Customer Reviews

Servant: The Awakening

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

LL Foster, otherwise known as romance author Lori Foster has stretched her talents with this new gritty horror story. This is the first book in this series about twenty-one year old Gabby who has major issues. She is a loner, really from the moment she was born. She hates to be touched, has never been kissed and no parents or friends. She also curses up a storm, much like a truck driver. She rather not feel but she does, in the form of immense pain because she believes she is a servant from God to get rid of evil. She has a special ability that she can see auras around people and knows who is good and who is pure evil, in the form of demons. She must kill them or she will be in mind numbing pain until she does.
But Gabby's world falls off her axis when she comes in contact with Detective Luther Cross. There is something special about him that may come out in future books, but for the moment he is the only one that has gotten through Gabby's hard shell. He is attracted to this strange girl and is very much a trademark Foster hero. He wants to date Gabby and show her affection and intimacies that go on between me and women. (Well he is a man after all and he is very attracted to Gabby) Gabby has no clue about sex, but when Luther comes along, she begins to find interest which is the one lighthearted moment in this story.
There is a lot of violence, gore and helplessness that begins Gabby's tale. I found it to be an enjoyable fast read, but there are some small things about Gabby and her world that may irk some readers. But given time and with a little more skill on Foster's part, she may have a winner on her hands.
But if you are looking for a happy go lucky read, look else where because this promises to be harsh and unrelenting.
I am definitely intrigued about the character of Gabby and her journey to fight evil and perhaps find some happiness with Luther.

Katiebabs

Let me begin by saying that I enjoyed the book, but... I do agree that Gaby seemed at times to be less of a paladin and more of a psychopath. There is a fine line between "tortured" protagonist with whom we can empathize and lunatic with whom we cannot. It will be interesting to see how Luther rationalizes his romantic interest in a sometimes psychopath. As to the romance- there is not much to be found. This book really should not be shelved in the romance section. What little romance is present is reasonably well woven into the story. (Unlike some romance authors who, in an attempt to write less romance and more general fiction, toss in disjointed romance scenes and try to build relationships in the span of a page.) I do not feel there was enough depth to justify breaking the story into multiple volumes. (But then, this may have been the publisher's call.) That being said, I do plan to read the next installment. But, I sincerely hope to see the tortured heroine replace the psycho, more time spent developing the romance, and a little more to the plot than gore and standard bait-and-switch. [FYI: I only gave this 3 stars, but the site insists that I gave it 4.]

Gabrielle "Gaby" Cody has a calling, a calling that sends her out hunting the demonic beings that prey on others. Her life has been one of solitude ever since the cancerous death of her mentor, Father Mullond. A new menace is now drawing her, practically daring her to defeat it. But Gaby is reluctantly developing ties as she discovers she now has a friend in her landlord, Mort Vance, and a startling attraction to Detective Luther Cross. Will these new ties only serve to hamper Gaby or will she begin to trust in others about her divine calling?

SERVANT: THE AWAKENING is the first book in what is sure to be an electrifying series. L.L. Foster (aka Lori Foster) delves deeply into the dark side with this supernaturally charged tale. Gaby is a haunted and almost tragic figure, isolated and alone. She has a sharp bluntness that is appealing as she lacks the usual social skills. Her angst enhances the storyline as there is a real reason behind her feelings of dread. L.L. Foster does an exceptional job at character development as she makes Gaby likeable despite Gaby's determined efforts to be unlikable.

THE AWAKENING has a hint of romance brewing in it but is definitely an urban fantasy. Luther is attracted to Gaby despite all of his misgivings, while Gaby is reluctantly drawn towards the detective with a nose for trouble. Their personalities couldn't be any more different and yet, somehow, it all works. Don't mistake THE AWAKENING for a paranormal romance, however, as L.L. Foster takes readers into a haunting, shadowy world with this tale.

L.L. Foster brings a fresh perspective to the urban fantasy genre with THE AWAKENING. Despite the plethora of books available in the genre, THE AWAKENING has that extra bite that makes it stand out. L.L. Foster shows she has an edgy, dangerous side in this first, fascinating start to the series. One can easily envision a graphic novel accompanying this fantastic book, as it has that gritty feel to it. I can't wait to see where L.L. Foster takes this series!

COURTESY OF CK2S KWIPS AND KRITIQUES

Read this one overnight. Gaby (our heroine)is a psychotic vigilante of sorts, who is surprisingly naive about some of the facts of life. She follows what she perceives as her "God Given Directive" to root out and destroy true evil. She has lived a hard life and has been fortunate enough to encounter two individuals that truly care for her. Mort, her landlord, and Luther, a police detective, who becomes a friend (an maybe something more!). This book runs to the violent and gory (it fits in the story) but if that's not to your taste then you will not enjoy this book. I found it an original and riveting read.

I just finished the first book by L L Foster, better known as Lori Foster. This book is in totally different world than anything written by her before. This book is an urban fantasy at its best. It is a paranormal, but differs from the common paranormal books out there. Gaby Cody is a young woman with a calling to hunt evil and to destroy it. She can see dark auras of pure evil. Her mother died in childbirth. She never had a family, but just an old priest who helped guide her gift. But now he is dead. And she is alone. Luther Cross is a police detective who notices the lone waif living in a bad neighborhood. And when dismembered bodies start showing up is Gaby's wake. Luther is force to look into Gaby's life. Then evil take a notice of Gaby and Luther is faced with deciding to protect or arrest the woman he is fascinated with. I love this new series and now impatiently waiting for more,

For the most part, I agree with the review by "loonigrrl" who said the book was ok, but the main character was very unlikeable. I find this to be true with a lot of the so-called "Urban Fantasy" genre.

Is it that authors of "Urban Fantasy" feel they have to create unlikeable characters in order to make their story "dark" enough or "gritty" enough, or realistic enough? If so...why? Why can't I read a good, dark, gritty Urban Fantasy featuring a main character that's likeable?

I'm also wondering why the male counterparts to these "urban fantasy" girls...and let's face it...this was a GIRL, not a woman, no matter how many times Foster typed "woman" into the story...I don't get why their male counterparts have to be so much older....or why they have to be so much younger. I'm not a big fan of the huge age gaps in stories anyway...but really...I just couldn't see what this older guy saw in this really unlikeable girl. Unless it's one of those "I'm going to rescue her" situations which is a really unhealthy basis for a relationship.

The storyline was ok, which is why this got more than one star. But for me, in any story I read, I have to like the main character, or it just doesn't work for me no matter how good the overall storyline is. I disliked the main character a great deal here, so, this story really never got off the ground for me.

I don't plan on reading any of the sequels to this, and I'd have a very hard time recommending it to anyone except maybe adolescent goth girls.

L.L. Foster's Servant was definitely not what I was expecting. I'm a huge fan of the urban fantasy genre, but after reading her somewhat fluffier straight forward romances, I wasn't expecting something quite so dark. In fact, that's the quality that I would actually recommend most about this novel: Foster doesn't shy away from making this a disturbing and unsettling story.

Servant: The Awakening tells the story of Gaby, our heroine who can see beyond the normal human exteriors to the demons and the evil underneath. Gaby believes that she is sent from God and spends most of this book tracking down the evil emanating from a creepy hospital. Actually, I liked that I was never entirely sure if our heroine was the paladin from God that she claimed to be or a crazy woman suffering from her own servant of God fantasies. I know we're not really suppose to doubt her calling, but how can't you when she's comes across as rather psycho and we barely see her from anyone else's point of view?

Unfortunately, that also brings me to what I did not like about the book: Gaby. Her powers are cool, but her attitude? Not very enjoyable to read about. She pushes everyone away, and rudely too, with as many swear words as possible. She just wasn't very likable, and not liking the main character? That's a problem for me. I'm hoping we'll get to see more of her vulnerability in future books, because without it- there's just so much of her that I can take.

In fact, Mort, her super annoying landlord friend was also driving me crazy. He was constantly tagging after her, asking question after question. He always wanted to follow Gaby to make sure she wasn't going to get into trouble and all I could think was that he's a total liability and there's no way she should take him along. Unfortunately, she does.

Detective Luther Cross was easily my favorite character, but I couldn't understand why he was drawn to such an acerbic, rude, aggressive, and violent woman who was just as likely to beat him up as she was to talk to him. His character made a point of saying that she just didn't know any better, but that's not enough for me.

Overall, I would recommend Lori Foster's first venture into the urban fantasy genre. It's a little slow at times and the characters may be mostly unlikeable, but they and the story are certainly interesting. The series has potential, and when the sequel comes out, I'll be giving it another try.

A wonderful, fastpaced mystery adventure. What a great story. I loved it.
Gaby is a wonderful heroine. She can kick-butt with the best of them. She doesn't need to be rescued and, unlike most paranormal heroines, she isn't too stupid too live. Great job by the author. We finally have a heroine for the 21st Century.
But there is one small problem. Gaby believes that she is God's chosen Agent of Destruction. She is compelled to track down and kill the Demons that walk her city. Gaby might be nuts.
In the pursuit of her God given ? assignment, Gaby attracts the attention of Detective, Luther Cross.
Gaby must protect and continue her secret mission while dodging the inquisitive Luther Cross. There is also the unseen but suspected demonic Stalker who intends to remove Gaby from the Demon playing field.
This is a fascinating, well written adventure. Light on the lust but heavy on plot and characterizations.
Recommended.

I was excited to try Ms. Foster's new series, I thought the story line had such promise. However, the more I read the more disappointed I became. The main character doesnt just kill but slaughters people that "God tells her to." I'm not religious but I have a hard time believing that comes from anyone's God. I agree with a previous reviewer in that isn't that what all psychopaths believe? That they hear God or some higher power telling them to kill? and we're supposed to like this girl?
Also, and now I know I am being picky but the book describes Gaby as being 6 ft tall, plain and thin with no curves, doesn't wear a bra because she doesn't have any chest to speak of and who always wears big baggy clothes to hide the knife she carries - well the very first page shows us a picture of a pretty, busty girl in tight form fitting clothes. So, what is Ms. Foster really trying to tell us about her main character?
There are too many good books out there waiting to be read. I think I will pass on this series.

Ok, I absolutely love this author when she's writing as Lori Foster. She's written so many great novels. So why not try her other pen name, right? Uh, Wrong...

Now when I read the synopsis I was thinking, "wow, this seems pretty close in nature to the L.A. Banks books, so I should love it". And truthfully, the overall storyline is great. Paladin meets boy. Boy meets paladin, doesn't know she's a paladin. Insight into the paladin's mind, VERY creative take on the manifestation of evil, and God's plan of action... Great concept.

What ruined it all for me, is what ruined it for about 50% of this series' other readers. What is up with the Billion-Dollar Words? It's like Foster received an adult version of the Speak n' Spell for Christmas and played the plastic off of it. Her sometimes incorrect and always annoying usage of these excessive words turned me off so much that I was totally unable to enjoy the story. Of course, like I said. I have no problem with an author writing with brain power. I'm a thinker, myself. But her use of these words is so blatant, it seems as if she simply tried too hard. Like she felt she had to throw words of that caliber into her urban fantasy to make it more appealing to those who typically read this genre of books...That's right, I get what you were doing, Lori. Too bad it backfired. Some of the sentences just flatout didn't sound right. No other way to put it. Another teeny weeny annoyance that crawled under my skin was that throughout the book, I couldn't help but think, "OMG, she is such a freaking martyr...ugh". OK, we get it. The job makes you sick, it's a hardship, blah blah blah. Move on, demonfighter. You didn't see the witches in Charmed wining the way you do... In the end, I was almost able to get past Gabrielle's psychopathic tendencies and even her pointlessly crass vocabulary. I'm no choirgirl and I know it's an Urban fantasy, but sheesh... She's supposed to be an innocent and she talks like a sailor... Contradictive, much?

Bottomline, the words just make this story impossible to like. Under other circumstances, I would have been itching to find out what happens between Gabrielle and "Cop". But unfortunately, I wont be reading another member of the Servant series. If you're with me and you like the concept of this story, but hated it nontheless, you should read some of L.A. Banks' fantasy books. Lori, stick to the cute, original romances you write so well... Please. :(