Forgotten Sin (Avenging Fate Book 1) By Brian Hershey

“Every once in a while I stumble across a book that quite literally blows me away in every sense of the word. Forgotten Sin by Brian Hershey is a fast-paced thriller that is stark and harrowing, with a troubled protagonist looking to escape her horrible past that is magnified with a phenomenal evil she has little control over.” https://walkerputsche.wordpress.com/

Doctor Mya Bishop has a well-established career at the University of Cambridge as a lecturer on medieval mythology and a very promising future ahead of her, but she is plagued with a harrowing secret from her past and cursed with lycanthrope, where she has the ability to shape shift into a wolf. Mya is in fact over two-hundred years old and successfully manages to hide her secret identity from the world, but she is also desperate to be free from her curse and seeks the help from an animal specialist, Marcus Holland, who Mya offers a substantial amount of money to come and observe her in her animal form.  Initially Marcus is disturbed to learn what Mya is and is reluctant to stay until he has a change of heart and decides to try and find a cure as everything he witnesses with Mya´s wolf form defies all logic.  After an experiment goes horribly wrong Mya´s real identity is discovered by a prominent member of parliament who is hell-bent on hunting her down and killing her while using his position of wealth as a means of getting tasks completed.  All of which leads to a deadly hunt where the hopes of survival on each opposing side are slim.

It’s not often I come across a book where each chapter is from the perspective of alternating characters’ and I have to say I found it highly immersing and a refreshing change to some of the werewolf fiction I have read before. I expect an exciting sequel awaiting this female heroine.

Disclosure: I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

My Ranking: 5 Stars

 

Ice Cream Man By Evan Bollinger

“Bollinger constructs a plot similar to a jigsaw puzzle with thousands of pieces that eventually all come together towards the end in a way I never imagined.” https://walkerputsche.wordpress.com/

The story follows main protagonist, Lacy Stamford, a single mum who is trying hard to keep her life and the life of her children on track after the death of her husband several years ago. All of a sudden Lacy’s life is thrown into turmoil when she returns from a simple shopping errand to discover her house is on fire and that this is just the start of the horror she and her children will face in the coming days of the unexplainable house fires, hotter than hot temperatures, spontaneous combustion and people going missing.

Ice Cream Man is a taunt thriller that is infused with horror and sci-fi elements and I would recommend it to readers who enjoy dark themed and thought-provoking fiction.

My Ranking: 5 Stars

Daygo’s Fury: The Daygo Stream By John F. O’ Sullivan

“Daygo’s Fury is dark fantasy at its best and is a great beginning to a special series. I can’t wait to read the follow-up.” https://walkerputsche.wordpress.com/
In the opening chapters the reader is transported into the world of Liam, an orphan and slum dweller, who believes he is destined for greater things. Liam’s story deals with powerful issues and takes the reader on a journey into a violent and dark world where every day is a struggle to survive in a poverty-stricken world that’s gone mad.

In the following chapters the reader is introduced to Niisa, a forest dweller, who lives in a tribe that thrive to have an intense relationship with Daygo, a celestial being. Niisa story also deals with powerful issues and takes the reader on a deep spiritual path of human failures and triumphs where the magic in the story is both beautiful and disturbing.

Both young man’s stories alternate throughout the book and although I can’t yet draw the comparison to Liam and Niisa because they live in different worlds, both dealing with completely different issues. I have no doubt in further instalments that these two very remarkable young man’s paths will cross at some point and it will be interesting to see what is in store for both of them.

With regards to O’ Sullivan’s writing, the narrative is gripping, the plotting is tight, yet what struck me as more amazing were the voices of these two main protagonists, as they drive the story along with both their emotional weight and power.

My Ranking: 5 Stars