I was granted complimentary access to Takakush to review in conjunction with multiple blog tours I participated in during the spring of 2021, and I would like to thank everyone involved in granting me this opportunity! This review is being posted in accordance with my review deadline for Lola’s Blog Tours, but I would also like to acknowledge that Bewitching Book Tours sent an e-copy my way as well. My thoughts are my own and my review is honest.
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About the Book
Takakush
Genus Magica Book One
by Raine Reiter
Published 28 December 2020
Twanoh Press
Cover Artist: Kim Dingwall
Genre: Dark Fantasy
Page Count: 284
Add it to your Goodreads TBR!
Evil stalks the rainforest.
When Professor Elena Lukas returns to her cozy Pacific Northwest hometown with a broken heart, she’s plunged back into the fate she tried to escape. Like her mother and grandmother before her, Elena must now dedicate her life to a powerful ancient Lithuanian goddess. Although she is prepared to live as a priestess hiding in a contemporary tourist town, she arrives to find that a series of so-called animal attacks have terrorized her forest.
With the help of a handsome detective from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Elena uses her expertise in invasive and endangered species to identify that these are no normal animal attacks. The woods are stalked by a dark, mystical creature bent on ravaging the area in an attempt to quell its insatiable hunger. When her little sister goes missing, Elena realizes that the beast can only be vanquished if she is brave enough to face it in-person, embrace her identity as a high priestess, and expose her powers to the man she is growing feelings for.“A fantastic tale that weaves a spell of ancient mysticism and modern charm.” –Tim Marquitz, Author of the Demon Squad series, The Enemy of My Enemy series, and more
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My Review
My Rating: 4 Stars
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I accepted multiple tour spots and a review deadline for this book because the cover is stunning and I love a paranormal story born of mythology. With that said, this didn’t end up being the book I thought it would be. Around the time I accepted the review deadline I had just read Ashley Poston’s A Beast Among the Briars, and I was somehow expecting something with more of that feel, but focused on the bear. That’s not at all what this book is, but it was great anyway.
A bear-like, possibly mutant creature is terrorizing and killing people left, right and centre, and one family seems to know what’s going on. What will happen when one of their own is taken? This is a story of old gods taking revenge in the modern world in a grotesque way, and it is not for the faint of heart. I would very much classify this as dark fantasy, with an emphasis on dark. If that’s your thing, read on! This book is full of magical nightmare fuel.
The reason this one isn’t a five star for me is the that the multiple POVs felt a little muddled at times, and the way certain related characters addressed each other didn’t feel natural. It felt like language barriers were being hinted with certain characters’ dialogue no matter who they were talking to, and while some of the younger characters don’t have a strong grasp on their ancestral language and do struggle to understand their elders at times, the affectionate terms they use for each other would be familiar and commonplace. Having them address each other by relational titles in English rather than using names or affectionate terms in any language just felt clunky.
If you like dark fantasy and European mythology, read this book!
About the Author
Raine Reiter weaves together an empowered, female-centered narrative with rich descriptions of nature and an ever-present sense of mystery. Her vivid, flowing prose takes readers of dark fantasy into a world that looks and feels real, while still evoking the enticing paranormal creativity shared by authors such as Richelle Mead and Kat Richardson.
A fifth-generation Washingtonian, Raine lives in the gloomy Pacific Northwest and prowls the rainforest with her silly spaniel, Luke.
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