Review by TheSeelieCourtJester -- Raven's Peak
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TheSeelieCourtJester
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Review by TheSeelieCourtJester -- Raven's Peak
[Following is a volunteer review of "Raven's Peak" by Lincoln Cole.]
3 out of 4 stars
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Raven’s Peak by Lincoln Cole, is a supernatural thriller that follows two characters, Abigail and Haatim, as they fight against demons, as well as deal with complex issues such as questioning faith and the loss of a loved one.
The book begins with Haatim, a young graduate student whose sister recently died from stomach cancer. Under very unique circumstances, he meets George, a wealthy man who believes that someone is trying to kill him. At first, Haatim agrees to investigate because he thinks it would give him more of a purpose in life. However, as he continues to investigate further, and inevitably meets the spunky demon hunter Abigail, the world he once knew is instantly shattered, and he learns that sometimes, faith is all he has.
Meanwhile, the demon hunter Abigail was pursuing a hunt when she first meets Haatim. She’s dealing with the loss of her beloved mentor, Arthur, and is forced by the Council not to track him down. As she follows George, she sees Haatim stalking her and decides to take action, thus effectively dragging him into her world of demons. Throughout the story, she matures as she realizes that keeping the teachings of her mentor is just as valuable as having him alive.
The book does an incredibly good job in paralleling both Abigail and Haatim’s character development. It makes clear that they both are struggling with the fact that their loved ones are gone. But what’s more, when the two meet, already there is a clear connection with one another; Haatim is sensible enough to trust Abigail, while Abigail does whatever she can to keep Haatim alive. The two also demonstrate an impressive amount of teamwork, which allows them to take down demons that are otherwise impossible to win against. They’ve been shown to push each other’s development, with Abigail becoming more emotionally open about her past, and Haatim assisting Abigail in her time of need. I resonated with these two, from their humorous interactions with one another, to the epic fight scenes which force them to work together; it was through them did I become obsessed with this book.
The book also delves into themes such as questioning faith. Over and over again, the book poses difficult questions such as what a character’s faith in one another would be worth in the end, and why God allows bad things to happen to good people. I empathized with this particular theme, because I know what it feels like to question my own faith. By reading this book and seeing through both Haatim and Abigail’s points of view, their development became my own. I felt the frustration Abigail had when she realized she couldn’t save her mentor, at least not without giving his teachings up. I empathized with Haatim when he saw that he wasn’t mad at God, but rather at himself. They humbled me, and it was marvelous.
On a lesser point, the book also deals with the importance of loved ones, and how those close relationships can affect their faith. Both characters hold their family members in high regards; we even see this in an extra character, who was, at the time, influenced by a demon. I’ve learned from them that having faith does, in fact, stem from loving someone, and whenever something bad happens to that person, it makes the character’s own faith susceptible. The book shows how these two themes of faith and love are interconnected with one another. Aside from Abigail and Haatim’s development and relationship with one another, how these themes interacted are what I enjoyed most about this book.
However, that being said the book isn’t perfect. There were multiple places where I thought using conjugations would be better suited to the characters’ tone than simply using “they are” or “I am.” I also felt like the book could use a bit more sensory imagery; since the plot rotates between Haatim and Abigail’s points of view, it’s sometimes difficult to keep up with what’s going on in a particular scene. I would’ve liked to know more about where they were and what they were doing before then.
Overall, I would give this book a rating of 3 out of 4 stars. The dynamic and parallels between the characters were well done, and the use of the themes faith and love were also well executed, which would’ve gotten a 4. However, due to the book’s lack of sensory imagery, as well as the grammatical errors and somewhat awkward tone between the characters did detract from the book. Still, I would recommend this book to people who enjoy action, drama, and religious horror.
******
Raven's Peak
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3 out of 4 stars
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Raven’s Peak by Lincoln Cole, is a supernatural thriller that follows two characters, Abigail and Haatim, as they fight against demons, as well as deal with complex issues such as questioning faith and the loss of a loved one.
The book begins with Haatim, a young graduate student whose sister recently died from stomach cancer. Under very unique circumstances, he meets George, a wealthy man who believes that someone is trying to kill him. At first, Haatim agrees to investigate because he thinks it would give him more of a purpose in life. However, as he continues to investigate further, and inevitably meets the spunky demon hunter Abigail, the world he once knew is instantly shattered, and he learns that sometimes, faith is all he has.
Meanwhile, the demon hunter Abigail was pursuing a hunt when she first meets Haatim. She’s dealing with the loss of her beloved mentor, Arthur, and is forced by the Council not to track him down. As she follows George, she sees Haatim stalking her and decides to take action, thus effectively dragging him into her world of demons. Throughout the story, she matures as she realizes that keeping the teachings of her mentor is just as valuable as having him alive.
The book does an incredibly good job in paralleling both Abigail and Haatim’s character development. It makes clear that they both are struggling with the fact that their loved ones are gone. But what’s more, when the two meet, already there is a clear connection with one another; Haatim is sensible enough to trust Abigail, while Abigail does whatever she can to keep Haatim alive. The two also demonstrate an impressive amount of teamwork, which allows them to take down demons that are otherwise impossible to win against. They’ve been shown to push each other’s development, with Abigail becoming more emotionally open about her past, and Haatim assisting Abigail in her time of need. I resonated with these two, from their humorous interactions with one another, to the epic fight scenes which force them to work together; it was through them did I become obsessed with this book.
The book also delves into themes such as questioning faith. Over and over again, the book poses difficult questions such as what a character’s faith in one another would be worth in the end, and why God allows bad things to happen to good people. I empathized with this particular theme, because I know what it feels like to question my own faith. By reading this book and seeing through both Haatim and Abigail’s points of view, their development became my own. I felt the frustration Abigail had when she realized she couldn’t save her mentor, at least not without giving his teachings up. I empathized with Haatim when he saw that he wasn’t mad at God, but rather at himself. They humbled me, and it was marvelous.
On a lesser point, the book also deals with the importance of loved ones, and how those close relationships can affect their faith. Both characters hold their family members in high regards; we even see this in an extra character, who was, at the time, influenced by a demon. I’ve learned from them that having faith does, in fact, stem from loving someone, and whenever something bad happens to that person, it makes the character’s own faith susceptible. The book shows how these two themes of faith and love are interconnected with one another. Aside from Abigail and Haatim’s development and relationship with one another, how these themes interacted are what I enjoyed most about this book.
However, that being said the book isn’t perfect. There were multiple places where I thought using conjugations would be better suited to the characters’ tone than simply using “they are” or “I am.” I also felt like the book could use a bit more sensory imagery; since the plot rotates between Haatim and Abigail’s points of view, it’s sometimes difficult to keep up with what’s going on in a particular scene. I would’ve liked to know more about where they were and what they were doing before then.
Overall, I would give this book a rating of 3 out of 4 stars. The dynamic and parallels between the characters were well done, and the use of the themes faith and love were also well executed, which would’ve gotten a 4. However, due to the book’s lack of sensory imagery, as well as the grammatical errors and somewhat awkward tone between the characters did detract from the book. Still, I would recommend this book to people who enjoy action, drama, and religious horror.
******
Raven's Peak
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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Latest Review: "My Ladybird Story" by Magus Tor
