Saturday, January 29, 2011

Promise

Promise by Kristie Cook
Smashwords, 2010
264 pages
YA; Contemporary; Paranormal
Read for Ebook challenge
2/5 stars

Source: Free ebook

Summary from goodreads: "Alexis Ames decides to learn who she really is, with or without the help of her mother, who guards their secrets closely. After meeting Tristan Knight and discovering that he s not normal either, the secrets begin to unravel. Their union brings promise to the future of mankind. But it also incites a dangerous pursuit by the enemy. Because they are a match made in Heaven and in Hell."

I think the simplest way to sum this book up would be that it is very like Twilight which, coming from me, is not a compliment.  If you like Twilight, you would probably like this book.

However I thought there were too many points that reminded me negatively of Twilight:
  • Multiple descriptions of the incredible attractiveness of the guy and the comparative plainness of the girl
  • Guy far older than girl; he looks between 19 and 24 despite being born in the 1700s
  • Girl's attainment of powers will render her very powerful but until then, she's pretty vulnerable
  • Girl unaware of most of the mythology and thus reader is also unaware
  • Long lead-up to the action-filled parts
  • Youthful marriage and strenuous honeymoon 
  • Repetition of certain words, in particular "promise"
I started off intrigued but once she meet Tristan, I thought the book went way downhill quickly.  I think these kinds of books are not to my taste; I prefer straightforward contemporaries without the paranormal aspect in general.

Cover: I like the purple of the flower but not the cover as a whole.

4 comments:

  1. I don't like Twilight, so...not for me.:) The points you enumerated really are Twilight-like.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Lol, nice review, and I think I will stay away from this one since Twilight and me *coughs* not so perfect

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks for honest review. I loved twilight, so this prb will be for me. I have Purpose but need to read promise first.
    Where did you find it free??

    Brandi from Blkosiner’s Book Blog

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  4. Thank you for reading and reviewing, even if you didn't like it. It's the first time I've had such a negative review as it relates to Twilight. The couple times there have been any kind of comparison, it's always been, "Better than Twilight!" "Stephenie Myer has nothing on Kristie Cook..." etc.

    The thing is, Twilight is not the first paranormal romance with everything that you point out. Comparing every paranormal romance to Twilight is giving Myers way too much credit, even when you don't intend to. A well-read reader will know that these characteristics - supernatural hero(ine) matched with plain human who may or may not come into powers, characters who are centuries or even millenia old, fighting for their love, etc. - are typical of the genre. To say that it's too much like Twilight is saying Twilight birthed paranormal romance and believe me, this genre has been around longer than most living authors today.

    If these are your faults with the book, then I think you hit the nail on the head: it's not your genre. We all have different tastes and paranormal/fantasy isn't for everybody. I think it's great that you've given it a try, though, because it's always good to break out and try something new. Best wishes with your reading and your blog!

    P.S. The word "promise" makes up .0000004% of the 94,000+ words, including the cover page, copyright and other front and back matter.

    ReplyDelete

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