Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Genre: erotic, paranormal, fantasy, M/M
Review Copy received from Publisher
Summary:
Expecting another run-of-the-mill salvage job, Bo Andressen and his crew arrive at a crumbling castle in Wales and walk into a mystery of murder, hidden treasure, and greed with roots in the far past. In cooperating with the local law enforcement, Bo agrees to bring in a psychic, hoping to debunk rumors that the castle is haunted. However, paranormal liaison Tristan Lambert discovers that ghosts are only one suspected danger.
Bo doesn't believe in ghosts, but Tristan is convinced they're dealing with a revenant—a hostile spirit that feeds on sexual energy and will stop at nothing, including possession and coercion, to get it. The arrival of the castle's owner, Sir Rhys Turcotte, with his secretary—who happens to be Bo's ex-lover—complicates an already dangerous situation. Unwittingly bound together by an evil spell, Bo and Tristan seek to unmask the revenant's earthly allies... before more people become victims to an ancient evil seeking rebirth.
Kris’ Review:
Revenant by Connie Bailey clocks in at 208 pages and be assured you’ll be entertained every sentence. It is an extremely well thought-out supernatural story—but while it is an enjoyable read, it could have done with a dash of more finesse.
Ms. Bailey’s expanded novel is particularly rich in plot and has a lot of things happening all the time, very fast. This makes reading Revenant quite suspenseful, as you’ll most likely not be able to put the book down. Ms. Bailey has masterfully introduced a lot of different threads and aspects to the same little Welsh town of Drws Cefnforoedd and its inhabitants—whether transient or temporary—,and weaves a gripping tale that comes together tidily at the end, after a lot of twists and turns.
The characters are all nicely crafted and developed: this is a book with more of an ensemble cast then anything else. Bo and Tristan are as prominent as Sir Alun, the revenant, and his minions. Gavin the constable will win you over almost instantly, and Ardie, Bo’s friend and associate, is simply fantastic. A special mention of Morgan, the special town drunk, is also definitely needed. Ms. Bailey's dialogue is not stilted and any exchanges are true to the characters and the way they’d be speaking if you could hear them out loud, which is quite a feat.
However, that one aspect that makes the strength of this novel also makes its weakness: there were just too many characters, and the limited third person point of view jumps from one to the other. This makes Revenant quite tiring to read in places, and adds to the reader’s confusion. The explanations of what’s actually going on are scarce as each character has a different view and they wait towards the end of the book to communicate and clarify it for us. It can be frustrating as there are quite a few sex scenes where the characters’ feelings and reactions are a bit unbelievable and it is only at the end that we understand why. Finally, there are a few things that seem unnecessary but are still expounded upon: while it is a great way to flesh out secondary characters, it comes across as extraneous in a novel that is plot-driven. The mesh between paranormal and fantasy is also done well but the transition is not very subtle.
I also had some minor quibbles with sentence structure: in this novel Ms. Bailey is very fond of referring to the characters by their jobs, their physical description, or some other attribute instead of their name. But because there are so many characters it just gets confusing—especially during sex scenes with more than one partner. Some of the sex was also prone to fits of purple prose—nothing strong enough that it detracts from the writing, though!
In brief, definitely go for this if you like long and drawn-out plots that mesh true, heavy-handed supernatural phenomena with an ensemble cast that is solid and entertaining. But as a reader, be aware that Revenantby Connie Bailey is not an easy read, coming across as slightly long-winded with a lot going on.
Rated 3 1/2 Delightful Divas by Kris!
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