Official Review: Wielding Crimson by D.M. Enslin

[kio]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Wielding Crimson" by D.M. Enslin.]

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Power-wielding, murderers, human lives at stake, and danger are all but a few of the things that Philip Doukos encounters in D.M. Enslin’s Wielding Crimson

Phillip, Hector, Alessia, Eric, and Agnes are wielders-people who can control different kinds of powers such as flesh, psyche, and light. As a rare wielder of light, Phillip goes to visit a fellow wielder, Induna, to tell him about who he is, he is told that a girl who has been haunting him will destroy him.

Five years later, Phillip goes on vacation with his wielder family and friends, Layla, the girl who haunts him, shows up on his doorstep with his friend, Agnes. Determined to not let Layla destroy him, Phillip decides to get to know her. Unfortunately, as he gets to know her, he starts to like her and maybe more.

Meanwhile, a flesh-wielding assassin is going around killing humans “chosen” by the Threaders for unknown mysterious reasons. To make matters worse, there’s a traitor in Phillip’s mist and Induna discovers that what he told Phillip, if followed, will destroy the light wielder as well as the girl. In a desperate attempt to save the two, Induna sets out on a dangerous journey to find him with only the clue that Philip lives in Europe. Will Induna find Phillip and Layla in time? Who is the traitor and what is he up to? Why is the assassin killing people off? Will Phillip save or destroy Layla?

The plot is well-developed. The sequencing and storytelling is easy to follow and keeps the mystery alive for the reader. The mix of action and dialogue is well-done and keeps the reader hooked. The story itself was unique and kept me intrigued the whole way through. I also like the definitive changes in point of view and how the chapters seen through the bad guys slowly reveal the mystery and entice the reader.

Characters are a little hard to keep straight, but are well-developed and entertaining. I especially enjoyed the character dynamic and dialogue.

The mystery in the book is different than most books and easily captures the reader hook, line, and sinker despite its more moderate pace in places.

Overall, I’d give this book 3 out of 4 stars. The story was unique and the characters were delightful. There were a few typos, but they were minimal. Readers who like fantasy, mystery, magic, and suspense will enjoy reading this book and eagerly await its sequel.

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[enslindm]

Thanks for the wonderful review Kio!!! I am so grateful!

[NanoWasabi]

This is a great review, the only thing is that I would have liked to hear more about what you thought about the book, and a little less story background.

[clockwork360]

I love reading fantasy books but they have to grab me in such a way that pushes me to read. I ended up scrolling down and reading the other viewers posts and thought the reviewer wasn't giving a good enough review according to NanoWasabi.
However I think it was ok, not great but the reviewer did in fact give his opinion of what he felt about the story. However I almost want to believe that he may of given too much of the story away, I'm probably wrong but the feeling is there. Now as far as flesh wielders, I still can't fathom how that one is going to work. It almost gives me the creepy vision that these wielders are either taking the flesh off of victims and throwing them at people or using flesh as some sort of shield or sword, the latter being extra weird in my opinion. But sounds interesting just not sure if I'm convinced enough. Thanks!

[enslindm]

Flesh wielders have the ability to control other people's bodies! Most are only capable of healing, but Orestes, one of the main characters is the only flesh wielder able to hurt as well... For instance, he can force someone's muscles to move, cells to bleed, nerve endings to send pain signals to the brain etc... He is an excellent torturer! His abilities do tend to be on the dark side, and he is at times creepy, but there is no using the flesh as a shield or a sword, I'm afraid! Although that could be an idea... Also, the reviewer didn't give away more of the story than can be found in the book description!

[kio]

hanks for the constructive comments nanowasabi and clockwork360. I'll try to do that in the future. I don't try to give too much away enslindm, but I'll work on that as well

[Cee-Jay Aurinko]

Thanks for your review, kio. Fantasy books are my favorite, and there has to be something that really sets them apart from others for me want to take a look at the book.

You've balanced summary vs. analysis pretty well, which is a plus point when it comes to a review, something I'm still just learning to do. The plot sounds kinda befuddling though; what is the assassin really after besides killing wielders? Or who is it that employs him?

[kio]

The assassin part I think is supposed to be befuddling. The reason behind the assassinations and who employs them is a part of the big, book-causing mystery. If I tell you, it will completely spoil the book for you and, being the tricky librarian I am, I'm not going to tell you. You'll have to read it to find out

[bookowlie]

[quote="NanoWasabi"]This is a great review, the only thing is that I would have liked to hear more about what you thought about the book, and a little less story background.[/quote

Good point. I think concise summaries are difficult to write for this genre, as many of the books are so full of details. On the other hand, some plots are so disjointed that it's just hard to summarize the story.

I think the reviewer did a nice job, even though the summary was very long.

[kio]

Thanks for the feedback, I'll keep in that in mind for the next ones.