Book Title: A Plunder of Souls (The Thieftaker Chronicles #3)
Genre: Historical Urban Fantasy
Pages: 336
Audio Run Time: 12 hrs and 59 mins
Author: D. B. Jackson
Audio Run Time: 12 hrs and 59 mins
Author: D. B. Jackson
Date Published: 8 July 2014
Synopsis:
Boston, 1769: Ethan Kaille, a Boston thieftaker who uses his conjuring to catch criminals, has snared villains and defeated magic that would have daunted a lesser man. What starts out as a mysterious phenomenon that has local ministers confused becomes something far more serious.
A ruthless, extremely powerful conjurer seeks to wake the souls of the dead to wreak a terrible revenge on all who oppose him. Kaille’s minister friends have been helpless to stop crimes against their church. Graves have been desecrated in a bizarre, ritualistic way. Equally disturbing are reports of recently deceased citizens of Boston reappearing as grotesquely disfigured shades, seemingly having been disturbed from their eternal rest, and now frightening those who had been nearest to them in life. But most personally troubling to Kaille is a terrible waning of his ability to conjure. He knows all these are related...but how?
When Ethan discovers the source of this trouble, he realizes that his conjure powers and those of his friends will not be enough to stop a madman from becoming all-powerful. But somehow, using his wits, his powers, and every other resource he can muster, Ethan must thwart the monster’s terrible plan and restore the restless souls of the dead to the peace of the grave. Let the battle for souls begin in Plunder of Souls, the third, stand-alone novel in Jackson’s acclaimed Thieftaker series.
Boston, 1769: Ethan Kaille, a Boston thieftaker who uses his conjuring to catch criminals, has snared villains and defeated magic that would have daunted a lesser man. What starts out as a mysterious phenomenon that has local ministers confused becomes something far more serious.
A ruthless, extremely powerful conjurer seeks to wake the souls of the dead to wreak a terrible revenge on all who oppose him. Kaille’s minister friends have been helpless to stop crimes against their church. Graves have been desecrated in a bizarre, ritualistic way. Equally disturbing are reports of recently deceased citizens of Boston reappearing as grotesquely disfigured shades, seemingly having been disturbed from their eternal rest, and now frightening those who had been nearest to them in life. But most personally troubling to Kaille is a terrible waning of his ability to conjure. He knows all these are related...but how?
When Ethan discovers the source of this trouble, he realizes that his conjure powers and those of his friends will not be enough to stop a madman from becoming all-powerful. But somehow, using his wits, his powers, and every other resource he can muster, Ethan must thwart the monster’s terrible plan and restore the restless souls of the dead to the peace of the grave. Let the battle for souls begin in Plunder of Souls, the third, stand-alone novel in Jackson’s acclaimed Thieftaker series.
Review:
A Plunder of Souls by D.B. JacksonMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is the third book in a fantastic historical urban fantasy. I loved it!
Ethan Kaille is an interesting character. He is a Thieftaker, a conjurer who uses his magic to track down thieves and the stolen items. I liked this eighteenth century gent. He has a very sharp mind, and is quite talented as a magical detective. He has a dark past, which gives him an air of mystery.
I downloaded this as an audio book, so I could listen to it while doing housework, or just before going to bed.
The tale was again narrated by Jonathan Davis, who brought the characters and story alive with his narration. I love his smooth tone and could listen to him speak for hours!
In this story, Ethan is hired by the minister of the local church to investigate a case of grave robbing, but what he stumbles across is even more sinister than just a few missing trinkets. Ethan finds himself facing even more danger than ever before. He will have to unite with fellow Conjurers and even his nemesis, Sephira Pryce, to outwit a deadly foe.
The story has several twists and turns, which kept me hooked from beginning to end. The descriptions of the characters and scenes brought Boston in 1769 to life; I could picture it quite clearly. The book is set about a year after the previous story. There is still tension between Britain and her colony, but Boston is struggling to deal with an outbreak of smallpox on top of the highly volatile political situation. There is plenty of action and danger in the story, but unfortunately, some of the scenes seemed to be slightly overly long and tended to drag. I did like the scene where Ethan joins forces with the other conjurers, but some of the plot leading up to that point felt a bit weaker than it should have done. I did feel a little disappointed that the villain didn't really make an appearance until two-thirds or more into the book, and, when he did appear, he hid behind the captured "souls" he had plundered. This made him seem more cowardly, rather than sinister than he should have been. This, however, did not affect my overall enjoyment in this story. I am now looking forward to reading/listening to the next book in the series as soon as it becomes available.
D.B. Jackson has written a fantastic historical urban fantasy. I love his writing style, which is fast paced and action packed. But, the story flow was not as fluid as his previous books, and the plot had a few holes that were a bit ambiguous. However, I would most definitely read more of this author's books in the future as I am fast becoming a huge fan.
There are a few scenes of a sensual nature, though not explicit, and scenes of cutting (for spell making) that may upset some readers. Therefore, I do not recommend this book for younger readers or those of a nervous disposition. However, I highly recommend this book if you love paranormal, urban fantasy, mystery, thriller or detective genres. - Lynn Worton
View all my reviews
No comments:
Post a Comment