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A review by eloiseinparis
Forsaken by Jacquelyn Frank
2.0
I am a huge fan of the Nightwalker series. I didn’t like the Shadowdwellers series, but I read them all anyway. And now I here I am in the World of the Nightwalkers. I can say that I do not like this series either, or to clarify I do not like the Bodywalkers. They should be called Body Snatchers because that is really what they are. This being the first time the “good guy” faction hasn’t completely suppressed their host’s soul is not endearing to me. Basically they are just a bunch of ancient Egyptians trolling for hot people who are about to die. They offer a deal, but having to be possessed for a couple of centuries doesn’t really seem like a win, especially since they fail to mention the whole you’ll be integrated, pushed back, or basically eliminated by your new Soul buddy. Which means you’ll no longer be yourself anyway, and you may end up as good as dead anyway. Another issue I have is that while the hosts die, the Bodywalker will go on. They are immortal in the truest sense, they can not be killed, at all. Sure if their host gets killed they have to chill out in limbo for a hundred years, but so what. For a group of beings that counts their existence by eons this shouldn’t be a major issue. Especially since they retain they’re memories and their sense of self. They don’t live under a threat of death, they live under a threat of a time out. This lowers the stakes of the story, to much. Also I don’t get the point of the Bodywalker Civil War. What is the endgame? One side win’s and then what? No rule is permanent, after all the host bodies die they have to start all over in a hundred years anyway. It seems more like a source of entertainment for people who live way to long.
I’m glad this book started stepping away from the Bodywalkers and introduced us to the Night Angels. I wish more time had been spent with them, and that we learned more about their culture. But that can be explored in future books. I was also happy that we got to learn a bit about the Djinn, although their rules are seriously convoluted (so wacked out that I wouldn’t care if Frank tossed out everything Grey said and rewrote the rules in a future book, in fact I hope she does). Faith was an okay heroine, but there was nothing outstanding about her. She was a prop. I really did get what she did that made Leo change his mind about Nightwalkers. She didn’t really do anything to help him, and even though she was there to aid him in his quest to save Leo she and all Night Angels aren’t selfless there is a reason why they do what they do. I also did get why she fell for Leo. He hates her kind, he constantly said it. He did nothing to woo her. She is a few centuries old and she falls for the broken bigot? Ok.
The same goes for Leo. He hates Nightwalkers. Aside from what the Djinn did to him and Faith temporarily there was nothing that lead to him getting over his hatred and falling for Faith. In fact I didn’t get why he was still living with the Bodywalkers at all. He was physically healed, and they were completely disrespectful to him. The fact that they brought Kamen to live at the compound and expected him to just get over it was so disrespectful. The man had been horribly tortured, he was supposed to still be like a brother to Jackson and Docia, yet there was a severe lack of sympathy for him.
The next book follows a Gargoyle (and indentured servant of the Bodywalkers, and another reason they aren’t really the “good guys”) so I may read it. But my hopes of enjoying it aren’t high. There was still so much left in the Nightwalker series, I hope she returns to writing those books soon.
I’m glad this book started stepping away from the Bodywalkers and introduced us to the Night Angels. I wish more time had been spent with them, and that we learned more about their culture. But that can be explored in future books. I was also happy that we got to learn a bit about the Djinn, although their rules are seriously convoluted (so wacked out that I wouldn’t care if Frank tossed out everything Grey said and rewrote the rules in a future book, in fact I hope she does). Faith was an okay heroine, but there was nothing outstanding about her. She was a prop. I really did get what she did that made Leo change his mind about Nightwalkers. She didn’t really do anything to help him, and even though she was there to aid him in his quest to save Leo she and all Night Angels aren’t selfless there is a reason why they do what they do. I also did get why she fell for Leo. He hates her kind, he constantly said it. He did nothing to woo her. She is a few centuries old and she falls for the broken bigot? Ok.
The same goes for Leo. He hates Nightwalkers. Aside from what the Djinn did to him and Faith temporarily there was nothing that lead to him getting over his hatred and falling for Faith. In fact I didn’t get why he was still living with the Bodywalkers at all. He was physically healed, and they were completely disrespectful to him. The fact that they brought Kamen to live at the compound and expected him to just get over it was so disrespectful. The man had been horribly tortured, he was supposed to still be like a brother to Jackson and Docia, yet there was a severe lack of sympathy for him.
The next book follows a Gargoyle (and indentured servant of the Bodywalkers, and another reason they aren’t really the “good guys”) so I may read it. But my hopes of enjoying it aren’t high. There was still so much left in the Nightwalker series, I hope she returns to writing those books soon.