Rosie’s #BookReview Team #RBRT Revengers by @dvgtweets #Horror #TuesdayBookBlog

Today’s team review is from Shelley, she blogs here http://shelleywilsonauthor.com/

Shelley has been reading Revengers by David Valdes Greenwood

Title: Revengers

Author: David Valdes Greenwood

Category: Horror

My Rating: 4 Star

My Review:

As a lover of supernatural and horror stories, I was drawn to this book by the mention of Salem and the Furies – or lone Fury in this case. Exacting revenge was the purpose of the Furies, and in Revengers it falls to three teenagers to carry out an ancient act of vengeance.

Ama, Mark, and Justin have never met, and yet they have each been touched by death and are hounded by grief. By witnessing the murders of their loved ones,they have been left broken and alone. Ama was sent to an all-girls’ school because her aunt couldn’t handle her, Mark dropped out of Harvard because he couldn’t cope with his heartache, and Justin has jumped from bedsit to squat over the years, never settling, never living.

The three main characters are so different and yet they share a common bond. I loved their diversity and how their friendship developed in the face of such horror. Ama is feisty and cold but learns to open her heart and let down her walls. Mark is smart and excitable but loyal to his new found friends. Justin is broken but allows himself to feel alive for the first time in years. They are an unlikely threesome, and yet the dynamics work well.

After witnessing the deaths of their loved ones, the three main characters are plagued with nightmares where they relive the event over and over. However, there is an addition to their usual dreams when the Fury, Rebecca, invades their minds and leaves them a trail to follow; a journal, the letter R, the word Salem. All three independently decide to investigate what it all means and eventually meet outside Salem’s Witch Museum. They are whisked away by the tour guide, Betty, for a speedy low down on the rules of the game. Revenge the death of their loved ones by killing the people responsible.

The story unfolds as the three teens take on the challenge, but it’s not as simple, or as straight forward, as Betty made it out to be.

The story is perfectly paced but picks up towards the end as a series of unexpected twists keep you hooked. Told in the third person, the book switches between all the characters point of view, changing angles but never losing its momentum. The horror aspect isn’t too gory and so would appeal to the more squeamishreader. Although the characters are teenagers, this book could be thoroughly enjoyed by teens and adults alike.

An enjoyable read.

My thanks to the author/publisher for an ARC copy of Revengers which I reviewed as part of Rosie Amber’s Book Review Team.

Book Blurb:

How far would you go to make things right? Ama, Mark, and Justin are about to find out.

All three have each witnessed a murder that went unpunished, and they’ve lived broken lives ever since. In recent months, their dreams have been haunted by someone who understands their pain: a Fury who survived the witch hunts of Old Salem. Three days before Halloween, she enters their dreams and summons them to be Revengers, just as she has done for a new trio of teens every year for centuries. If they abide by her seemingly simple set of rules, she promises supernatural protection while they avenge their losses.

One catch: exacting revenge means becoming killers themselves. And they don’t have much time to wrestle with the moral dilemma, as the Fury’s protection will end on the Day of the Dead. When they agree—setting in motion three bloody acts of vengeance—things begin to spiral out of control and they come to understand they are pawns in ancient game. As the Fury toys with them, they race against the clock, hoping to live more than just a few more days…

About the author

David Valdes Greenwood is the author of Revengers, The Rhinestone Sisterhood, Homo Domesticus and A Little Fruitcake. As an award-winning playwright, his work has been staged coast to coast and in the UK. A former freelance journalist, Valdes Greenwood is best known for his Boston Globe columns. Currently, he details life as a parent as a Huffington Post blogger.

Goodreads | AmazonUK | AmazonUS | Twitter

Rosie’s #Bookreview Team #RBRT Revengers by David Valdes Greenwood @dvgtweets #YA #Suspense

Today’s Team review is from Olga, she blogs here http://www.authortranslatorolga.com

Olga has been reading Revengers by David Valdes Greenwood

My review:

Thanks to Rosie Amber (from Rosie’s Book Review Team) and to the author for providing me with an ARC copy of this novel that I freely chose to review.

Revengers is the first in the YA Revengers Series, and it is the first work by the author, David Valdes Greenwood, better known for his non-fiction books and his plays, I have read. This is a revenge story with a supernatural twist. If that is not unusual (we all know revenge stories orchestrated by evil or sometimes simply very angry spirits), both the details and the characters are.

Those who love mythology, in particular, Greek (and Roman) mythology, will probably appreciate the thematic link to the Furies, ancient vengeful deities whose roles and interpretation changed over time. Because, the book tells the story of three adolescents who’ve experienced terrible losses at different ages (Marc, a Harvard dropout, only a year ago, whilst Justin and Ama were much younger) and who, for different reasons, have had to grieve alone. They’ve been experiencing terrifying nightmares since the events, that they witnessed, and suddenly, these nightmares become more real than before. A strange and scary female figure tells them to go to Salem and leaves them a journal. They feel compelled to obey Rebecca, the fury/spirit behind their nightmares whose story we learn later (and who had good reasons to seek revenge).

The story is told in the third person, mostly alternating the points of view of the three main characters (although also briefly from the victims and other characters with small parts in the story, including the Rebecca herself), who, although don’t know each other at the beginning, end up becoming an ersatz family. They are as diverse as they could be (ethnically: African-American and Dominican blood, Chinese, old Massachusetts stock, sexually: Marc is gay and Ama and Justin haven’t had much time to think about such things so far; they also have different interests, studies and their economic and family circumstances are miles apart) but have to form a team to be able to fulfil the rules and get rid of their nightmares forever. Although killing somebody is not an easy task, they don’t realise how complicated things can get until later, when secrets and half-told truths come to light. The rules they are given, that seem to be clear-cut and not leave any room for ambiguity, aren’t so clear when one scratches beyond the surface, and there is no such a thing as getting off scotch-free.

The Salem of the story (I cannot comment on how much it resembles the real location, although for me it is more of a paranormal backdrop to the story than a real place, and it reminded me a bit of Demon Road where an alternative order and lifestyle existed side by side with normal life, without anybody other than those involved being aware of it) is full of secrets, tragedy, lessons not learned and people trying to maintain the status quo while pretending everything is fine. Although it might appear like business to Halloween Tourists, to those in the know, witches are the least of their problems.

The three main characters have distinctive personalities and are realistically portrayed (Ama is quite suspicious, Justin can be quick to act, Marc is a bit of a softy) and they are all flawed, and not all that likeable at the beginning of the story but make a good team and learn to appreciate and accept their differences and skills. For me, one of the most appealing aspects of the book (apart from the suspense and the mystery) is the strong bond that develops between the three adolescents who at that point didn’t have a close connection or intimate friends who knew their secrets, shared their concerns and cared for them. I particularly liked Ama, who although is tough and determined, is also the character who often hesitates and questions the morality of their actions and who will go to any extent to try and keep everybody safe. And that is why in the end… (Don’t worry, no spoilers).

The book is compellingly written, with enough imagery and description to feel the changes in weather and scenery (that are all in tune with their experiences and the action providing visual and sensory emphasis to the events), without becoming cumbersome. The interactions between the adolescents and with other characters ring true and help build their characters more convincingly. There is plenty of action, it has many scary moments and the suspense builds up from the start (as we have a time-frame and the clock is ticking continuously, with the tension increasing towards the end of the story).  The inclusion of the point of view of some of the victims makes the story more morally ambiguous and complex. This is not just a revenge story with a few paranormal scary touches. It will make readers (and who hasn’t thought about getting revenge on somebody at some point) think twice about justice and revenge. Although the ending (no, no spoilers) opens up the series to the next book, do not worry about unfinished businesses or annoying cliff-hangers. This is not a story divided into several books where you never get any resolution. So you won’t feel disappointed because of a lack of ending (you might have preferred a different ending, but that’s a completely different matter).

I recommend this novel to readers of YA stories who love suspense, paranormal subjects, mythology and strong and diverse protagonists. Especially those looking for a new series with a kick-ass female protagonist. The author has promised to keep me informed when he publishes the next books in the series, so I’ll keep you posted.

Book Description

A great revenge story, with a fabulous paranormal presence and the start of series that promises many more adventures and frights. (Olga’s thoughts)

How far would you go to make things right? Ama, Mark, and Justin are about to find out. All three have each witnessed a murder that went unpunished, and they’ve lived broken lives ever since. In recent months, their dreams have been haunted by someone who understands their pain: a Fury who survived the witch hunts of Old Salem. Three days before Halloween, she enters their dreams and summons them to be Revengers, just as she has done for a new trio of teens every year for centuries. If they abide by her seemingly simple set of rules, she promises supernatural protection while they avenge their losses. One catch: exacting revenge means becoming killers themselves. And they don’t have much time to wrestle with the moral dilemma, as the Fury’s protection will end on the Day of the Dead. When they agree—setting in motion three bloody acts of vengeance—things begin to spiral out of control and they come to understand they are pawns in an ancient game. As the Fury toys with them, they race against the clock, hoping to live more than just a few more days…

About the author

David Valdes Greenwood is the author of Revengers, The Rhinestone Sisterhood, Homo Domesticus and A Little Fruitcake. As an award-winning playwright, his work has been staged coast to coast and in the UK. A former freelance journalist, Valdes Greenwood is best known for his Boston Globe columns. Currently, he details life as a parent as a Huffington Post blogger.

Goodreads | AmazonUK | AmazonUS | Twitter