Blood of the Revenant

by N.R. Allen

[inlibrisveritas]

I want to thank NR Allen for sending me a copy of her book in exchange for an honest review.

Blood of the Revenant turned out to be a very unique book that sends you on a journey of self-discovery and hidden truths. I can’t say I’ve ever read anything like this before, and I’ve read a lot of vampire like novels. One thing that I adore about this book is the use of the lesser known vampire (revenant) deterrents that were prevalent in folk lore. It’s nice to see something like that in vampire fiction, especially now that they’ve become popular and people have branched off into creating their own creatures. I will say that if you are not all that familiar with the lore then you will be kind of confused at first, but give it time and it all comes together. The writing is very descriptive and really pulls you into the moment, you get a sense of what the main character is feeling and how he’s processing the situation. I did have a problem with a bit of the circular talk in this and found myself kind of confused for a few seconds, my brain doesn’t work in circles at all. It’s also fairly fast paced and once the action got going I found it impossible to put down. It actually deals with a lot of issues like betrayal and the lost of innocence, as well as a sort of coming of age aspect.

The main character, Gabriel, is one that you see grow and learn throughout the novel. He isn’t fully revealed at the beginning because he doesn’t truly know himself, so you as a reader are learning right along side him. Being so use to having characters completely fleshed out and given to me it took me a bit to get use to, but once I did I was hooked on figuring out everything being placed in front of him. I love how the situation with his family turns out and even though parts of it are rather sad I found it really creative and it really gives Gabriel something to fight for and against. Ryvall and Lamia are equally shadowy figures and they both have plans for Gabriel, and I found myself stuck between who was right and who was wrong. They are similar and at the same time very different. Then there is the Dominion Machine, which I am still most curious about. It plays a rather important role in the story and is kind of a driving force behind a lot of the events, however I really wish there were more on it’s creation. I want to know exactly what it is because the way it weaves it’s way into the characters is rather interesting.

Overall I found this to be a really unique and interesting book, with a refreshing revival of the old vampire lore. I feel it’s certainly worth picking up and checking out, especially if you’re a vampire fan like me.