Remnants by Lisa T. Bergren Book Review

// Remnants: Season of Wonder //

 

Remnants Series // Book #1

 

By Lisa T. Bergren

 

{Review by Bethany}

 

Source: ARC review copy courtesy of the author

Genre: Young Adult, Futuristic/Dystopian fiction

Number of Pages: 570

ISBN: 0310735645

Publisher: Blink

Publication Date: April 8th, 2014

Rating: Four out of five stars

 

// Book Synopsis //

{Taken from GoodReads}

"In the first book of the new futuristic dystopian series from author Lisa T. Bergren, the chosen remnants must work to redirect humanity’s course.

The year is 2095. Gifted teens known as Remnants have been chosen and trained to act as humanity’s last hope to rectify the horrors that are now part of everyday life.

The Community has trained these teens as warriors and assigned them Knights of the Last Order as protectors. Together, they are a force that will be difficult to bring down.

But the Sons of Sheol, of course, are determined to do just that. As the Remnants begin their mission to course-correct humanity by saving and protecting key individuals, their enemies move to stop them, placing the entire world in peril.

Bestselling author Lisa T. Bergren presents the first book in her new YA futuristic dystopian series—The Remnants Novels—fitting in with the current dystopian trend in the marketplace."

 

// Book Review //

 

For a while now, I've been a huge fan of Lisa Bergren-especially her River of Time series. Ever since hearing about her newest release, Remnants which is a futuristic young adult series with an emphasis on spiritual warfare; I was very eager to read it!

 

In my opinion, this book is an excellent start to this new Remnants series! I really felt like I got to know the characters very well-especially main character Andriana, and I'm very eager to continue the journey in the next book, Remnants: Season of Fire! I really liked how it was all eluding to Christianity throughout the story. All the things that represented Christianity, like the Remnants (the good guys) fighting the Sons of Sheol (the bad guys), which reminded me of angels and demons as well as the spiritual warfare between good and evil. Another aspect which reminded me of the whole spiritual emphasis was how each of the Remnants had a special gift, given to them by the Maker, that greatly assisted them in their fight against the Sons of Sheol. I found Andriana's gift of "reading" people's emotions and feelings as an interesting gift; that though helpful, was sometimes dangerous. Since she had this gift, it was interesting seeing the story from her perspective, and getting to see how she handled various situations throughout the story.  

 

It was neat reading a story where the whole plot is driven to remind you of the constant war between good and evil. Remnants reminded me of anther book I've read titled Cloak of the Light by Chuck Black, which is also is written from a spiritual warfare aspect. However in this book I liked how there were more Remnants and main characters with gifts, as it made things much more interesting being that there were more people involved. (However I still greatly recommend Cloak of the Light!)

 

As with any dystopian novel, Remnants did have a bit of violence, as the Remnants had several big fights with the Sons of Sheol, and obviously in such an event, there will be violence due to killing these creatures that represented demons. While the actual Sons of Sheol weren't in my opinion very scary or overly-described, the violence is a bit graphic, though not overly so. However I'd not recommend this book to younger readers, as it has an overall very thought-provoking aspect that has a dark weight of good versus evil, which can be more than your everyday light read.

 

Really the only other aspect that I wasn't completely crazy over was the romance and love-triangle aspect. Considering the length of the story, there wasn't an overabundance of romance in my opinion. However when it did show up it was just a little different for me. I felt like a few of the romance scenes had a bit to many details and descriptions. But it never was anything that made me disappointed in the novel, just something I felt was a bit different and probably consisted of too many details for my taste.

 

Overall, I really enjoyed this novel which despite being over 550 pages didn't get bland or dry, and I had no problem continuously turning pages. I'd highly recommend it to fans of Christian futuristic novels!

 

D I S C L A I M E R :: I contacted the author with an interest in reviewing this book and was sent a free ARC copy of Remnants to read and review. I was not paid to write this review, and all thoughts expressed in my review are my own, completely honest and unbiased.

Cloak Of The Light By Chuck Black Book Review

Cloak Of The Light

Wars Of The Realm, #1

 

Book Review Written By Madi

Book Title: Cloak Of The Light

Author: Chuck Black

Source: Blogging For Books

Genre: Christian Fiction

Number Of Pages: 306

ISBN: 978-1-60142-502-7

Publisher: Multnomah

Year Of Publication: 2014

Rating: Five Out Of Five Stars

 

Book Description

 

Author of the popular Kingdom Series returns with this thrilling new novel for young adults.

Tragedy and heartache seem to be waiting for Drew Carter at every turn. Sydney Carlyle, a mysterious and elusive girl offers encouragement through her faith, but Drew is too logical and scientific to believe that her prayer of healing was anything but coincidental in the restoration of his eyesight. As his sight returns, he discovers that the accident has heightened his neuron activity, giving him skills and sight beyond the normal man. When he begins to see fierce invaders that no one else can see, he questions his own sanity, and so do others. But is he insane or do the invaders truly exist? The only one who can help him, his genius friend Benjamin Berg, has disappeared. In Drew's quest to find Ben, he discovers that the invaders themselves are at war, for his efforts to thwart the devastating actions caused by the dark invaders are aided by invaders with a different nature. Time grows short as the dark invaders close in on Drew. With skills that no other man possesses, and help from Benjamin and Sydney, Drew initiates a plan to expose the invaders to the world.

 

Book Review

 

 Chuck Black, beloved author of The Kingdom Series has written another page-turning novel that will grab your attention and not let it go until the very end. By reading this book you will get a look into the world of supernatural battles and how angels and demons could potentially be changing our lives as we know it as we speak. I have read (and re-read) The Kingdom Series to a point where I could quote it. When I found out that Chuck Black had authored another book, I jumped at the opportunity to read and review it. This book is the first book in the Wars Of The Realm Series, and I can already tell you that no other book I have read this year can even come close. When I started reading it, I was a little concerned at first. The first several chapters were all about Drew's backstory. Had my favorite author written a boring book after all? NOPE. When I got farther into the story, I realized that all the time spent on Drew's background was completely necessary in order for the story to make sense and pull together. Black knows what he's doing. He perfectly blends the worlds of Christians and Non-believers. He describes angels and demons in a realistic sense. No pointy horns and red skin, just very creepy, dark, mythical creatures. I also liked how he included a guide in the back of how each chapter resembled biblical doctrine and prophecies. The only thing that I didn't like about this book was the end of it. It totally left me hanging until the next book comes out! (Does anyone know when that might be, by the way?). My favorite character is Sydney. She was the only one smart enough to figure out what the heck was going on. Granted, she didn't piece the pieces together until the last few pages, but in her defense, she wasn't the most informed person in the trio (Drew, Ben and Sydney). I can't wait until the next book comes out. If you can get your hands on a copy of this book, READ IT. It's also family friendly, so I'm sure that the youngers ones in your family would enjoy reading it as well.

~Madi For The Literary Maidens

Note: I was provided with a free copy of this book by the Blogging For Books review program in exchange for my honest opinion. I was not further compensated to review this product and all thoughts and sentiments expressed above are completely my own and unbiased.

For Such a Time By Kate Breslin Book Review

// For Such a Time //

 

By Kate Breslin

 

{ Review By Bethany }

 

Number of Pages: 430
ISBN: 0764211609

Publisher: Bethany House

Release Date: April 1st, 2014
Source: Review copy provided by the publisher
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

 

// Book Synopsis //

 

Taken From Good Reads

 

"In 1944, blonde and blue-eyed Jewess Hadassah Benjamin feels abandoned by God when she is saved from a firing squad only to be handed over to a new enemy. Pressed into service by SS-Kommandant Colonel Aric von Schmidt at the transit camp of Theresienstadt in Czechoslovakia, she is able to hide behind the false identity of Stella Muller. However, in order to survive and maintain her cover as Aric's secretary, she is forced to stand by as her own people are sent to Auschwitz. Suspecting her employer is a man of hidden depths and sympathies, Stella cautiously appeals to him on behalf of those in the camp. Aric's compassion gives her hope, and she finds herself battling a growing attraction for this man she knows she should despise as an enemy. Stella pours herself into her efforts to keep even some of the camp's prisoners safe, but she risks the revelation of her true identity with every attempt. When her bravery brings her to the point of the ultimate sacrifice, she has only her faith to lean upon. Perhaps God has placed her there for such a time as this, but how can she save her people when she is unable to save herself?"

 

// Book Review //

 

An adventure and action packed novel set during WWII, based on the Bible story of Queen Esther, this novel is full of emotion and is sure to prove a tear-jerking story of tremendous suffering alongside unwavering faith. Filled with lovable characters and plenty of action to keep you turning pages, this emotional story is one that makes you think, and will not be quickly forgotten. A top favorite of all the books I've read this year, I highly recommend this inspiring novel from author Kate Breslin!

 

Where do I even begin to describe how outstanding this novel is? From the very first chapter I was drawn into the story, and felt truly connected to the characters, feeling a deep sympathy for many of the Jews who barley survived-some of whom did not even survive-the extremely harsh conditions of the concentration camps, whose lives were written in detail in this story. The characters all had such great development throughout the story, and I particularly found myself loving Joseph and the little girl Hadassah friended in the camps, who adopted her as her "mama". Reading such detailed accounts of the horrid realities of this time period was sobering, and the way they were written not only contributed to Kate Breslin's lovely writing style, but added so much heart to the story.

 

Usually I'm not a big crier when it comes to novels. The reality of it is, few novels actually move me to such an extent that I shed tears, or get emotional in the reading process. But the combination of the wonderful writing style of the author, the detailed accounts of the suffering Jew's lives, and the realities of the Holocaust that actually DID happen-those who truly did loose their lives under such conditions-made me unable to read the last chapter without shedding a few tears and paying respect to those who did die in this time in history-those whose stories weren't a fictional work.

 

While this story is a work of fiction, I wouldn't find it hard to believe that there were many instances that were similar to this story, that actually did happen during that time, making it all the more surreal to read this book. While it was by no means a light read, being that it deals a lot with war and the realities of things done to Jews, I would say that this is a point that makes it better, and gives it heart and emotion. You can tell that the author has a deep admiration for the people who lost their lives unjustly during this horrid time in history, as it's evident in the way she writes-contributing all the more to my adding her to my list of favorite authors.

 

Ever since I first learned that this book was a unique combination of the Holocaust time period and a re-telling of the story of Esther, I was extremely intrigued, and eager to read this story. Now that I've finished it I can truly say this novel is a unique gem; for sure on my list of favorite books read in 2014, and one that will forever hold a place on my very-jammed bookshelf which is earned by a truly treasured story.

 

The amount of this novel that was heavily based on the story of Esther in the Bible was actually quite surprising to me, and I found it fascinating to read how the author tied it in with the story of Hadassah and Aric's story. It was made complete with believable bits that pertained to the time period that must have been a challenge to line up with the adaption to Esther, and made me admire the work that must have gone into preparing and writing this novel. I particularly loved how most of the chapters started with a verse from the book of Esther, and it sparked an interest to study the book of Esther in my daily devotions during the time I read this book, which I greatly benefited from. Even most of the important characters names were the same/extremely familiar and similar to those in the story of Esther. I just love how heavily the author relied on the story of Esther and made her novel as close to the original as she could. Also, the ending was just fabulous!!

 

The only thing I'd say was a bit of a downer for me was the amount of romance/kissing scene. While it never got inappropriate, there were a lot of kissing scenes, and at times I was a bit uncomfortable with the details of those scenes, and usually just skimmed the sentence describing it in detail. While it wasn't ever inappropriate or by any means a reason to not read the book, it was just a personal thing I didn't care for all that much. However for me it didn't really take all much away from my love for this novel.

 

Overall I absolutely loved every page of this novel, and soaked up the unique storyline with Esther and the WWII time period! I'd highly recommend this novel to fans of Holocaust fiction or Bible story adaptions, as this novel is sure to not disappoint! I eagerly await future novels from this author!!

 

D I S C L A I M E R :: I received a free copy of For Such a Time from the publisher for the sole purpose of this review. I was not paid to write this review, and was not required to write a good review if I didn't like the book. All thoughts expressed in my review are my own, completely honest and unbiased.