Review by Sophia+Dawn -- The Raven's Trail (Book 1)
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Sophia+Dawn
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- Latest Review: The Raven's Trail (Book 1) by Liz D. Marx
Review by Sophia+Dawn -- The Raven's Trail (Book 1)
[Following is a volunteer review of "The Raven's Trail (Book 1)" by Liz D. Marx.]
The Raven's Trail by Liz D Marx combines Native folklore, culture, and traditions with the real world. Chloe and Mason, the main characters, are led on a wild adventure after several coincidences lead them to the same town. The two decide to work together in hopes of finding answers to their questions while exploring their mutual feelings towards each other. With the help of friends, Chloe and Mason try to avoid the danger that lurks around every corner.
There are several concepts within the book that I liked. The inclusion of Native culture within a romance book helps to make the book unique. The culture, traditions, and folklore were well-researched by the author, which helps give the book credibility. Native culture does not have a significant presence with the romance genre, so this book creates more representation. The historical events described by the main character Mason were also well-researched. The author choosing to include accurate information about these historical events provides context for the Native characters' tension and wariness toward White characters. This realistic tension between Native and White characters makes the book realistic and life-like.
There were several occurrences within the book that I did not like. The first issue with the book was the possible white savior moments. Chloe, one of the main characters, is white, and as a result, some of her actions or words may come across to the reader as white savior moments. This is off-putting to any Native audience that chooses to read the book. The parts of the book that involve a white savior complex need to be checked and/or changed to resolve this issue. A second issue with the book is the author calls Natives, Native Americans. This is a problem because many Natives prefer to be called Native or Indigenous. The term Native American is problematic for the Native community, which isolates any Native readers, and needs to be replaced. A third issue with the book is the author labels a Romani as a Gypsy. Gypsy has a negative historical connotation for the Romani community, so this needs to be changed within the book. A fourth issue with this work is calling Mason exotic. The author referring to Mason as exotic could be seen as an insult to some readers. The word "exotic" needs to be replaced with a less charged word. The final issue with the book is that several sentences were awkward to read and disrupted the book's flow. While these awkward sentences were grammatically correct, they were phrased weirdly. This is a minor issue, but it occurred in more than one place, which is enough to make a reader notice.
I rate this book 2 out of 4 stars. For the most part, the author's writing was good, and the writing style was unique, which makes a book stand out to a reader. The book was also well edited in terms of grammar; however, the awkwardly phrased sentences show there is still some editing left to do. The intrigue of the book was well-developed and kept me engaged throughout the entire book. The romance was well-developed as well and progressed at a good pace throughout the book. I could not overlook the issues mentioned in the third paragraph, so this book did not get a 3-star rating. However, these issues are easy to edit, so the novel will improve once they are edited.
The best audience for this book is adults and teenagers between the ages of 17-19. There were no explicit erotic scenes, but the plot and slight violence make this book more suitable for adults. This novel is not for anyone younger than 17 because of the implications within the slightly erotic scenes. The storyline's complexity could also challenge younger readers, so this book is better for older ages in that aspect as well.
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The Raven's Trail (Book 1)
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
The Raven's Trail by Liz D Marx combines Native folklore, culture, and traditions with the real world. Chloe and Mason, the main characters, are led on a wild adventure after several coincidences lead them to the same town. The two decide to work together in hopes of finding answers to their questions while exploring their mutual feelings towards each other. With the help of friends, Chloe and Mason try to avoid the danger that lurks around every corner.
There are several concepts within the book that I liked. The inclusion of Native culture within a romance book helps to make the book unique. The culture, traditions, and folklore were well-researched by the author, which helps give the book credibility. Native culture does not have a significant presence with the romance genre, so this book creates more representation. The historical events described by the main character Mason were also well-researched. The author choosing to include accurate information about these historical events provides context for the Native characters' tension and wariness toward White characters. This realistic tension between Native and White characters makes the book realistic and life-like.
There were several occurrences within the book that I did not like. The first issue with the book was the possible white savior moments. Chloe, one of the main characters, is white, and as a result, some of her actions or words may come across to the reader as white savior moments. This is off-putting to any Native audience that chooses to read the book. The parts of the book that involve a white savior complex need to be checked and/or changed to resolve this issue. A second issue with the book is the author calls Natives, Native Americans. This is a problem because many Natives prefer to be called Native or Indigenous. The term Native American is problematic for the Native community, which isolates any Native readers, and needs to be replaced. A third issue with the book is the author labels a Romani as a Gypsy. Gypsy has a negative historical connotation for the Romani community, so this needs to be changed within the book. A fourth issue with this work is calling Mason exotic. The author referring to Mason as exotic could be seen as an insult to some readers. The word "exotic" needs to be replaced with a less charged word. The final issue with the book is that several sentences were awkward to read and disrupted the book's flow. While these awkward sentences were grammatically correct, they were phrased weirdly. This is a minor issue, but it occurred in more than one place, which is enough to make a reader notice.
I rate this book 2 out of 4 stars. For the most part, the author's writing was good, and the writing style was unique, which makes a book stand out to a reader. The book was also well edited in terms of grammar; however, the awkwardly phrased sentences show there is still some editing left to do. The intrigue of the book was well-developed and kept me engaged throughout the entire book. The romance was well-developed as well and progressed at a good pace throughout the book. I could not overlook the issues mentioned in the third paragraph, so this book did not get a 3-star rating. However, these issues are easy to edit, so the novel will improve once they are edited.
The best audience for this book is adults and teenagers between the ages of 17-19. There were no explicit erotic scenes, but the plot and slight violence make this book more suitable for adults. This novel is not for anyone younger than 17 because of the implications within the slightly erotic scenes. The storyline's complexity could also challenge younger readers, so this book is better for older ages in that aspect as well.
******
The Raven's Trail (Book 1)
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: The Raven's Trail (Book 1) by Liz D. Marx
