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The Morrelini Chronicles #1
The Raised
Adam O'Brien closed his eyes to go to sleep. When he woke four days later his world was gone. He was alone. His parents had disappeared. The gaping wound on his head and the scratches on his arms were the only testimony to a tragic horror.
Waking in a room of luxury that seemed familiar he was greeted by Nicolas, a friendly stranger, who provided him a haven to rest and recuperate. It was not long before Adam realized something was very wrong and all that was held true was a lie. An unnatural presence lurked in the shadows, a force as strong as the devil.
As Nicolas slowly offers Adam the answers he desperately seeks and reveals an unspeakable crime, Adam comes to understand that he is connected to a family cursed for thousands of years, born to bear a burden even they don't understand.
The Raised begins the epic saga of the Morrelini family. Endowed with spectacular wealth and influence the Morrelinis arrive in post Civil War America and unleash a horror they cannot control. Spanning centuries The Raised is a story of revenge, betrayal and the supernatural. In their world of secrets there are some who are determined to make sure the truth stays dead.
Waking in a room of luxury that seemed familiar he was greeted by Nicolas, a friendly stranger, who provided him a haven to rest and recuperate. It was not long before Adam realized something was very wrong and all that was held true was a lie. An unnatural presence lurked in the shadows, a force as strong as the devil.
As Nicolas slowly offers Adam the answers he desperately seeks and reveals an unspeakable crime, Adam comes to understand that he is connected to a family cursed for thousands of years, born to bear a burden even they don't understand.
The Raised begins the epic saga of the Morrelini family. Endowed with spectacular wealth and influence the Morrelinis arrive in post Civil War America and unleash a horror they cannot control. Spanning centuries The Raised is a story of revenge, betrayal and the supernatural. In their world of secrets there are some who are determined to make sure the truth stays dead.
- GenresParanormalM M Romance
354 pages, Paperback
First published October 4, 2011
47 people want to read
About the author
Allen Renfro
15 books49 followersAllen Renfro is a native of Tennessee and a graduate of Tusculum College. A published poet and artist in the zine culture of the 1990s he considers himself a "fringe" artist who unabashedly tackles controversial subjects. An admitted history buff, horror movie watcher and reader of fiction, he is the author of twelve novels.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 1, 2012
The Raised by Allen Renfro is one hell of a book. I really struggled with it at first. I struggled to figure out: Who was narrating? Where and when was it set? What was all the tension? Why did I feel so damn itchy and uncomfortable when I read it?
I picked the book up, read for a bit, put it down in.....frustration I suppose. There were so many questions presented in the first few pages. So many threads. Then Renfro started weaving a truly fantastic tale from the seemingly random elements. Essentially, Allen makes a clean and flawless tapestry of a novel from those scraggy threads.
I suppose that with the last few busy years of being a new father spent squeezing in and reading unchallenging escapist type novels I'd grown used to formulaic, easy to read, spoon fed, unimaginative and derivative stories. Allen Renfro's novel is none of these things. Allen unfolds a wonderfully textured story with all the skill and confidence of a seasoned novelist in the mould of Anne Rice. It seems effortless to the man.
In The Raised we are introduced to one of the most truly fucked-up families in fiction who lie, manipulate, murder and abuse each other throughout the book. The story is told over years and through the viewpoint of several central characters, each impressing their own reactions to and interpretation of shared events. Depsite viewing this converging story from different characters' POV and from different points in time, the story is never repetitive. Quite a feat when using this sort of mechanism.
Allen is a word-artist. He paints vivd and beautiful scenes with letters splashed on the page with seeming ease, but also with intent and precision. Whilst he describes scenes, settings, rooms and people with great accuracy and feeling, he never labours the point. Some writers have you skipping long monologues when trying to be descriptive. Renfro has such skill (the bastard) that he simply transports you right there to stand shoulder to shoulder with his protagonists.
The real strength that Allen Renfro possesses is in his understanding of and empathy with people and in his ability to convey these complex emotions to the reader. He deals with many complex relationships between his characters with ease, gradually making us hate/love/fear/pity these very real-feeling people. Allen has immense insight into the inner workings of what makes himans tick and an understanding of peoples' emotions that only someone who had suffered, loved, or lost in some way would be able to identify and concey in the manner he does. In an age of two-dimensional characters littered throughout the literary, and movie media, Allen gives us properly human characters. Ones with many conflicting sides to them, who aren't perfect, pouting demigods but truly flawed.
This type of book is really not in my usual genre, but on this occaission I was deeply relieved to take the detour and discover that an obviously lovely man is also such a gifted writer.
I picked the book up, read for a bit, put it down in.....frustration I suppose. There were so many questions presented in the first few pages. So many threads. Then Renfro started weaving a truly fantastic tale from the seemingly random elements. Essentially, Allen makes a clean and flawless tapestry of a novel from those scraggy threads.
I suppose that with the last few busy years of being a new father spent squeezing in and reading unchallenging escapist type novels I'd grown used to formulaic, easy to read, spoon fed, unimaginative and derivative stories. Allen Renfro's novel is none of these things. Allen unfolds a wonderfully textured story with all the skill and confidence of a seasoned novelist in the mould of Anne Rice. It seems effortless to the man.
In The Raised we are introduced to one of the most truly fucked-up families in fiction who lie, manipulate, murder and abuse each other throughout the book. The story is told over years and through the viewpoint of several central characters, each impressing their own reactions to and interpretation of shared events. Depsite viewing this converging story from different characters' POV and from different points in time, the story is never repetitive. Quite a feat when using this sort of mechanism.
Allen is a word-artist. He paints vivd and beautiful scenes with letters splashed on the page with seeming ease, but also with intent and precision. Whilst he describes scenes, settings, rooms and people with great accuracy and feeling, he never labours the point. Some writers have you skipping long monologues when trying to be descriptive. Renfro has such skill (the bastard) that he simply transports you right there to stand shoulder to shoulder with his protagonists.
The real strength that Allen Renfro possesses is in his understanding of and empathy with people and in his ability to convey these complex emotions to the reader. He deals with many complex relationships between his characters with ease, gradually making us hate/love/fear/pity these very real-feeling people. Allen has immense insight into the inner workings of what makes himans tick and an understanding of peoples' emotions that only someone who had suffered, loved, or lost in some way would be able to identify and concey in the manner he does. In an age of two-dimensional characters littered throughout the literary, and movie media, Allen gives us properly human characters. Ones with many conflicting sides to them, who aren't perfect, pouting demigods but truly flawed.
This type of book is really not in my usual genre, but on this occaission I was deeply relieved to take the detour and discover that an obviously lovely man is also such a gifted writer.
May 30, 2012
The Raised is one of those rare books that I took a chance on and I'm glad I did. As far as I know this is the author's first novel and it is exceptional. It is a story that intertwines several characters and blends virtually every element of an epic tale. Mystery, secrets and the supernatural come together to create a story that I couldn't put down. The Raised is heart breaking and erotic. It is serious and vivid. The twist at the end was shocking and satisfying. I can't wait for more.
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March 15, 2020*DNF*
(44%)
(44%)
February 17, 2016
Just - wow... Renfro is a phenomenal writer.
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May 20, 2017Too much drama and too little humor in too many pages for my taste (at page 198)
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews