The Awakening

The blurb on the back cover proclaims:

"One of the most intriguing heroines since J.D. Robb's early Eve Dallas books." —Elizabeth Lowell

Myself a fan of the Eve Dallas books, I can tell you for sure: Nope, this is wrong. For one thing, Dallas is written as a believable character with such novel character elements as background history and a driving personality. And was given a place in an interesting plot set within a fabulously-built storyworld... a storyworld that, you know, had rules and made logical sense and didn't contradict itself. But I digress.

Gaby Cody, on the other hand, is written as Eve Dallas-lite as done by Laurell K. Hamilton for the niche purposes of teen-aged literature. Presumably as away to appeal to the Buffy-fan show more demographic? Except Buffy was a really smart and interesting show? And that doesn't take into account that a lot of young-adult work is really good.

I do not know or, frankly, care. Neither this series nor this author is recommended. show less

This was some pretty standard urban fantasy with a dash of romance. You've got a demon hunter guided by God, a righteous cop, and a bumbling but lovable sidekick. Lots of ass-kicking. Lots of menace. Lots of cursing. Nothing too special, but fun for those who enjoy this kind of thing. My big complaint, though, is the overuse of two dollar words. Don't get me wrong. I live for good vocabulary! A perfectly selected word can make my day. But this went too far. "Crepuscule." "Tenebrous." "Nictitating." Those are the words I found in the four pages I just read through. Four pages! It's all too much.

Still, I may well finish out the trilogy. It's a fast read with plenty of action, and I'm curious. Plus, you never know what crazy word I'll come show more across next. show less

Gaby Cody is a Paladin. The only problem is she is a Paladin now. Raised in foster homes and then taken in by a kindly priest who recognized her for what she is, Gaby has had an unsusual upbringing. She is a combination of warrior and innocent. Det Luther Cross is intrigued by Gaby who doesn't want him to get to close because she is sure he won't believe that the people she has killed are really demons in disguise and that she is working under God's commands. Follow Gaby in her adventure with her landlord/friend Mort, who knows what she is, as they try to stay one step ahead of Det Cross while fighting the evil that crawls through the city.

This book launches a new series for L.L. Foster, also known as Lori Foster, romance writer. I was quite intrigued when buying the book, but I found the reality to have fallen short of the expectations. I had not read any of her books, but I recognized her name and was hopeful. Though I can't give any concrete criticisms, I'm sorry to report that this book failed to pull me in. Perhaps it was the protagonist, Gabrielle Cody, that I didn't care for. An orphan able to see the demons walking among us, Gaby is God's warrior against evil. Part ingenue, part Amazon, Gaby is a mass of contradictions that drives Detective Luther Cross crazy with frustrated desire. To me, though, she's mostly a ragamuffin with an attitude. And I like attitude, show more don't get me wrong, but something was lacking from this story, something that will keep me from picking up the sequel, Servant: the Acceptance (released this September). In the end, all I've really got to say is, "meh." show less

I've read this book sometime ago so this review is retrospective. This book was recommended to me by a Facebook friend and so I went and bought it. After I've read it, I told my Facebook friend that I would not read any of his recommendations ever again. He then told me that LL Foster is his sister!! Of course I backpedalled furiously! I told Artie that the story telling quality was superb. Which it was! The story telling quality is a 5 out of 5. I must have said something sufficiently pacifying because he is still talking to me. If you plan on getting me a Christmas gift, buy me a duct tape for my mouth please. The reason I gave this book a one out of five is that this book has a cliffhanger ending. I don't like cliffhanger endings! show more This was the first and the last LL Foster aka Lori Foster book I've read and avoided LFoster since then. show less

Got this in the cheap section at Wal-Mart, having spent way too much on books lately.I was suprised how much I liked this book....it wasn't outstanding, but for a light (in a twisted way), supernatural read, it was definitely good.I'll read the next one anyway.

Couldn't bring myself to finish this one as I completely hated the protagonist, Gaby. Because of this, I couldn't see why Luther was in any way attracted to her. I can't enjoy a book if I hate the main character. Disappointing. I was hoping for something better from "L.L. Foster." Note to Writers: You CAN write a dark, gritty urban fantasy without making the characters unlikeable to everyone but adolescent goths.