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The God Eaters by Jessie Hajicek
Apr. 9th, 2010 05:51 pmBook Review: The God Eaters by Jessie Hajicek
I'm a little torn on this book review--and it is a review, and not entirely a recommendation, I'm afraid. This novel started off brilliantly, just fantastically. The characters were well-developed, there was an interesting premise, it is chock full with tension and violence and some of the best prison descriptions I've ever read. In fact, I might rec this novel just because of the supremely wonderful writing about prison life in the first, oh, third of the book. That part was very interesting and believable, especially with Kieran's special talent and the way the White Watch (cool name, huh?) tortures both him and Ash and anyone with a Talent...just very, very well written.
And then they escape. And the whole novel just seemed to slowly go downhill.
Descriptions of Kieran and Ash and their relationship start to become a little old after their escape (ooh, look, here's tall, dark, sexy Kieran and pathetic girl!Ash), and never really improve. Hajicek doesn't refer back to the actual God Eating as much as I wanted, and there is way too much angsting on Ash's part that became pretty stale by the end. I hated the scene with the priest and the little girl, innocents who basically risk their lives and sanity to help two outlaws, one of whom is severely injured. The girl was a little too prescient for someone her age, and our outlaws were way too cocky and just downright ungrateful, I thought, insulting the priest constantly even as he helped them. And then our outlaws just leave one night for no reason and never return. WTF was the point of that?
I wanted more violence, more tension, more cool universe-building stuff after the prison escape to match how hot and fantastic it was before the escape, and I just never got it. I was almost bored by the end. Ash does develop a little over the course of the book, but overall he is still way too feminine (and frankly, a little pathetic) for me to really enjoy reading. It's still a very interesting book, and quite good, but if Hajicek has the capability to start off on such a great note, he should have maintained that pressure throughout the novel.
I'm a little torn on this book review--and it is a review, and not entirely a recommendation, I'm afraid. This novel started off brilliantly, just fantastically. The characters were well-developed, there was an interesting premise, it is chock full with tension and violence and some of the best prison descriptions I've ever read. In fact, I might rec this novel just because of the supremely wonderful writing about prison life in the first, oh, third of the book. That part was very interesting and believable, especially with Kieran's special talent and the way the White Watch (cool name, huh?) tortures both him and Ash and anyone with a Talent...just very, very well written.
And then they escape. And the whole novel just seemed to slowly go downhill.
Descriptions of Kieran and Ash and their relationship start to become a little old after their escape (ooh, look, here's tall, dark, sexy Kieran and pathetic girl!Ash), and never really improve. Hajicek doesn't refer back to the actual God Eating as much as I wanted, and there is way too much angsting on Ash's part that became pretty stale by the end. I hated the scene with the priest and the little girl, innocents who basically risk their lives and sanity to help two outlaws, one of whom is severely injured. The girl was a little too prescient for someone her age, and our outlaws were way too cocky and just downright ungrateful, I thought, insulting the priest constantly even as he helped them. And then our outlaws just leave one night for no reason and never return. WTF was the point of that?
I wanted more violence, more tension, more cool universe-building stuff after the prison escape to match how hot and fantastic it was before the escape, and I just never got it. I was almost bored by the end. Ash does develop a little over the course of the book, but overall he is still way too feminine (and frankly, a little pathetic) for me to really enjoy reading. It's still a very interesting book, and quite good, but if Hajicek has the capability to start off on such a great note, he should have maintained that pressure throughout the novel.
