Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Soul Defenders: Jaden by Carol Van Atta

Title:  Soul Defenders:  Jaden
Series:  Soul Defenders #2
Author:  Carol Van Atta
Published:  June 25/14 by Carol Van Atta
Length:  254pgs
Format:   ecopy
Genre:  paranormal
Shelf:  review
Rating:  ★★★★

Synopsis from Goodreads:

With the Black Orchid’s expelled from Cherry Creek, peace has been restored…but will it last?

That is the question on everyone’s mind when a mutilated horse shows up alongside a voodoo alter at the new Henderson Academy. The academy, an alternative high school constructed over the cult’s former underground compound, signifies a fresh start for the town and the troubled students accepted into its life-changing program.

Thrust into another spiritual battle, Ted and Karen Lyons travel to Haiti for their honeymoon and mission trip, leaving behind Pastor Jimmy and the Howard women to solve the school’s mysterious occurrences, never suspecting a diabolical connection between the distant locations, the Haitian Voodoo community, and two single-minded superpowers.

From a rural community in Oregon, to the convicts in Cell Block E, across the miles to Haiti’s Voodoo infested mountains, a new reign of evil has emerged, an evil that leaves Haitian children more traumatized than the earthquake of 2010. Their lives destroyed by the power of Jaden.

Will a handful of struggling believers find a way to thwart a worldwide crisis? Or will they succumb to their own fears, mistakes, and unbelief? If the demons in charge have their way, destruction is imminent for Cherry Creek’s waning warriors and the world’s human inhabitants.

This fast-paced tale of supernatural suspense will thrill fans of Frank Peretti's This Present Darkness and Randy Alcorn's Ford Foulgrin’s Letters.

Author’s Note: This is the second installment in the Soul Defender’s series. It can be read as a standalone, but you will gain added insight by reading book one first.

My Review:

This was a very gripping story. Van Atta draws from the previous story in the series and continues on a very exciting adventure. The beginning of the novel is a bit slow as she fills her readers in on all the new developments and introduces the new characters, but then it is off and running. I really appreciated the ‘larger than life’ quality to the tale. It really gives a feel that the story is larger than simply the characters on the page. There is more at stake than simply what meets the eye.

The religious notes & symbolism were very well done in this novel. Van Atta brings them to the forefront without actually preaching at her audience. Religion is part of who the characters are, it is a fact of the story not a lesson to be learned.

The variety of characters in this novel really draws you in. There is definitely a sense of dark vs. light in the characters, but it is the fields of grey that draw you to the characters. The fact that the bulk of the characters cannot be painted fully on either side of the fence allows the readers to identify with them. The fact that a large portion of the cast is important to the storyline was also very welcome. There are very few characters that do not play a major role in the story while they are present.

Overall, this was a very welcoming, approachable read. The smooth flow & easy dialogue make this a quick & enjoyable novel.

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1 comment:

  1. Author, Carol Van Atta's fictional series, Soul Defenders, is worth it's weight in gold. Book Two, Soul Defenders: Jaden, is OUT! Book Two, is even better! I wish every Paranormal Romance reader, would grab this one right away! Let me know how you liked it! Lisa B.

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