"Let me preface this review by stating a few things.
One; I was given this book in trade for my own and a fair and honest review.
Two, three and four; this novel, I must say, is not my typical fare.
It is a period piece, historical fiction/dark fantasy.
It is a diary-reading in the first person for the most part.
I don't normally delve into historical fiction, nor am I much into wolves, witches, vampires and the like that oft accompany the dark fantasy genre. And I don't normally read first person narratives like this.
However, I did make it through this reading with a strange vague sense/feeling of enlightenment in its wake.
That being said, I will say, as a sort of diary-reading, it moved about as you would expect a period piece to move. Slow, but in an eloquent way, enough so as to keep even me (one with an aversion to this sort of story), reading to the end.
Being a period piece, something like 16th century England, its pacing and style was in fact the dry/proper affair you expect in period pieces.
So if you like period work...you'll enjoy it for that alone.
However, NONE of this is meant to be a detractor...even for my tastes. It is written to reflect that sense of historical feeling, and the feeling of a diary, so it very much did its job and hit that mark. It takes a steady control to maintain a style from start to finish, and it is clear that the style is deliberate and paced. But more importantly, as I expected of Pauline's work, knowing her as a person a little bit, I am happy to tell you this story pulled no punches. It dutifully marched to its end without compromises. She unabashedly wrote it through and sugar coated nothing. For that I applaud it. If it hadn't been for that, the facts surrounding its genre and subject matter and style would have kept me from reading it simply because its not my type of normal fare.
Yes, closed-minded of me to be that way...but i have a harder time with immersing myself in stories that aren't where I normally tread.
The story of Katherine deRion, is told to us by her diary, which is being read by a young descendant of hers, but this first book has very little to do with a little girl who is reading to pass the time of her current sick-day illness. She starts the tale, has a brief intermission sort of moment, and finishes the book with momentary speculation on what she'd just read with a little nod to an old fantasy movie we've all seen countless times that also follows this sort of reader-reading as a reader reads the story to us mechanism. So, really, this book is Katherine deRion's just as it promises in the title.
And what a story she lived...and might still live.
I do recommend you read it. You'll never understand what it truly is if you don't. If you like period pieces, or dark fantasy alike, high noble aristocracy society in olde England, and/or coming of age female stories, you will enjoy it. Just because its not my thing normally, does not mean it is not a good book, nor that I had trouble reading this one. Quite the opposite really. I held me through to the end. And in the end, that's really the best of notes to make about any book of any style in any genre.
Mission accomplished...I'd say.
The only cons I can really remark upon are the grammatical errors. Though, this in itself isn't that big of a deal. Some grammar-nazi types might flip a lid, and have to fight their way through the errs, and whine and complain,...just as they might with much of ANY Indie work...because not all indies can afford a blasted editor, which I must also remark is unfair to our works as indies...because a great editor can go a long, long ways, and unfortunate as it is, many Indies have to suffer because their work doesn't get the same attention as the big house-owned authors.
All in all though, the editorial errors in grammar are mostly confined to occasional word-use errors, and sentence structures...and they aren't as bad as many indie works out there can get. It is clear this story has been worked and reworked editorially to get that grammar under leash, so the effort shows; though sometimes to the detriment of the grammatical correction that seemed to be in mind. There were just a few bad habits repeated occasionally from one end to the other, sentences that looked as if they had started to be edited, and in the correction, the error was not removed. (Like changing the way something was going to be said, but forgetting to erase the original mistake at the other end of the sentence.) Simple problems we all have...and EASILY overlooked if you're following it for the story, not for the grammar. So read it...for the story...and don't be such a stickler. You'll be glad you did.
**** out of *****
I give it a healthy 4 out of 5 stars despite all that it had going against it before even jumping in... (for a reader like me)
As I said, those are my personal hangups...but should in no way deter you.
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