For October's book club, we read Geist (Book of the Order, #1) by Philippa Ballantine. Here's what I thought!
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Geist was high fantasy and paranormal rolled into one and I personally haven't come across that combination often, if at all. It was simultaneously awesome but also kind of rough in the beginning to get my bearings. We're thrown into a world where the Order of the Deacons protect the kingdom against geists which can possess humans (think Exorcist) but can also manifest corporeally. If it sounds like a lot to take in, it is. There are different types of deacons and different kinds of geists but what's clear is that the author has created a unique, vast world I wanted to learn more of.
The most powerful deacon in the Order is Sorcha and she finds herself saddled with a new partner Merrick, a novice Deacon. Together they've been sent to an isolated village aide their fellow brethren against violent geist activity. And not that this should surprise anyone, but nothing is as it seems. There's political intrigue, magic and deceit. Once the book found its stride (aka I got most of the details straightened out), I was hooked. While Sorcha is your typical badass fantasy heroine, she's also multi-faceted. She struggles between what she's been taught and what she sees on the mission. Then she struggles even further when she and her partner meet Raed Rossin, a man considered to be a Pretender to the throne and the bearer of a terrible curse. Her training tells her to hate him but their chemistry says otherwise. (Ship alert!)
Overall, I was impressed with the first book in the series and I'm definitely planning to continue it.
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| Geist (Book of the Order #1) by Philippa Ballantine pub 9/29/10 by Ace Adult - Fantasy |
The most powerful deacon in the Order is Sorcha and she finds herself saddled with a new partner Merrick, a novice Deacon. Together they've been sent to an isolated village aide their fellow brethren against violent geist activity. And not that this should surprise anyone, but nothing is as it seems. There's political intrigue, magic and deceit. Once the book found its stride (aka I got most of the details straightened out), I was hooked. While Sorcha is your typical badass fantasy heroine, she's also multi-faceted. She struggles between what she's been taught and what she sees on the mission. Then she struggles even further when she and her partner meet Raed Rossin, a man considered to be a Pretender to the throne and the bearer of a terrible curse. Her training tells her to hate him but their chemistry says otherwise. (Ship alert!)
Overall, I was impressed with the first book in the series and I'm definitely planning to continue it.
Book Club Questions
For every series we read, we'll be answering the same three questions at the end of our mini-reviews.Favorite book | Since I've only read one, the answer is Geist.
Favorite character | Sorcha, followed closely by Raed.
Would you read more from this author? | Yes! I already have the second book out from the library.
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For those of you who read the series with us,
what did you think?
Also, make sure to check out Alexa's thoughts on the series!
Raed is actually my favorite, which I'm pretty sure will not surprise you ;) But I seriously am curious to see how the series continues!
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