Kate Fox & The Three Kings by Grace E. Pulliam
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amazondanni
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Official Review: Kate Fox & The Three Kings
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Kate Fox & The Three Kings" by Grace E. Pulliam.]
3 out of 4 stars
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Kate Fox & The Three Kings by Grace E. Pulliam is the first book of a young adult fantasy/sci-fi series, my personal judgement says is for ages 17 and up, because it has so many controversial and sexual themes. As a 23 year old, I could identify with what I consider a youthful perspective in writing style. Those who prefer a more sophisticated and thorough writing style may have a hard time reading this book. Though I read fewer and fewer young adult books every year, I still get excited to find exceptional stories that revolve around young people conquering fantastical feats.
Kate Fox & The Three Kings has a solid plot that kept me excited and interested throughout the novel. Kate Fox is a 16 year old girl who has been abused by her foster family in the name of the Blood of Christ Church for the past six years. The Church is really more of a cult with a focus on hate that is backed by prejudice. They also believe whole-heartedly that women are inferior and put on earth to serve their husbands, the men of the church have no problems enforcing this by any means necessary whether it be verbal abuse or physical. Kate feels hopelessly trapped in this cult that does nothing but hate and abuse anyone that (they believe) is not on their side. When Kate feels she can take no more, she courageously runs away and finds the only family she has left. Once Kate settles in with her aunt and cousin, she starts college, and gets a job working in an old soda shop. She starts to feel safe, normal, and happy, then several unexplainable things suddenly happen and they all seem to involve her boss, Mr. Hemming. Kate’s simple normal life gets put on hold as she begins to learn more about her roots and what they mean for her future.
I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed this story, but I do have some mixed feelings on the book overall. First off, I completely appreciated the controversial role that the Blood of Christ Church played in the story line. I love that the author gave cause to question an organized religion and its true motives. This is a huge issue in the world, religion has sparked wars, and wreaked havoc on the lives of non-believers, and done terrible things in the name of prophets and gods. For those devout, or those who would take offense to such a stigma placed on organized religion, would probably not enjoy this book. I really loved it though.
Second, even though I personally had no trouble following the story or understanding the characters, the story seemed to really jump around, and being that it was a very short book, it felt almost like a short prequel novel than the first book of a series. I could absolutely tell which elements of the story would come back into play and I was very excited to keep reading and see how it would all play out, but instead the book just sort of ended. It was a glorious cliffhanger to be sure, but I can’t help but feel I was a bit cheated, and now I have to wait for a second book that will hopefully have a bit more meat to it.
Third, I feel like there was a bit too much focus on Kate’s curves, particularly her breasts, to really be cohesive to the story. That being said, I also feel that such a strong and reoccurring sexual theme gave it less of a young adult vibe, and more the feeling of a paranormal romance for adults. This also felt like an easy way to get around a more developed character. Don’t get me wrong, I recognize this to be a coming of age story, and most young women struggle with body image, but it really felt like the focus should have been on a stronger characteristic, like say, her courage and bravery.
Finally, I really want to emphasize that I still give this book a 3 out of 4 stars because, I did so enjoy reading it. I personally really appreciated that the story had a slight supernatural feel, but that the focus was fluid with Kate’s journey to overcoming her fears in the face of hate and prejudice and that she was able to find the love that she so needed with her family. The story was so great I really wanted to give it a full star rating and I totally look forward to reading the next book.
******
Kate Fox & The Three Kings
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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3 out of 4 stars
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Kate Fox & The Three Kings by Grace E. Pulliam is the first book of a young adult fantasy/sci-fi series, my personal judgement says is for ages 17 and up, because it has so many controversial and sexual themes. As a 23 year old, I could identify with what I consider a youthful perspective in writing style. Those who prefer a more sophisticated and thorough writing style may have a hard time reading this book. Though I read fewer and fewer young adult books every year, I still get excited to find exceptional stories that revolve around young people conquering fantastical feats.
Kate Fox & The Three Kings has a solid plot that kept me excited and interested throughout the novel. Kate Fox is a 16 year old girl who has been abused by her foster family in the name of the Blood of Christ Church for the past six years. The Church is really more of a cult with a focus on hate that is backed by prejudice. They also believe whole-heartedly that women are inferior and put on earth to serve their husbands, the men of the church have no problems enforcing this by any means necessary whether it be verbal abuse or physical. Kate feels hopelessly trapped in this cult that does nothing but hate and abuse anyone that (they believe) is not on their side. When Kate feels she can take no more, she courageously runs away and finds the only family she has left. Once Kate settles in with her aunt and cousin, she starts college, and gets a job working in an old soda shop. She starts to feel safe, normal, and happy, then several unexplainable things suddenly happen and they all seem to involve her boss, Mr. Hemming. Kate’s simple normal life gets put on hold as she begins to learn more about her roots and what they mean for her future.
I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed this story, but I do have some mixed feelings on the book overall. First off, I completely appreciated the controversial role that the Blood of Christ Church played in the story line. I love that the author gave cause to question an organized religion and its true motives. This is a huge issue in the world, religion has sparked wars, and wreaked havoc on the lives of non-believers, and done terrible things in the name of prophets and gods. For those devout, or those who would take offense to such a stigma placed on organized religion, would probably not enjoy this book. I really loved it though.
Second, even though I personally had no trouble following the story or understanding the characters, the story seemed to really jump around, and being that it was a very short book, it felt almost like a short prequel novel than the first book of a series. I could absolutely tell which elements of the story would come back into play and I was very excited to keep reading and see how it would all play out, but instead the book just sort of ended. It was a glorious cliffhanger to be sure, but I can’t help but feel I was a bit cheated, and now I have to wait for a second book that will hopefully have a bit more meat to it.
Third, I feel like there was a bit too much focus on Kate’s curves, particularly her breasts, to really be cohesive to the story. That being said, I also feel that such a strong and reoccurring sexual theme gave it less of a young adult vibe, and more the feeling of a paranormal romance for adults. This also felt like an easy way to get around a more developed character. Don’t get me wrong, I recognize this to be a coming of age story, and most young women struggle with body image, but it really felt like the focus should have been on a stronger characteristic, like say, her courage and bravery.
Finally, I really want to emphasize that I still give this book a 3 out of 4 stars because, I did so enjoy reading it. I personally really appreciated that the story had a slight supernatural feel, but that the focus was fluid with Kate’s journey to overcoming her fears in the face of hate and prejudice and that she was able to find the love that she so needed with her family. The story was so great I really wanted to give it a full star rating and I totally look forward to reading the next book.
******
Kate Fox & The Three Kings
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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Latest Review: "Shadow's Kiss" by Adria Eustis
