Review of The Stylite

[Skylar Fox]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Stylite" by Shane Hallawa.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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Teresa Amadei has just recently lost her mother, Juliana. As the book begins, Teresa is taken in by her aunt and uncle, Bridget and Jesse. They encourage her to seek guidance from Father Simon, a mysterious monk living in the Nevada desert. This leads Teresa on a spiritual journey, learning meditation, scripture, and martial arts. She is then faced with helping combat the current demonic invasion. However, Teresa has to first defeat the demons within before she can conquer the demons outside.

This book, "The Stylite" by Shane Hallawa, ticks all the positive boxes a fantasy novel should. I was impressed by the book's setting. With a demonic invasion that has begun a growing turmoil, the author sets the tone for the characters to shine. I enjoyed the fight sequences. They had this cinematic appeal to them. The author mentions that the story has "aspects of Christian asceticism (based on the practices of the stylites who lived in Byzantium, the Eastern Roman Empire), Zoroastrianism, and Islam" among its themes. I was intrigued reading this book because I had no prior knowledge of these practices. I enjoyed Teresa's growth as a character throughout the book. At first she was in a very deep emotional turmoil and almost felt lost after her mother's sudden death. However, her training, interactions with people on the way to Alexandria, and her battles with some demons brought about her growth in faith and strength. I would say the writing was simple and easy to follow. The author left me eagerly expecting a next book with the promise that the stylites will appear again.

However, I think the book is so clear and well written that "The Stylite-Series Bible" felt a bit unnecessary. I felt it should have been placed at the end. Overall, I was impressed by the attention the author paid to editing this book; it contains only two errors. So, I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars. I did not find any reason to remove a star from my rating. I recommend this book to lovers of metaphysical fantasy novels.

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The Stylite
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[NetMassimo]

This novel seems to take inspiration from different traditions to create a practice useful in the fight against a demon invasion. This mix can make this novel intriguing for people looking not only for action but also for spiritual contents. Thank you for your great review!