10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Good premise is wasted, October 13, 2009
This review is from: Dark Time: Mortal Path Book One (Mass Market Paperback)
[...]
Courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy
What do an innocent woman sentenced to burn for practicing witchcraft and a pulp crime novelist moonlighting as an former assassin who now saves the lives she used to take have in common? The answer: nothing. And therein lies the problem with this book.
The main character starts out this book as Susannah Layhem, dutiful 17th century wife, herbalist healer, and expectant mother without a care in the world except how to fend off her overly amorous husband during the increasingly uncomfortable end of her pregnancy. When she is falsely accused of being a witch, abandoned by those closest to her, and then suffers a miscarriage due to maltreatment and harsh imprisonment, she willingly accepts a `deal with the devil' (aka the Sumerian demon Rabishu) to escape a fiery death. She becomes an Ageless assassin, killing indiscriminately at Rabishu's bidding. Fast forward about 300 years and Susannah wants out. She finds in the fine print of her demon contract a possible way out ; if she can save as many lives as she took she will be free. She starts her life over as Maliha (pronounced Ma-lie-hah), a 007 rip-off with all the expensive toys and boys a girl could want.
But Maliha is nothing like Susannah. When we first meet her, she is busy working on her tan a trying to think of new ways to pose in her bikini to attract a hottie a few feet away. She is unfortunately forced to `pose and run' as a member of her network of saved lives calls in with a murder case for her to investigate. The rest of the book treats us to a confusing mash up of medical malpractice, drug smuggling, and corporate espionage . Sprinkled throughout all this, Maliha goes on a blind date, gossips with the boy crazy friend who set her up, works on her next hit book entitled, A Lust for Murder, and worries way too much that she might be in love with her blind date (while still engaging in casual sex with a local P. I.). In short she does everything except what you would expect: anguish over the insurmountable task in front of her. She is not the dark, brooding character she should be, given her history. She is not wracked with guilt over her past crimes nor is she consumed with desire to even the scales. She almost seems put out when she gets called away from all her fun.
What!?! Did I pick up the wrong book? Was there a mix-up at the printer? This was supposed to be an Urban Fantasy, not a Chic-Lit Mystery. And yet once Susannah becomes Maliha, the paranormal elements seem to die with her. There are a few passing references to the demon bargain, and a few mentions to Summerian mythology. But that's about it.
This should have been a great book. The premise is one of the best I've heard in a long time. One I could easily imagine supporting a long series, and yet sadly, the author largely ignored the great opportunity she created and instead produced a generic thriller weighed down with chic-lit elements and bad dialog:
"What money? By now all records of your transaction have been wiped out. No one can follow the money trail because there isn't any. What blackmail? The Black Ghost was never here."
A warning is also appropriate because there is a sexual predator in this book and the author includes chapters from his perspective. One that includes him assaulting a woman while she sleeps, his running thoughts leading up to and throughout the assault , and his future plans of brutally raping her. I cannot emphasize enough how ugly this part was to read.
The bottom line is this: with Susannah, I cared; with Maliha, I didn't.
Sexual Content: A couple brief sex scenes. A chapter written from the perspective of a sexual predator.
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A very good starter for a dark series..., August 1, 2009
This review is from: Dark Time: Mortal Path Book One (Mass Market Paperback)
In 1692, Susannah Layhem is a healer, happily married with a child on the way. Then it all changes when she is whisked away and is accused of witchcraft. She is to be burned to death, executed along with other innocents in Salem. But that is not the end for Susannah. She bargains with a demon that appears to her -- she will be immortal for as long as she does what he tells her. Hungry for revenge, she agrees to the bargain with little hesitation. Fast-forward five hundred years, Susannah is now Maliha Crayne, Black Ghost, an assassin for the demon who owns her soul. Strange things have happened to her over the years: she has developed a conscience. She no longer wants to kill people. Not only that, she also does not want to be immortal anymore. Will she be able to bargain her way to mortality? Yes, only that she has to save a life for every one she has taken over the course of her long life. Easy, huh? She is willing to take the challenge, but she cannot fail. If she does, there will be hell to pay -- literally.
Dark Time is the first book in the Mortal Path series. I feared this was a typical paranormal romance, one of the dozens of paranormal romances on the market today. I am glad to report that this is a compelling fantasy novel. It is enthralling, action-packed, and with enough darkness and science fiction elements to keep you turning the pages. I wasn't sure about the Salem Witch trials setting at first, but it works out well. "Maliha" is a great heroine, well fledged out and complex. The secondary characters, though underdeveloped, are also quite readable and relatable in certain aspects. It is difficult to make characters in fantasy novels feel real, but Dakota Banks succeeds in doing so. A nice four-star escapist read. I look forward to reading Book Two.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Strong start, but inconsistent, November 19, 2009
This review is from: Dark Time: Mortal Path Book One (Mass Market Paperback)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
I enjoyed the beginning of the story, but I lost interest in the protagonist soon after she changed into Maliha. For me, the story became less intriguing, and the character was less likable, and harder to identify with.
The writing was inconsistent, as though it was edited or written by two people with very different opinions. One sentence would dazzle, the next would disappoint.
I'd like to read more about the protagonist around the time that she begins her journey as one of the Ageless. I thought the character was easier to identify with as Susannah, and I think exploring her character in that time period would have been fun.
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