Review by Elizabeth Gipson -- Apollo's Raven
Posted: 05 Sep 2018, 14:14
[Following is a volunteer review of "Apollo's Raven" by Linnea Tanner.]
4 out of 4 stars
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“Apollo’s Raven” by Linnen Tanner, is about two young lovers from separate worlds, with different beliefs and customs. It is easy to become infatuated with the romantic discord between the characters throughout the story because “Apollo’s Raven” has developed a web of romances within the story that pertain to the past, present, and future relationships between various characters. But it is because of these relationships that Catrin and Marcellus must struggle to allow their love to survive. Catrin's history and the state of the kingdom forces Catrin to not only have to choose between her heart or her family, but also try to convince her family of the real danger that is lurking within their inner circle. Ultimately Catrin must decide if her love for Marcellus is worth consequences of her actions.
I rate this book "4 out of 4" because the author's writing style inspired emotions, such as anger toward the Romans, pity for Marcellus, frustration with the queen, and anxiety to learn the answers to my questions. I felt the story had an excellent plot with valid research pertaining to the historical element within the book, but also added a romance fantasy twist within the book to keep my attention. There were moments where I do feel that the author went a bit overboard in portraying the Roman culture, like with Lucius and his disregard for women. However, I believe his character was written to allow a reader to build those feelings of dislike and contempt for Lucius's character.
I personally like how “Apollo’s Raven” is an easy read, incredibly fast paced, and information given in the book is meant for a reason, not just idle words. I enjoy that the author only described scenery that was pertinent to the story to allow it to move forward, and to give an explanation for the characters' actions as the plot thickened. The book was properly written, I had not found any spelling errors, or grammatical errors, and it does have some interesting vocabulary. I personally enjoyed how the author had switched perspectives throughout the story, adding drama, but also give insight into the other characters' lives and rationalism. It was a breath of fresh air from the main story plot and allowed the reader to have a full understanding of the challenges, fear, and perspective of each character as Catrin and Marcellus’s relationship evolved as lovers.
I enjoyed reading about the side relationships and the past relationships that had influenced the future. I feel that it allowed more drama to the story and a break from Catrin and Marcellus. I like side plots. But I believe this also allowed me to really connect with each character by understanding the way their perception of love and highlighted key traits within their personalities, as well as to allow the reader to sympathize with the king and the choices he makes as the story progresses because he does appear less often compared to the queen.
The ending was not bad, but personally I would have preferred for the first two chapters that are presented for the sequel to be a part of book one, and for it to end with the reader knowing the position of both lovers after everything has occurred. I just thought that the ending had too many loose threads that needed to be addressed before closing. But overall I really did love the book, and I would read it again.
I believe “Apollo’s Raven” is a great book for people that enjoy romance, fantasy, and historical fiction because of the type of story it is. I think this book would also appeal to people with short tension spans for reading because of the authors writing style. The author writes the story so that the plot moves quickly and does not linger on small details that are pointless to the story, but also baits the reader with new twists and mysteries throughout the story.
“Apollo’s Raven” by Linnea Tanner is a phenomenal book and deserves the “4 out of 4” rating.
******
Apollo's Raven
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Like Elizabeth Gipson's review? Post a comment saying so!
4 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
“Apollo’s Raven” by Linnen Tanner, is about two young lovers from separate worlds, with different beliefs and customs. It is easy to become infatuated with the romantic discord between the characters throughout the story because “Apollo’s Raven” has developed a web of romances within the story that pertain to the past, present, and future relationships between various characters. But it is because of these relationships that Catrin and Marcellus must struggle to allow their love to survive. Catrin's history and the state of the kingdom forces Catrin to not only have to choose between her heart or her family, but also try to convince her family of the real danger that is lurking within their inner circle. Ultimately Catrin must decide if her love for Marcellus is worth consequences of her actions.
I rate this book "4 out of 4" because the author's writing style inspired emotions, such as anger toward the Romans, pity for Marcellus, frustration with the queen, and anxiety to learn the answers to my questions. I felt the story had an excellent plot with valid research pertaining to the historical element within the book, but also added a romance fantasy twist within the book to keep my attention. There were moments where I do feel that the author went a bit overboard in portraying the Roman culture, like with Lucius and his disregard for women. However, I believe his character was written to allow a reader to build those feelings of dislike and contempt for Lucius's character.
I personally like how “Apollo’s Raven” is an easy read, incredibly fast paced, and information given in the book is meant for a reason, not just idle words. I enjoy that the author only described scenery that was pertinent to the story to allow it to move forward, and to give an explanation for the characters' actions as the plot thickened. The book was properly written, I had not found any spelling errors, or grammatical errors, and it does have some interesting vocabulary. I personally enjoyed how the author had switched perspectives throughout the story, adding drama, but also give insight into the other characters' lives and rationalism. It was a breath of fresh air from the main story plot and allowed the reader to have a full understanding of the challenges, fear, and perspective of each character as Catrin and Marcellus’s relationship evolved as lovers.
I enjoyed reading about the side relationships and the past relationships that had influenced the future. I feel that it allowed more drama to the story and a break from Catrin and Marcellus. I like side plots. But I believe this also allowed me to really connect with each character by understanding the way their perception of love and highlighted key traits within their personalities, as well as to allow the reader to sympathize with the king and the choices he makes as the story progresses because he does appear less often compared to the queen.
The ending was not bad, but personally I would have preferred for the first two chapters that are presented for the sequel to be a part of book one, and for it to end with the reader knowing the position of both lovers after everything has occurred. I just thought that the ending had too many loose threads that needed to be addressed before closing. But overall I really did love the book, and I would read it again.
I believe “Apollo’s Raven” is a great book for people that enjoy romance, fantasy, and historical fiction because of the type of story it is. I think this book would also appeal to people with short tension spans for reading because of the authors writing style. The author writes the story so that the plot moves quickly and does not linger on small details that are pointless to the story, but also baits the reader with new twists and mysteries throughout the story.
“Apollo’s Raven” by Linnea Tanner is a phenomenal book and deserves the “4 out of 4” rating.
******
Apollo's Raven
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Like Elizabeth Gipson's review? Post a comment saying so!