Review of Catching Raven

[Justine Ocsebio]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Catching Raven" by C.B. Tucker.]

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4 out of 5 stars

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Samantha Raven is a principled, career-driven woman working as a forensic accountant for a manufacturing company. Ever since she gave birth to her daughter, Elizabeth, fifteen years ago, she has been working for both of their survival without support from anyone. But an unfortunate case of stealth threatens the peace she's been trying to maintain for so long. What does the future hold for Samantha and her daughter?

Catching Raven by C.B. Tucker follows the story of a woman going through several mishaps in life. It is a story of resilience and hope amidst difficult times. There is an adequate summary at the beginning of the book, a little something to give the reader an idea of how the story's going to go. The timeline alternates between Samantha's present situation as a corporate woman and the past when she was a young girl with a college fling. I like the book's attempt to show how her past affects her current mental state. The narrative, however, refuses to dive deep into the protagonist's emotions. The story deals with some serious issues. It has depictions of sexual assault that some might find triggering. What I don't like about the book is how these issues were taken a bit too lightly and with very little sensitivity. We didn't see the victims process their trauma or any emotional consequences that entailed those problematic experiences. As a result, the narrative kind of suffers.

On the other hand, I like the feminist tone the most, especially in the earlier parts of the novel. It's satisfying to see the protagonist thrive in a male-dominated field and outsmart the misogynistic men who try to humiliate her.

After much contemplation, I decided to give this book a rating of 4 out of 5 stars. I like the feminist theme but dislike how the narrative handles sensitive issues. Hence, the deduction of a point. I would declare that the novel has been professionally edited, owing to only a few instances of errors. I recommend the novel to readers who like novels with strong and resilient female protagonists.

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Catching Raven
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