation of a world I found to be overly complex. 

Though described as a 'darkly romantic paranormal saga' it has to be said that much of the plot revolves around this 'world building' with any romantic aspect coming a poor second. That whilst hardly unique for this genre to feature an 'eternally mated couple' who have 'known' each other over the centuries I did think it intriguing that in Michael and Mary we had a couple whose souls seemly recognised each other despite the fact that they had not always been lovers. 

Full of a sense of paranoia that is almost palpable. As a concept Rising Darkness, essentially a tale of good versus evil, is interesting but full of characters I didn't connect with. I thought the plot plodding, the constant referring to characters as merely 'he' or 'she' confusing and the almost pantomime-like villain's quest for world domination verging on the laughable. Still, with at least another book to go (it's rumoured Rising Darkness is part one of a two book deal) and a mix of what I'd describe as Urban Fantasy combined with what is in effect a sci-fi element it has potential.

Disclaimer: Read and reviewed on behalf of a fellow blogger, I was merely asked for my honest opinion, no financial compensation was asked for nor given.
Please note All original content on http://pettywitter.blogspot.co.uk/ is created by the website owner, including but not limited to text, design, code, images, photographs and videos are considered to be the Intellectual Property of the website owner, whether copyrighted or not, and are protected by DMCA Protection Services using the Digital Millennium Copyright Act Title 17 Chapter 512 (c)(3). Reproduction or re-publication of this content is prohibited without permission.
In addition I would also urge that if you are reading this on any other page you contact the original blog owner/reviewer.