Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Bit Dark for the Average YA Novel; May Appeal More to Adults, April 10, 2011
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Set in the year 2018, The Demon Trapper's Daughter by Jana Oliver is a dark portrayal of a world overrun with demons, and the men who work to send them back to Hell where they belong. Paul Blackthorne is a famous trapper, and his 17-year-old daughter Riley has the talent for trapping demons as well. When a Level Five demon takes Paul out, Riley is alone in the world except for her father's co-worker Denver Beck, an older guy that Riley once had feelings for. Now on her own struggling just to pay her rent, Riley is more determined then ever to become a full-fledged trapper. Balancing school, watching over her father's grave so a necromancer doesn't claim him, and apprenticing with one of the roughest masters would be difficult for anyone. But Riley is special, and Heaven has an important job for her should she choose to accept her calling. The Demon Trapper's Daughter is marketed as a YA novel, but I think it would be more appealing to an adult audience. It took me about half of the book to get over my initial disappointment when I discovered this, but once I did I started to care about where Oliver was going in the story. In the beginning, it was really hard to connect with any of the characters. I would have liked to get to know Paul better and see him interact more with his daughter before his unfortunate death. I wasn't as sad as I feel I should have been when she was left to fend for herself. Beck is also difficult for me to like. He comes across as a drunk and a womanizer, and I couldn't at all see why Riley once had a crush on him. Couple that with his ridiculous dialect, and it makes for one annoying character. By the end of the novel, I had warmed up some to him when it's revealed that he has developed romantic feelings towards Riley. She has several potential love interests, and though she's with Simon right now, I have a bit of a soft spot for Beck and hope it works out for him. I think this alternative version of Atlanta, Georgia is quite fascinating, but I wish that Oliver had given us more background on what exactly is going on between Heaven and Hell. I like the different classifications of demons, and some of them are even funny. I found myself being partial to Ike's demon partner, who helps him break into money meters, and also to the demon type that hoards shiny treasures and Riley's `n' key on her computer. At first I wasn't sure I would want to continue reading on in this series, but once I reached the end I knew I wanted more. I'm definitely eager to see where Oliver goes with the Holy Water situation; it was perfectly built up in this novel to carry over into the next. A bit of a slow start, but The Demon Trapper's Daughter won me over in the end.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An excellent start to a great series, love Riley, love the plot, can't wait to read more, February 11, 2011
From page one Jana Oliver managed to hook me right inot the story of Riley, who is a Demon Trapper's Daughter and a rising Demon Trapper in her own right. The one difference between her and other Demon Trappers, she's the only female one. Beck is her father's apprentice and they don't always get along. So when things go wrong one evening and Riley is left on her own she remains suspicious of Beck and his reasons for helping her. So while dealing with regular life, Riley also has to deal with a new teacher, and one she doesn't even like. The benefit is one of his apprentices is Simon who Riley finds attractive and is attracted to her as well. But all of that is really in the background. The book is about Riley coming to terms with her father's death and what it means for her future. It's also about her desire for revenge and her methods to try and stop whatever is going on with the demons in her hometown of Atlanta. I really like the character of Riley, she's tough but not invincible and she knows this (though it takes an episode or two for her to fully realize it). I also like that even though she is a demon trapper, she also is a normal teenager who has crushes, the current one on Simon. The story moves along well balancing the world creation that occurs in the first book in a series with enough action and plot to make the story move and interest the reader from beginning to end. Tied up neatly for the first book, but some loose ends left open, I will be looking forward to the next book in this series. Ms. Oliver has created a solid world and interesting characters, even the ones you don't like as much as others. But Riley, Simon and Beck are definitely interesting and I am hopeful there will be a love triangle in the future. I'm not sure which boy I would go for, both have some great qualities. But Riley who knows her mind will know the one that is best for her.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Bloody, violent, gory... Loved it!, March 21, 2011
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
This was a great novel. I know that some found Riley's character too abrasive, but I loved her. Oftentimes I think the heroine is way too `good' or nice, I for one loved having a character that was brash, a little mean at times and other times a self proclaimed `hag'. Her character was a little immature, but she was 17, that's way more believable than the other 17 year old characters who save the world and seem to accept with grace and maturity everything that happens. Plus Riley is a demon trapper, she gets bit, scratched, peed on, stolen from, and she's the only girl in the trapper's guild as of right now, personally her character was perfect. Now as for the story, it was just as good and hard. Riley has led a really tough life. Her mother is dead, her father recently passed away, she is forced to change night schools so she's away from her best friend, and now has a new trapper master who hates her and the fact that she's a girl. The crappiness doesn't stop there. She tries to hunt a demon (high level one) by herself and nearly dies, and since her father died in such pristine condition all the necromancers of the city try each night to steal her father's body to raise him. That's a lot of pressure on a 17 year old, and makes for a very riveting and fast paced story. There was only one thing I didn't like, but it's 100% a personal thing. Because her father died by a glass through the heart (not sliced up like most demon trappers) the necromancers want to raise him. Riley must stand vigil every night in a circle of protection and keep the necromancers from getting her father. There was a part that mentioned that Riley could decapitate her father's body instead of standing vigil and everyone shudders and agrees with her decision not to do it. I would have done it in a heartbeat, I know that may sound horrid and not humane, but I would never want my father's body to be used in such a fashion, Riley can't be at the grave yard 24/7 so she'll be relying on volunteers, who's to say that one doesn't shirk, or get lazy? Other than that personal preference the story moved along at break neck speed at points, and just merely quickly at others. I was never bored, and there were multiple story lines within the main one. The ending was fantastic and left such big questions opened that a year is far too long to wait for the next installment. Enjoy!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
![[Start the discussion]](http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/x-locale/communities/discussion_boards/start-new-discussion-sec._V192250339_.gif){kind=small}
