Hello! Sorry for the radio silence of late. Between the day job, writing, promoting, getting things sorted out to go on vacation and reading, I haven’t had a chance to check in as often as I would like. Several posts ago, I reblogged an interview given by Courtney Wells, founder of Fringe Fiction – a Goodreads group dedicated to books published by indie and small press authors. As a member of the group, I have met some really amazing people and have found some of the “hidden gems and diamonds-in-the-rough” the group is devoted to. As I was writing a book review a few nights ago, I thought to myself that it would be great to share those books with you.

A little note before I kick off my adventures in book reviewing – keep your eyes open for some new posts in the next few days. I’m going on vacation to my favorite place on the planet (a small town in Spain where my grandfather is from) and I hope to be able to share a few pictures with y’all when I do (*crossing my fingers that the wifi connection will work*). And now, without further ado…

Rokula (The Rokula Saga, Book 1)
Written by Sarah Roberts and Robert Gartner
4 out of 5 Stars

Sarah Roberts and Robert Gartner’s “Rokula” is a modern fantasy set in a world thirty years after the discovery of monster-kind. Subjugated by the Coven and treated like third-class citizens, monsters struggle to survive in a world where technology and force of numbers has given mankind the upper hand. The story’s reluctant hero, Drake “Roky” Rokmonov, a vampire and once proud warrior General in centuries past, now dances for the masses in the arena at the Coven’s behest. Aloof, proud, but resigned to his circumstances, Drake fights as the Coven’s pet champion to survive, until a storm that’s been brewing for decades breaks and he suddenly finds himself the unlikely hope of all monster-kind.

“Rokula” is an original and entertaining monster mash-up, with a great spin on familiar horror characters and a solid storyline. The writing was well executed, the plot creative and complex (just the way I like it), and the characters well developed. The beginning of the story felt a little choppy to me because of the constant alternating between narrators, but that’s of course just a matter of personal preference; the switching back and forth made it a little difficult for me to really get a good feel for the main characters until I was almost in the middle of the book. I definitely think the beginning would benefit from a little clean up, so that the rhythm/transitions feel a little smoother. That said, “Rokula” was a really entertaining read, with a cast of characters I won’t soon forget (Drake, of course, was fantastic, but I have a soft-spot for Hyde, Merl and Lucy). And I’m happy to say that I won’t look at a kaleidoscope quite the same way again (it’s always a beautiful thing when a story changes the way we see common place things).

You can try a free sample of Rokula on Amazon