Ava Mara could not whisk away the scene of the murder from her mind; she did not understand why the assault had to take place then and there; she did not understand why a member of her family had to die in front of her.
Artifact? What the young man, the murderer, had demanded was foreign. No one in her family knew what he meant. What was it? Was that the reason why someone she knew and cared about had to die?
Despite the stupefaction and grief, Ava knew for sure she would not let the murderer off unpunished. And ever since forcing her way in to question The Order Of Graves, Ava eventually learned that she had unknowingly been the Keeper of an Artifact; a relic from the Last War.
Adamant to track down the murderer and seek retribution, the impetuous Ava and the other individuals summoned by the Lady of the Manor headed South to start the hunt and put an end to the bloody murders.And as their mission progressed further, Ava realized that everything was not as black and white as it seemed to be.
Author CJ Black sent me an ecopy of the book in return of an honest review.
Despite not being a huge fan of this genre of books, I found Ava and the trinity as a definite page turner. Ava is a carefree, hot-headed adolescent with a happy family, whose world is turned upside down when a sinister man enters their life. What follows forms the plot. The first few chapters did confuse me, but once I caught on with the narration style, it was quite enjoyable. The plot is very strong, gripping and full of surprises. I was comfortable with the pace of the story, though it felt a little rushed in places. The attention to details is impeccable. The characters development is interesting and there are so many layers to each of them, which will keep you guessing. Honestly, my favourites kept changing with every few chapters, but I think I can safely say that Erin and Dietrich are who I liked the most. They were brilliantly written and unravelled beautifully. The author does have a tendency to go GRRM on us, so I won’t go any further about my favourites: P Though this might be one of the few books, wherein I liked the supporting characters more than the protagonist herself. I just couldn’t connect to Ava Mara, though I did connect well with Claire and Erin Graves. There were a few scenes where in the plot felt sort of rushed, a little confusing even, but they evened out after a few pages. Over all, I really enjoyed Cj’s debut book and look forward to the next part; it has all the elements needed to make the perfect page turner.
(I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review)
Holy Moly! Wow! I don't even know where to start with this book! Since I received a copy in exchange for an honest review I'm going to do exactly that!!! This book is DARK! But good! It took me quite some time to read as it's one massive book and there were so many twists and turns that I had no idea what was going to happen! I would definitely classify this book as Dark, Mature, New Adult, and steampunk fantasy!
The chapters jump from different POV's which take a little getting used to but once into it you start to learn fast when it's switched. I thoroughly enjoyed the character developments in the story (probably my favorite part) and while I loved some characters in the beginning my mind was changed in the end! I won't tell you my favorites as to avoid all possible spoilers but I was pleasantly surprised by my shift!
There are a few unanswered questions in the end that I look forward to seeing answered in the next book! Great job on your first book CJ! Sorry it took so long to read! Keep it up and keep writing!!!
****One warning.... there are VERY dark and graphic scenes that deal with murder, rape, and sexual assault, so if you are sensitive to those areas I wouldn't suggest you read this, only because it can cause some trigger points. But if those don't bother you I'd say pick up CJ's debut novel and head of the wild rollercoaster ride of twists!
(I received an electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)
Ava & the Trinity: Initiation is the first book in the series and the author’s debut novel. The story follows Ava Mara who discovers that she is the keeper of an Artifact that people are willing to kill for to obtain. Ava wants answers and revenge on her brother’s murderer, so she joins a secret organization called the Order of Graves.
The first thing that caught my attention was the pace and the plot. The story keeps you guessing what will happen next, and it is full of twists and turns. Each character never stops developing and they have their distinct personality that contributes to the story. The author has done a great job using dialogues to advance the story, defining the characters and showing how they relate to each other.
The book is classified as dark young adult fantasy, but it is darker than “normal” due to graphic descriptions of murder, rape and sexual scenes. This content makes it more suitable for new adult. Lastly I would like to point out that the book use different point of views that are not specified in the chapter titles, which some might find confusing.
I enjoyed reading the book and it left me with some unanswered questions that make me look forward to the sequel.
Writing my honest review of this book! I've received this book for a review and I'm not going to lie about my thoughts. I don't read young adult books because of cheesy lines and really silly story lines. This however, is not like any young adult fiction. In fact, I would class this as mature young adult fiction. I read the book with no expectations and found myself amazed by the content and contexts involved. Very dark and very matured content for sure. The book is also complex because it has many points of view involved. I would have appreciated if there was a map drawn for me to refer to as i journey with Ava and her friends. Also, it was hard for me to picture if the world mentioned is a modern or medieval... so my mind was pretty much jumbled most of the time. But, it's a good and easy read. If I have more thoughts I will add in later! Congrats on your first book!!
I got an electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Ava is a young free-spirited girl whose world suddenly fell apart when a sinister stranger appeared in her doorway looking for a mysterious object. What follows are a journey into the unknown as she discovered that nothing is as it seems.
This dark, action-packed fantasy with steampunk elements is the first book in a trilogy. It sets a wonderful precedence for the following sequels. But as far as the story goes, it is quite dark and graphic in how it describes murder and rape so be warned - here be monsters.
The great things: I enjoy the action scenes and body counts. A few chapters in and we already lost somebody. The storyline and characters are interesting once you get used to the changing POVs and the narration itself. There are intriguing twists and turns that will keep you guessing and glued to the edge of your seats.
The not so great things: It could be slightly shorter and punchier. One or two parts felt a bit cluttered. More focus and less lengthy paragraphs.
In conclusion, this book is a must-read for a fan of dark disturbing fantasy world populated by characters with questionable motives shrouded in mystery.
[Disclaimer: The author provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review]
Ava Mara is just a carefree adolescent working at her family's Cafe until the day her brother is brutally murdered by an unknown man. The man was looking for an "Artifact" that is supposed to be in possession of Ava's family, but none of them knows anything about it. Seeking revenge and justice, Ava enters "The Order", a secret organization that may have some answers to what is really going on and how to find the man who murdered her brother and seriously injured her father.
This book is an adult dark fantasy. There are sex scenes and rape scenes, so keep that in mind in case you're not comfortable with those type of scenes. I don't mind reading rape scenes, but I did wonder what was the purpose of some of them in this case, other than just showing something gruesome. Related to that point, it would be a good idea to get an editor in the future, in order to delete or refocus some of the side stories and scenes that didn't seem to add anything to the plot and even made me stray from the main story, which was sad because it is a good story.
Ava, the main character, is childish, immature and not very smart, but what she lacks in wits she makes up for in bravery and loyalty and by the end of the book she grows quite a lot, which was a very good thing to read. As for the rest characters that formed the main group, they were all very diverse and mysterious. Some of them were dark and brooding and others were extremely cheerful and upbeat, which made for some good dialogues and fun interactions.
Although this is a debut novel, the author presents us with a complex story, with many different sides and angles. There were enemies, friends and sometimes people who were somewhere in between so you never really knew who to trust or when to trust them. Ava was faced with some hard situations and some impossible decisions, especially for someone completely untrained as her, and yet she faced them head on, so I trust she'll only get better as the story advances.
Three stars and congratulations on your first novel, C.J!
Ava And The Trinity: Initiation is a dark ya fantasy/steampunk-ish book. It follows the story of Ava Mara, who learns that she's the keeper of a mysterious artifact which some ruthless villains are after. With the help of the 'Order Of Graves' she chases after them.
The book may be a little bit slow paced at the beginning (hence the lower rating) but that doesn't stop it from being gripping more and more with every chapter. It brings a very dark atmosphere with it, which I loved, but beware readers who are a little faint-hearted: there are some intense murder, sex and rape scenes in it.
The characters are very well written and loveable. Their evolving throughout the story is well-elaborated, so that's why my favourite character changed at the end. :)
If you want to read a book full of twists and turns, great characters and an interesting world, you should definately check out 'Ava And The Trinity'. The end left me with a lot of questions and I agree with the other reviews. It would have been nice to get to know more about the artifacts but I hope book two will bring some answers.
I'm really curious to know more about Ava and the others and I'm looking forward to another book. Overall a great reading experience which I totally recommend! :)
The Arc was provided by CJ Black for an honest review.
Ava & The Trinity: Initiation dives into a world of dark fantasy where nothing is as it seems. Right from the beginning, there are twists and surprises at every turn, and you're constantly gripping the edge of your seat, wondering what will become of the characters and the world they inhabit. The characters are relatable, human, and wonderfully flawed. They have their strengths and weaknesses - mistakes and triumphs - as they go through their adventure of murder, a bit of mayhem, and a lot of mystery.
There are a few errors here and there, but it doesn't take away from the story. And there were some characters that I wanted to punch in the face at various points, but like I said, they were flawed and human, so it was a love/hate kind of relationship. I also have to say that this book was darker than I expected - not in a bad way at all, but it may not be for everyone's enjoyment.
If you're into dark fantasy and thrilling reads, I highly recommend this book!!
Ava & The Trinity follows Ava for a dark fantasy story that begins with Ava looking for revenge, but soon turns into so much more. The basis of the plot of this story reminds me of Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, in that a group of mismatched characters set out to do a job that seems impossible. I really enjoyed the plot of this story, and as a plot driven reader, a well developed plot matters A LOT to me. This story also was never lacking for action, as big things happen starting in chapter one. The first few chapters jump around a bit, and there was a lot of information thrown at you in the beginning, but this is the beginning of a trilogy/series, so that extra information is to be expected. When it comes to writing style of this book, I really enjoyed it, but the writing itself had many grammatical errors (wrong tenses used, singular and plural used incorrectly, etc). This made me have to go back and be like "wait, what is even going on?" Where I can usually read a 400 page book in the matter of one to two days, because of this, it took me about a week instead to finish. This book is classified as a Young Adult fantasy, but given the nature of the story, I would say that it is only suitable for older YA or NA readers. Because it is dark fantasy, there are numerous rape scenes, murder scenes, and heavy sexual content. If you are faint of heart or cannot handle those things, I would not recommend this for you. Also, given the multiple rape scenes where there seemed to be no punishment, lowered my rating. I feel that in some parts of this book, rape was beginning to be normalized, and that is NOT okay to me. The characters were all developed really well, and they never stopped growing or evolving as characters throughout the story. I loved this aspect because if any of us were to learn the things they did or be out on an adventure/mission as they are, we would also never stop learning or changing. Also, there were a lot of things happening at once, and I will say, that I was constantly surprised. I never could predict exactly what was happening and that was very refreshing as a reader. Overall, I really enjoyed the book, and I still have some questions, but hopefully, they will be answered in book two!
Ava Mara, a stubborn, hotheaded, ordinary girl, discovers she is the Keeper of an Artifact, an ancient magical relic, after a violent attack on her family resulting in the death of her brother. Heartbroken and confused, Ava forces her place in the Order of Graves, a society working against the people like her brother's murderer who would kill to get their hands on an Artifact. Though the Order seeks the man who turned Ava's life upside down to apprehend him and stop his plans, Ava wants retribution. However, she soon discovers that the world of magic and Artifacts is more twisted than she imagined.
The author sent me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, so honest I will be as I have been with all of my reviews. Initiation took me a while. It took a little bit for the plot to get going, but once it did it was filled with action. I adored each of the characters' unique personalities, and how their characteristics contributed to the plot. There were frequent writing errors, but I am nonetheless impressed by C J Black's perseverance in self-publishing such a lengthy novel.
Despite my qualms about this book, the author ended it perfectly, tying it off on a sentimental note that leaves readers wanting more. Please note that some of the content in this book is quite mature and may not be appropriate for some readers. I'd recommend Initiation to any fan of dark fantasy and magic worlds.
Wow. What can I say about this book? Going into this book I had no idea of what would happen or the direction it would head in. Initiation had many twist and turns that I never saw coming.
Overall I would say that I did enjoy this book, and I don't like fantasy books- at all. Mostly because of the tropes in them, it's just not my thing hence the lower rating. But don't let the opinion of a girl who only reads contemporaries and YA stop you from picking up this novel.
Initiation is definitely a DARK fantasy book, with an emphasis on dark. The dark element is crucial to this story. If you don't like descriptive rape, sex and murder scenes (a bit like me) then this book isn't for you. The characters created by CJ are very interesting and all come from different backgrounds which makes for an interesting read, especially when you're trying to find out who they are and what lead them to become these people. I have some questions about what happens now with Ava and the rest of the gang. This is definitely going to be one interesting trilogy.
Why did I read the book then if I don't like fantasy novels? I'm friends with the author plain and simple, and he sent me an ARC of it. And I always support my friends, plus the synopsis sounded cool as fuck. It's not my usual read but I put my opinions aside and just read the story for what it was- a story.
But let me tell you one thing- CJ has created one hell of a world and a story in his debut novel. I'm glad I got a chance to read this book. If you like fantasy novels then definitely give this a shot.
And CJ- not bad for a debut novel man! Keep up the hard work, you've got something pretty special here.
If you like (very) dark fantasy then this might be a book for you. But it wasn't really something for me. The story itself is very complex and intriguing, but it went a bit slow in my opinion. We got a lot of background information on a lot of different characters (the story is told from multiple point of views), but we didn't get a lot of background information on the world they were living in. There were multiple vague references to past historical events in this world, but they were never fully explained. The characters were all very strong characters with very distinctive traits, but they could all make very stupid decisions from time to time. I do wonder how they'll ever be able to solve all the problems! ;) This book is 'classified' as Young Adult, but I would not describe it as Young Adult as there's a lot of adult content and very explicit scenes (such as rape scenes) that are really not appropriate for younger readers.