Review: I’m a lover of history and literature from by-gone days. The brevity and simplicity of sentence and story structure which have evolved just as has the English language and societies in general, and especially the electronic formats for reading a novel, isn’t my favorite style. Certainly convenient, but in some ways, I feel some writers have changed their writing to suit these devices instead of making as well-rounded a work as possible. Many seemed to be geared for quickly scanning with the eyes, and even punctuation changed to facilitate the process.
Honestly, I like to read and savor text. I like to go back and even speak aloud particularly well constructed sentences, and from the first this was the quality I enjoyed about “Lilith’s Tears.” The author wasn’t simply telling a story. He created, constructed and described a panorama of complex characters, actions and locations, which were carefully directed to evolve in a manner reminding me of past masters of fiction. Despite dark fantasy themes within the story, very definitely, David Jones’s specialization in Renaissance and eighteenth century Literature brilliantly shown through his words for a memorable work that could be considered a kind of modern horror but also felt like the classic gothic historicals I so loved to read.
I did feel creating more paragraphs, not having such lengthy passages, and editing out some of the descriptions could better have served the text. They were vivid but after you learned the setting, some weren’t necessarily needed anymore, as the character was fully grounded in his environment. But if anything that requires the reader to settle back and more fully immerse themselves in events. Speaking of which, the pace was good overall, with plenty of action that leads to a chilling climax as all threads were woven neatly together, until you’re floored by the ending. “Lilith’s Tears” is a great debut in an almost Edgar Rice Burroughs style, and I’d be very interested in other works by this talented author.
Description: “Wrecked on an unchartered island, his ship and crew lost in a storm, Captain Trebane struggles to survive amongst the island’s deadly community of immortals. Beset by the peculiar, dark magic that pervades the jungle, and the curse which has driven its inhabitants to savagery, Trebane discovers that, beneath the island’s tropical beauty, lurks the shadow of an age old evil.
Battling to rescue the woman he loves from the cathedral at the island’s heart, he encounters the reclusive skeleton leader of the savages, along with the island’s other strange inhabitants. As Trebane explores, he learns more of the island’s curse, its connections with the Garden of Eden, its history, and the inexorable fate which tugs upon the lives of all its sinister occupants. Severed from the rest of the world, his quest culminates in a battle which will change the lives of the characters forever, and echo through all of time.
Lilith’s Tears will immerse readers in the mystical world of the island. Magic and darkness pervade the landmass, with its fabled immortality and the curse that has condemned countless generations to languish there. Adventure, mystery, romance and legend – Lilith’s Tears will both amaze and enchant.”
“This is a strange and violent place.”
Available in print and ebook at Amazon.
Source: Author
About the Author:
David Jones was born in 1989 in Liverpool, which is still his home. He studied English language and Literature at the University of Liverpool before specializing in Renaissance and Eighteenth Century Literature. He started writing at an early age, and has won numerous prizes for both poetry and prose, as well as writing plays for the radio and producing short films. His chief interests apart from writing are Renaissance texts, performing and producing music, and playing sports.
Website: http://www.storydj.com
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