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3 out of 4 stars
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"Raven's Peak " by Lincoln Cole is a thrilling work of fiction in which we are confronted with a hidden realm coexisting with our own. This realm is the supernatural world. There demons dwell and conspire against us using men, women, and children to do their bidding. Yet, hope still remains even for a world full of hate, suffering and death.
The story unfolds with a Hunter, named Abigail Dressler, who is ordained by the Council to combat the growing presence of demons and their followers, the Ninth Circle. She is ordered to go to Raven's Peak to investigate the reports of eery disturbances the townspeople are experiencing. In order to save face with the Council, since the horrific incident with her father, Abigail obeys. Along the way, Haatim Arison is thrown into Abigail's path. He is a modern unbeliever experencing his own crisis of faith who later on becomes more of an asset to Abigail then when they first meet. In the end, Haatim and Abigail have to face the mysterious revelations given to them by the demon possessed concerning those they know and love.
From the first word to the last, this story captivated my attention and engaged my imagination. The characters were well developed with sufficient backstories to keep me from getting lost. The plot is simple to follow but not at all predictable. Each chapter ends in an excellent cliff hanger with the final ending leaving me hungering for more. The author supplied the right amount of suspense, horror, and mystery all throughout the book. No action scene was longer then it had to be and provided just enough gore to keep me squirming in my seat. It was also refreshing not to be subjected to any unwarranted sexual scenes.
However, there were two main problems I had with the book. First, one of the characters, named Arthur, claims to be a Roman Catholic but goes on to call God a "she" which is clearly inconsistent with the historical teaching of the church. This might not seem a big deal but when you write a story containing references to known religions it is only fair in keeping with what they actually teach. Unless, I am mistaken and the author meant something else by it. Secondly, there were several editorial mistakes which caused me to get tripped up as I read. Mainly sentences were either missing words or using the wrong pronoun. For example, in chapter 3, "the document he'd been writing mention of her more than a few times."
Overall, I rate this book a 3 out of 4 stars. I wanted to give it 4 stars but those sentence mishaps just kept snagging me up. However, despite those issues the book did keep me turning the pages til the end. "Raven's Peak" ticked off all the major boxes for mystery, thriller, and horror. Both adults and young adults who delight in the supernatural genre will find this story enticing. Nevertheless, should you be the kind of person who gets scared of your own shadow then you should probably pass this one up. Some of the scenes containing demon possessions can be a bit unnerving. Still, the story is original with all the twists and turns it throws out and I will definitely be reading the sequel.
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Raven's Peak
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