Review of The Marked Son

Review of The Marked Son by Shea Berkley
Originally posted to The Book Faery Reviews 10/25/11:
http://tbfreviews.net/2011/10/25/the-marked-son-book-review/

      The Marked Son is the story of Dylan and Kera.  Both from two different worlds but magnetized to each other by unseen forces and destiny.  Dylan is your average recluse teenager, coping with a life that is less than stable.  His mother constantly moves them around the country, running from ex lovers without any real direction or reason.  Dylan has been adjusting as best he can to his neglectful mother and the constant moving when his mother unexpectedly dumps him into the laps off his grandparents, whom he has never met before, and abandons him there. 

Here in a farmhouse near the woods, he discovers that the woods are full of magic, a girl in white whom he has dreamt about since he was really young is actually very real.  Kera, a girl from another dimension is seeking help for her home of Teag, a land across a barrier wall that separates the two worlds.  When he follows her into this world, he discovers bloodthirsty creatures and a cold ruthless ruler named Navar who is bent on wiping out any half-blood beings, like Dylan.  Only him and Kera can save this world which nothing is what it seems and the would-be ruler Navar has set his sights on killing them both.

I enjoyed reading this story, the point of view starts by bouncing back and forth between the main characters Dylan and Kera.  It was a bit confusing at first, things took a while to be explained in the first half of the book, leaving me feeling a bit clueless and lost with all the world building on each side of the wall and vague backgrounds.  The second half of the book more than made up for it.  The point of view was laced together tight at this point and the story smoothed out to give you answers to the many questions that have built up to this point.  The town of Teag seems stuck in a sort of medieval time where men have more power and woman are betrothed to men.  They also have to wear big beautiful dresses and behave a certain way.  It seemed to clash with the modern world that Dylan lived in.  I do love his Grandparents, probably two of the most colorful characters in the story.  His grandmother especially seems to know a lot more of what is going on than she lets on.  His human friends Jason and Leo are great additions to the story but I would have liked to get into their heads a little more.  Overall the ending was amazing and kept me on the edge of my seat.  It left me wanting more and I definitely want to see where these characters will be going, see what kind of trouble they can get into in the future.  I highly recommend it and will be reading more by this author.
4 out of 5 stars!!!!

0 comments: