Review: Foretold

FORETOLD
Demon Trappers #4
Jana Oliver
Paranormal Young Adult
352 pages
St. Martin's Griffin
Available Now
Received from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
Now that Riley’s managed to (just barely) fend off Armageddon, everything’s changed. Well . . . most things. After their passionate kiss before the big battle in the cemetery, Beck is back to treating her like a little girl, as if nothing ever happened. While she’d love to just tell him off and move on, Riley vowed to take care of Beck the way he’s taken care of her since her father’s death—but she’s about to get a whole lot more than she bargained for. When she’s commissioned to go with Beck to his hometown and help him care for his dying mother, they stumble too close to a dark and murderous secret, one that Beck fears will drive Riley away from him forever. As chaos breaks loose, Riley may be Beck's only hope for redemption . . . and survival.

Meanwhile, up in Atlanta, it’s quickly becoming clear that Heaven may have won a battle, but the war is far from over. Riley and Beck face a stormy future, as Lucifer's ex-right-hand-man, Sartael, proves himself to be more resilient than anyone thought. He has Atlanta in his grip and is about to begin a brutal war with the prince of Hell. As the seconds tick down toward a final confrontation, it's up to Riley and the man she loves to finally defeat their old enemy, or lose everything they've fought for.

MY THOUGHTS
Foretold brings Riley’s journey full circle; what she finds within herself and in her feelings for Beck finally beginning to eclipse what she’s so brutally lost along the way, wrapping this series up in beautifully satisfying fashion. This final installment is essentially separated into two parts, the first half uncovering Beck’s dark and troubled past while the second half focuses on angelic politics as one of the Fallen finally makes his play for the throne of Hell, but Ms. Oliver skillfully ties the two separate threads together through Riley and Beck’s personal relationship, thereby ensuring we’re given a cohesive and thoroughly addictive story.

The first half of this tale is a true joy to read even as the pain in Beck’s past tugs at our heartstrings, granting us the glimpses of what’s molded the man we’ve come to love into the man he is; something we’ve longed for from the moment we met him and knew his attitude toward Riley was a defense mechanism protecting a vulnerable soul. It’s our time with him in small-town Georgia where memories are long and grudges run deep that allows us fully understand the fear that so often drives Beck’s reactions to Riley, a revelation that adds a stunning depth to their relationship in the second half of the book and makes us reevaluate their every interaction up until that point.

Perhaps the most gratifying aspect of this final installment is the continued growth of both Beck and Riley, the giant steps forward they made in Forgiven only lengthening in stride in Foretold, the channels of communication something both give much needed time and attention to opening. While Riley and Beck both have secrets from the other, they don’t keep them hidden for long, sparing us the drawn-out tension and inevitable drama when all is revealed and instead opting to put their trust – a truly momentous gesture for each of them – in the other’s hands in the hope their problems will find a long-awaited champion ready to tackle whatever is laid at their feet. Finally, we see the two of them together as a team; inseparable and fortified by honesty, love, and respect, and standing strong hand in hand even as Atlanta faces her darkest night yet.

Foretold is nothing short of a stunning conclusion to the Demon Trapper series, touching on every wish we have for Riley and Beck and seeing that they come true in the gritty, fiery, and thrilling style we’ve come to expect from these books. Fans of this series will absolutely want to cancel any plans for their day when they decide to crack Foretold’s spine, as there is no putting it down once Riley and Beck have them back in their clutches.

Rating: 4.5/5

Double Review: Soul Thief + Forgiven

SOUL THIEF (Demon Trapper's Daughter #2)

FORGIVEN (Demon Trapper's Daughter #3)

Jana Oliver

Paranormal Young Adult

St. Martin's Press

Available Now

Bought/Received from publisher for review

SOUL THIEF (the story from Goodreads)

*the synopsis for Forgiven contains spoilers from Soul Thief, so I'm leaving that out*

Riley Blackthorne is beginning to learn that there are worse things than death by demon. And love is just one of them…

Seventeen-year-old Riley has about had it up to here. After the devastating battle at the Tabernacle, trappers are dead and injured, her boyfriend Simon is gravely injured, and now her beloved late father’s been illegally poached from his grave by a very powerful necromancer. As if that’s not enough, there's Ori, one sizzling hot freelance demon hunter who’s made himself Riley’s unofficial body guard, and Beck, a super over-protective “friend” who acts more like a grouchy granddad.With all the hassles, Riley’s almost ready to leave Atlanta altogether.
 

But as Atlanta’s demon count increases, the Vatican finally sends its own Demon Hunters to take care of the city’s “little” problem, and pandemonium breaks loose. Only Riley knows that she might be the center of Hell’s attention: an extremely powerful Grade 5 demon is stalking her, and her luck can't last forever… 

MY THOUGHTS

Soul Thief and Forgiven are books that build beautifully upon their predecessor, giving us much-desired character growth while intensifying the demonic presence in Atlanta until we’re on the edge of our seats wondering what’s in store for young Riley both physically and emotionally. The world of the demon trappers is a dark one, the number of those fighting evil greatly overwhelmed by the number of demons intent on destroying them, but through it all we have characters who acknowledge they’re outnumbered and yet refuse to accept it, standing strong against an onslaught from Heaven, Hell, and humanity itself. Ms. Oliver does a magnificent job creating her world – one that’s close enough to our own as to be familiar and recognizable, and one that’s richly enhanced by each and every individual that occupies it.

The first book in the series introduced us to Riley Blackthorne, a strong and captivating young woman who challenged us at every turn. Our relationship with her was often troubled due to her relationship with fellow trapper Beck, her lack of maturity in dealing with him hindering our ability to fully support her, but in both Soul Thief and Forgiven we see her put in a great deal of effort to salvage a relationship with the man she’s wanted forever and who rejected her a few years prior. She’s infinitely more patient with him, accepting his verbal jabs without always returning one of her own, and all the while trying–though admittedly sometimes in vain–to open channels of communication with him instead of bottling up her hurt and anger until she can only release it by hurling an insult in his direction.

Riley and Beck are truly the highlights of this series, their relationship a painful dance of want and need accompanied by a healthy dose of fear that they are unworthy of the other person’s love. While both sides make huge steps forward in dealing with one another, things are in no way easy for them, and they often revert back to what they know best – defending themselves and their hearts through offense. Riley and Beck are both a colorful array of emotional bruises, making it extraordinarily difficult to watch as they poke the other person's tender flesh with a practiced finger, knowing just where to touch to inflict the most damage before retreating behind the armor both have painstakingly donned to protect themselves. Where the Riley and Beck of The Demon Trapper’s Daughter repeatedly cut one another with their verbal blades before retreating to separately lick their wounds, the Riley and Beck of Soul Thief and Forgiven don’t always run after leaving the other bleeding, instead they attempt to acknowledge the wound and the reasons for causing it so they can avoid the same injury moving forward.

Forgiven concludes with Riley and Beck both in difficult situations, but the final lines leave us with a great deal of hope for the future, everything we’ve learned about Riley thus far telling us she’s a fighter who won’t back down from a challenge. Foretold promises to be the most intense of the series, things between our two protagonists finally reaching the point where they’re going to have to decide if simply wanting to be together will be enough to make it happen, and I for one can't wait to get my hands on it.

Rating: 4/5

Review: The Demon Trapper's Daughter

THE DEMON TRAPPER'S DAUGHTER (Book #1)
Jana Oliver
Paranormal Young Adult
368 Pages
St. Martin's Griffin
Available February 1st
Received for review from For What It's Worth

THE STORY
Riley Blackthorne is a demon trapper. She's following in her father's footsteps, aspiring to be a master trapper and the only women to choose such a profession. For now, she's stuck with the lesser demons, finding herself covered in unmentionable demon fluids while videos of her botched containment attempts go viral.

When tragedy strikes, Riley becomes more determined than ever to be a master trapper, recklessly attempting to catch higher level demons to the chagrin of her father's protege, and her first crush, Beck. When it's clear she's outmatched, she's brought under the tutelage of a senior master trapper, a man who hates her and her father, and only agrees to train her so he has another person to abuse.

Though it's not the best of situations, it does allow Riley to spend more time with fellow trapper apprentice Simon, the one bright spot in a world that seems to have turned it's back on her. Things are changing in Atlanta though, and while Riley is training, it seems the demons, previously content to work alone, have begun to team up and even more surprisingly, they all seem to know Riley by name. With the demons working together and the trappers' special supplies not working as they should, things seem increasingly bleak for Riley and company, and she may soon be following far closer in her father's footsteps than she would have ever expected.

MY THOUGHTS
The Demon Trapper's Daughter introduces us to a world where darkness has temporarily eclipsed light, and the lethal claw-tipped fingers of Hell have crept from Lucifer's realm and made their way to big city Atlanta. With their increasing occupation of the city comes minor mischief from the lower level minions, but a bloody end awaits those who think to tangle with the upper level fiends as they maim and destroy with an evilness and disregard for life characteristic of the soulless monsters they are. The details of this nightmarish world are presented to us gradually, sparing us from being buried under the enormous weight of an extraordinary influx of information, instead giving us time to observe and question as we learn the ins and outs of demon trapping along with Riley. Though her world is grim and death manifests itself into terrifying demonic forms, Riley and Beck's faith in their cause keeps hope alive for us as readers, their strength of purpose a tiny encouraging flame in the surrounding blackness.

Despite an interesting world, Riley herself is a problematic character. While we respect her desire to be the only female demon trapper and her ability to hunt down horrifying creatures with a remarkable tenacity, her interactions with Beck make fully supporting her difficult. When tragedy befalls her, she is understandably devastated, and in her grief she becomes so self-centered she refuses to acknowledge that Beck not only shares her pain, but is experiencing the loss on a level as equally personal and crushing as her own. His rejection of her feelings for him when she was fifteen forced her to erect protective walls to safeguard her new emotional fragility, but even when it's clear Beck's protectiveness and sometimes curt reprimands stem from an inherent affection and need to protect himself from his own feelings, she reacts with utter immaturity and, at times, an unwarranted disrespect that reinforces the reality of her young years. We then can only read on with the wish that her behavior with regard to Beck could be as admirable as her dedication to her cause.

Though Riley's romantic attentions focus on Simon, Beck is the more preferable choice, his experiences as a soldier overseas and his trapping with Riley's father leaving him with significant emotional and physical scarring, and those marks buy him an infinite number of reprieves for his terse interactions with Riley as we have the opportunity to see through the facade to the troubled young man underneath. Riley, blinded by her girlish hurt at her initial dismissal those years ago, refuses to open her eyes wide enough to see how truly similar she and Beck are and how much he so clearly cares for her. Though her preference for squeaky-clean, ultra-religious Simon is understandable, we still can't help but want the chance to speak to Riley face to face and plead Beck's case on his behalf. He alone earns sole possession of our hearts–Simon remaining a bit too flat and too perfect to hold our interest, and Riley, though she certainly has the potential for us to form a cherished connection, uses her youthful selfishness to keep us at a distance.

The Demon Trapper's Daughter is full of promise, starting strong with moments of humor that offset the tragic darkness of the world, but it falters a bit in the middle as a jumble of different storylines all struggle for dominance, creating a hazy picture that prevents us from separating the main conflict from the minor ones. As a result, our focus continues to shift haphazardly as we await the details that will more clearly direct our course and help us find our way amongst the monsters. Luckily, toward the end that much needed direction makes its way to us and we find ourselves swept up in an action packed finale that leaves us eagerly anticipating the next installment. Though not without its flaws, this is an interesting story and one, now that we are properly informed, I look forward to continuing.

Rating: 3.5/5