Revenant
June 1, 2010
Urban Fantasy
Paperback, 352 Pages
Ace Trade
Reviewed by Tori
Favorite Quote: “Fine-I warned you. Don’t. Trust. Anyone.”
Zoe Martinique has had a busy year. First she learns to travel outside her body; encountering some strange and unusual things. Then her encounter in the Abysmal left her with some new and incredible powers. So just as things begin to settle down and Zoe starts to learn her new powers, Atlanta Revenants are popping up dead and drained of blood. Zoe will need to learn her role as a wraith sooner then she thought because she will need everything and everyone to keep the balance in the world.
Zoe, with the help of her enemy(?) Archer, is learning to adapt to being a wraith. She is keeping her new powers and teacher a secret from her family and friends. As Archer always tells her,”Trust. No. One.” But that is easier said then done. Zoe soon learns that Revenants (First Borns who became vampires by hosting w/humans) are being hunted and slain for ritual purposes. When Zoe digs a little deeper she learns that the Book of Grimore may contain an incantation that not only can kill the Revenants but also the Phantasm. The same Grimore that may have been melded to Dags soul.As all this is happening, Zoe is still trying to come to terms with her love for Danial and Dags. Also the fact that her BFF Rhonda also loves Dags, but is dating someone else.
In the fourth installment of the Atlanta underground- Zoe Martinque has allied with Archer, her arch nemesis. After he touched her in Phantasm they somehow bonded with each other. Their life forces are now intertwined- If she dies, he dies.She continues to keep this relationship from her family; mostly due to her mother that had an unfortunate mishap with Archer in the last book. All the “scooby gang” is around except Dags. Though Zoe is still suffering from guilt over what happened with Danial, she is not happy to find out that Rhonda has hired Dags to work for the society.As he is not returning her phone calls, she is not sure what is going on. When she is called to the morgue to look at a body, she is asked to help release the soul. This is part of her job description but before she can Archer appears and attempts to stop her. Again she learns the hard way NOT.TO.TRUST.ANYONE.
I thoroughly enjoy the premise of this whole series. A young advertising advertising exc comes in to a world of magic. Angels, vamps, all things that go bump in the night…Zoe meets and deals with them all in this installment. With each book Zoe seems to learn a little bit and lose more. The word play is excellent. Ms Weldon has built a fascinating ever changing UF world that offers thrills, chills and quite a suspenseful ride. While there are a few romances going on, it plays second fiddle to the main storyline and does not distract. What I really enjoy is the interaction between the characters. Even though Zoe is the main protagonist, we are able to get to know each character and develop a relationship with them.
I also like that Ms Weldon does not make a clear distinction between the good guys and the villains. Everyone has an ulterior motive for what they are doing and as Archer tells Zoe, “don’t trust anyone.” And that is best advice to follow through out this book.Archer has to be one of my favorite characters and we see a completely new side of him in this book- I like it. The book reads fast and furious but there is a lot of information to assimilate. These are not stand alone books. Take my advice and start at the beginning.
I did have a few tiny problems with the book. It does start out a little slow with a lot of day to day activities and not much action. Zoe does a lot on inner monologue that can bog down the story sometimes. I really wish to see a faster character development with Zoe. In this book she does do a little more maturing but her mannerisms and slang are along the same lines of 15 yr old. Not too bad until you realize she’s almost 30.
I also dislike how everyone talks down to Zoe. She never gets the information she needs till after something, usually bad, happens. Rhonda treats Zoe like an idiot sometimes but Zoe gives as good as she gets so I had a few LOL moments.
The ending literally shocked the “you know what out of me” and I give KUDOs to Ms Weldon’s dynamic prose in writing it. It cemented my commitment to reading the next book in this series. All in all the Atlanta Underground is a fascinating world that I enjoy being a part of.
Rating: 4/5
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It looks like this is another series I have to try out!
Thank you Tori. Hmmmm. Premise sounds interesting, but I'm not so sure about the slang. In the BDB books it drives me up with wall :)
Buckyey-Start with the first book. There is also a small PDF that comes right after 1st book that explains alot but it's not heavly advertised.
Orannia- It's not the slang so much as it's the immaturity. But she is getting better each book so hopefully….lol