What do you think?
Rate this book
Toska
Sometimes death is only the beginning
Trapped between worlds, Yekaterina’s soul wonders the countryside between Moscow and the village she died in. She’s searching for answers, clues as to what happened the night a cloaked figure stole her life. But most of all, she’s searching for her fiancé, Victor, who disappeared the night of their death.
This is a ritual Katya has repeated for over a century, hoping to be reunited with her lost love. After years of coming up with nothing she has all but given up hope when she spots him, a man with an uncanny resemblance to her Victor. Compelled to follow the man home, Yekaterina discovers not only the fate of her lover but an entire world of darkness as an ancient God makes a play for their souls.
Does Katya have what it takes to save their souls, or will they both be lost in the Dark Master’s domain?
Trapped between worlds, Yekaterina’s soul wonders the countryside between Moscow and the village she died in. She’s searching for answers, clues as to what happened the night a cloaked figure stole her life. But most of all, she’s searching for her fiancé, Victor, who disappeared the night of their death.
This is a ritual Katya has repeated for over a century, hoping to be reunited with her lost love. After years of coming up with nothing she has all but given up hope when she spots him, a man with an uncanny resemblance to her Victor. Compelled to follow the man home, Yekaterina discovers not only the fate of her lover but an entire world of darkness as an ancient God makes a play for their souls.
Does Katya have what it takes to save their souls, or will they both be lost in the Dark Master’s domain?
269 pages, ebook
Published July 29, 2018
About the author
A.R. Kingston
12 books15 followersA.R. Kingston grew up in a small town in Massachusetts. She holds a degree in psychology and has spent several years working in the mental health field before turning to writing.
When she’s not reading or working on her own books, you can find her playing video games, enjoying archery and photography, or volunteering at her local pig rescue.
She currently lives in Colorado Springs with her two teenage boys, her dogs, and pet pigs.
When she’s not reading or working on her own books, you can find her playing video games, enjoying archery and photography, or volunteering at her local pig rescue.
She currently lives in Colorado Springs with her two teenage boys, her dogs, and pet pigs.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
Want to Read
December 1, 2019🎁 FREE on Amazon today (12/1/2019)! 🎁
September 22, 2018
Toska is a story that blends a few elements to create an interesting premise and a world where supernatural humans don’t only exist, they co-exist. Meet Toska, a 150-year dead ghost, still seeking the answers to the equally old cold case of her fiancé’s death. At first, I considered her longing need to find him, and subsequently be with him, a bit obsessive, but what could it otherwise be? Aren’t ghosts simply souls that get stuck on an unresolved issue, bound to the earth as a result of their unwillingness to ‘let go’?
The collage of story layered together of vampires, ghosts, shape-shifters, underground societies, worked well. Impressively well.
But…
There were more clichés than I’ve ever read in a single work of fiction. While at first their excessiveness annoyed me, I found myself quickly finding delight in them. Now, I doubt the work was intended to be full of satire, but for me, it was. From Victor’s pet name for the MC, (“Kotek,” which I couldn’t help but read “Kotex”) to the Alien’s reference when describing a mattress spring “protruding like some parasitic alien creature bursting out of a man’s chest,” I couldn’t help but snicker several times a chapter!
I know what you’re thinking, but I swear, this book was by far, my best guilty pleasure of the year. That’s saying something because I usually have a hard time reading present-tense novels. The characters were not overly deep, but enough to keep me interested. I solved the crime in the third chapter, or thereabouts, but I didn’t care. The story, while a bit heavy on the “God hates me, I wasted my life worshiping him, ooh look! It’s Victor!” stuff, I still stayed up to read it after the kids were in bed. Kinda like sneaking cake while on a diet, it lacked real nutrition but satisfied a craving in a way kale never would.
My review would really be a 3.5 if half stars were a thing. The story lost a star and a half (but being the forever optimist, I rounded up) for two reasons:
1. The story should have ended way before it did. I get it, the author wanted to wrap up everything in a pretty little package, but going into detail about bit-part characters at the end of the book came across as an A-list celebrity giving a five minute monologue at the end of a box office hit to her second cousin because she promised her aunt Edna on her death bed she’d give Henry a shot at fame. I didn’t care about the cat. Still don’t. Or the cows in the barn. I can make up a HEA ending without all the unnecessary details.
2. It could have used a proofreader (or at least a family member) who knows periods come at the end of sentences, and commas are necessary to make a sentence read correctly.
All in all, a delightful read.
The collage of story layered together of vampires, ghosts, shape-shifters, underground societies, worked well. Impressively well.
But…
There were more clichés than I’ve ever read in a single work of fiction. While at first their excessiveness annoyed me, I found myself quickly finding delight in them. Now, I doubt the work was intended to be full of satire, but for me, it was. From Victor’s pet name for the MC, (“Kotek,” which I couldn’t help but read “Kotex”) to the Alien’s reference when describing a mattress spring “protruding like some parasitic alien creature bursting out of a man’s chest,” I couldn’t help but snicker several times a chapter!
I know what you’re thinking, but I swear, this book was by far, my best guilty pleasure of the year. That’s saying something because I usually have a hard time reading present-tense novels. The characters were not overly deep, but enough to keep me interested. I solved the crime in the third chapter, or thereabouts, but I didn’t care. The story, while a bit heavy on the “God hates me, I wasted my life worshiping him, ooh look! It’s Victor!” stuff, I still stayed up to read it after the kids were in bed. Kinda like sneaking cake while on a diet, it lacked real nutrition but satisfied a craving in a way kale never would.
My review would really be a 3.5 if half stars were a thing. The story lost a star and a half (but being the forever optimist, I rounded up) for two reasons:
1. The story should have ended way before it did. I get it, the author wanted to wrap up everything in a pretty little package, but going into detail about bit-part characters at the end of the book came across as an A-list celebrity giving a five minute monologue at the end of a box office hit to her second cousin because she promised her aunt Edna on her death bed she’d give Henry a shot at fame. I didn’t care about the cat. Still don’t. Or the cows in the barn. I can make up a HEA ending without all the unnecessary details.
2. It could have used a proofreader (or at least a family member) who knows periods come at the end of sentences, and commas are necessary to make a sentence read correctly.
All in all, a delightful read.
August 22, 2018
Dark and Gritty Supernatural Romance
'I am nothing more than a whisper of a time gone by'
A dead woman, who had existed as a ghost for over a century, is bound to earth by the need to solve the murder of her fiance. Leaving the Russian village where she lived her life and has endured most of her ghostly existence, Katia heads to Moscow. There, a chance encounter with a man who looks like her Victor, but can’t be as he is no ghost, leads her into an increasingly dark and mysterious world where the supernatural and the natural worlds cross...
Toska is a very strange book. it is undoubtedly a supernatural romance, but it is a most original one. No shades of Twilight here, this is a bold and philosophical imagining of beings who have passed through death and yet still endure.
'Ten minutes in human form go by a lot slower than they do in spirit form, not sure if that’s because our time flows differently, or because running in heels is just a genuine pain in the butt.'
What I Really Liked:
- The highly unusual paranormal set up, which made for some interesting challenges which the characters had to overcome.
- The setting. I loved the really Russian feel and the references to Russian folklore sprinkled through the story.
- The moments of humour which lightened the whole.
- The sense of a profound deep and abiding love which is changed not when it alteration found.
'A robust shudder crawls down my spine'
What I Struggled With:
- I always dislike present tense writing and although it was usually well done in this book, the flashback slips into past tense and the ‘time leaps’ here and there, to my mind made it a very poor choice for this story.
- The descriptors tendered to favour over-complexity and rarity rather than commonplace. Whilst this might well have been to suggest the vocabulary of a character from the 19th century, at times the word chosen seemed to me inappropriate to the context.
- The amount of commentary about death, being dead and the meaning of life and death was, in my opinion, excessive. Whilst at the beginning it worked well, various re-vists of the topic throughout the story became heavy reading and slowed the pace.
Overall:
I enjoyed reading this book. It has an involved and engaging storyline, which whilst it is undoubtedly romantic, escapes the bounds of that and explores philosophy, history, mythology and packs a good punch of action too.
Star Rating: 4
Who Would Enjoy This Book:
if you are looking for something with more substance than most supernatural romance, or an original take on the genre, this is for you.
'I am nothing more than a whisper of a time gone by'
A dead woman, who had existed as a ghost for over a century, is bound to earth by the need to solve the murder of her fiance. Leaving the Russian village where she lived her life and has endured most of her ghostly existence, Katia heads to Moscow. There, a chance encounter with a man who looks like her Victor, but can’t be as he is no ghost, leads her into an increasingly dark and mysterious world where the supernatural and the natural worlds cross...
Toska is a very strange book. it is undoubtedly a supernatural romance, but it is a most original one. No shades of Twilight here, this is a bold and philosophical imagining of beings who have passed through death and yet still endure.
'Ten minutes in human form go by a lot slower than they do in spirit form, not sure if that’s because our time flows differently, or because running in heels is just a genuine pain in the butt.'
What I Really Liked:
- The highly unusual paranormal set up, which made for some interesting challenges which the characters had to overcome.
- The setting. I loved the really Russian feel and the references to Russian folklore sprinkled through the story.
- The moments of humour which lightened the whole.
- The sense of a profound deep and abiding love which is changed not when it alteration found.
'A robust shudder crawls down my spine'
What I Struggled With:
- I always dislike present tense writing and although it was usually well done in this book, the flashback slips into past tense and the ‘time leaps’ here and there, to my mind made it a very poor choice for this story.
- The descriptors tendered to favour over-complexity and rarity rather than commonplace. Whilst this might well have been to suggest the vocabulary of a character from the 19th century, at times the word chosen seemed to me inappropriate to the context.
- The amount of commentary about death, being dead and the meaning of life and death was, in my opinion, excessive. Whilst at the beginning it worked well, various re-vists of the topic throughout the story became heavy reading and slowed the pace.
Overall:
I enjoyed reading this book. It has an involved and engaging storyline, which whilst it is undoubtedly romantic, escapes the bounds of that and explores philosophy, history, mythology and packs a good punch of action too.
Star Rating: 4
Who Would Enjoy This Book:
if you are looking for something with more substance than most supernatural romance, or an original take on the genre, this is for you.
August 31, 2018
Why are we human creatures so mystified by the supernatural, the hidden, the metaphysical? Why do we seek out so energetically our demons? When I was living in Nicaragua the stories were about a little dog with long nails which would stalk travelers upon dark paths at night. He would grow and grow until at last he attacked – best stay home. In Guarani Argentina it was the tree inhabited by the demons where people went to get healed from diseases cast by the water spirits; Chupacabra in Mexico. In Mali – in most desert Muslim countries it’s the Djinn, beings of smokeless fire who age and procreate, shapeshifters who are often responsible for the mischief around us.
These are all, naturally, allegories or parallels with the greatest supernatural fight of all – that of the battle between the devil and God. Perhaps it’s the binary nature of our world; our struggle to overcome so great a wickedness as we have to endure in a world which is often arbitrarily evil. A need to return the ideas of “right and wrong” to our post-modern subjective existence. Whatever it is; thoughts of the hereafter, the what next – questions about what lies beyond the shadow that moves in the night have obsessed humanity forever.
“Yes, there is darkness in all of us, it lives within the darkest corners of our hearts, feeding off our negativity, but not for long. That’s because it can’t contend with the goodness and light we all possess too; once our capacity to care exceeds that of our hate, the beast can no longer live inside us.”
“Tosca” is about this. About vampires and Dracula and the love of a ghost woman, killed in a mystery, for her husband who has become undead; and her attempts to rescue him from so great an evil as pursues them. It is a well written book and was a fun read; even if I rarely read such novels. If you do, this is one you’ll enjoy.
These are all, naturally, allegories or parallels with the greatest supernatural fight of all – that of the battle between the devil and God. Perhaps it’s the binary nature of our world; our struggle to overcome so great a wickedness as we have to endure in a world which is often arbitrarily evil. A need to return the ideas of “right and wrong” to our post-modern subjective existence. Whatever it is; thoughts of the hereafter, the what next – questions about what lies beyond the shadow that moves in the night have obsessed humanity forever.
“Yes, there is darkness in all of us, it lives within the darkest corners of our hearts, feeding off our negativity, but not for long. That’s because it can’t contend with the goodness and light we all possess too; once our capacity to care exceeds that of our hate, the beast can no longer live inside us.”
“Tosca” is about this. About vampires and Dracula and the love of a ghost woman, killed in a mystery, for her husband who has become undead; and her attempts to rescue him from so great an evil as pursues them. It is a well written book and was a fun read; even if I rarely read such novels. If you do, this is one you’ll enjoy.
August 22, 2018
Toska is a well-written paranormal romance.
The plot follows two lovers, Katya and Victor, who were murdered 150 years ago. Katya is buried, but she is never able to fully pass over in spirit. She is condemned to wander the earth as a "mostly dead" ghost in search of her lost love. Victor, on the other hand, was presumed by some to have murdered Katya because his body was never found. Katya eventually stumbles upon Victor and, in their new supernatural incarnations, they resume their love affair, fighting against evil to be able to spend eternity together.
I can think of few things more cliche than the standard "love conquers all," but, indeed, in this novel, love conquers all, including impending apocalypse. For those who enjoy ghosts and vampire, demonic lore, superstition and such, this book would likely be a perfect choice. It is at its core a love story.
I appreciate the author's willingness to challenge religion, the bible, and our human nature to look to a supreme god to explain that which we can't understand. I wish she would have been able to tackle one fundamental problem with scripture which is that humans are somehow superior and more important than nonhumans. But I can't fault her for not questioning this indoctrination. I was very offended, however, that rats, cows, and other animals seem to only exist for the benefit of people who aren't even human -- just totally dispensable beings that are even here to serve ghosts and vampires.
In short, I'm giving this novel 4 stars because I think it would be unfair to rate it more critically. For those who like ghosts, goblins, and love stories, this book is well-written, well-thought out, and a very fast read.
The plot follows two lovers, Katya and Victor, who were murdered 150 years ago. Katya is buried, but she is never able to fully pass over in spirit. She is condemned to wander the earth as a "mostly dead" ghost in search of her lost love. Victor, on the other hand, was presumed by some to have murdered Katya because his body was never found. Katya eventually stumbles upon Victor and, in their new supernatural incarnations, they resume their love affair, fighting against evil to be able to spend eternity together.
I can think of few things more cliche than the standard "love conquers all," but, indeed, in this novel, love conquers all, including impending apocalypse. For those who enjoy ghosts and vampire, demonic lore, superstition and such, this book would likely be a perfect choice. It is at its core a love story.
I appreciate the author's willingness to challenge religion, the bible, and our human nature to look to a supreme god to explain that which we can't understand. I wish she would have been able to tackle one fundamental problem with scripture which is that humans are somehow superior and more important than nonhumans. But I can't fault her for not questioning this indoctrination. I was very offended, however, that rats, cows, and other animals seem to only exist for the benefit of people who aren't even human -- just totally dispensable beings that are even here to serve ghosts and vampires.
In short, I'm giving this novel 4 stars because I think it would be unfair to rate it more critically. For those who like ghosts, goblins, and love stories, this book is well-written, well-thought out, and a very fast read.
November 24, 2018
I enjoyed this story. From the beginning, at the prologue, the reader is told up front that the main character, Katya, is on a mission that involves love. The main character's dialogue about being almost dead is what drew me in with this book. it took me a while to realize that this was a paranormal story. I'm still shaking my head at that one. I enjoyed this story so much because it possesses a lot of depth. There is the death of the two characters on their wedding night at the beginning which begins the entire story. I don't believe in spoilers, but I have to say I loved the explanation of what happened on that wedding night. So, I will only add that I enjoyed the connections between the characters, the struggles, the war, and the ending. I always enjoy a story that ends well leaving me satisfied. From the middle of the book to the end, kept me reading until I was at the last word. The author's descriptions made it easy to visualize the story. The characters are well-formed. The main thing I enjoyed was the way the author revealed the story a bit at a time like in layers until the reader has the entire story. Five stars because I enjoyed the story a lot. I read to be entertained by the story and the writer's imagery. Another sweep through with some of the edits would make this a dynamic story. Otherwise, this author did an outstanding job telling this story.
August 9, 2018
A brilliant opening paragraph draws us into this Gothic romance by posing the Big Question that has haunted mankind since the beginning of time: what happens after we die. A R Kingston intrigues us further by suggesting that, while some may find the gateway to heaven or be reincarnated to start again, others ‘stick around.’ A haunting phrase that.
What follows is a fusion of the traditional ghost story and a contemporary vampire fable that takes us into the chilly heart of Russia on a journey that begins in 1864 and lasts a full century as our heroine, Katia, seeks Victor, the only man she can ever love. From the cold hands of death into the oven heat of the nether world, Kingston weaves a subtle tale that kept the momentum and pages turning. Toska is the first instalment in the author’s Dark World Saga. I, for one, shall be looking out for Book 2.
What follows is a fusion of the traditional ghost story and a contemporary vampire fable that takes us into the chilly heart of Russia on a journey that begins in 1864 and lasts a full century as our heroine, Katia, seeks Victor, the only man she can ever love. From the cold hands of death into the oven heat of the nether world, Kingston weaves a subtle tale that kept the momentum and pages turning. Toska is the first instalment in the author’s Dark World Saga. I, for one, shall be looking out for Book 2.
December 31, 2021
I read this book because I was given a copy of the sequel and I wanted to make sure I wouldn't miss anything by skipping it.
I definitely like the story for the most part. There are a lot of grammar mistakes -Enough that I wonder if it was edited or not- but this book definitely was enough to keep me powering through. It turns out that while we see some of the same characters (including the same main antagonist) books 1 and 2 can each stand alone. Despite the many mistakes driving me crazy, I am not sorry I read this book.
I definitely like the story for the most part. There are a lot of grammar mistakes -Enough that I wonder if it was edited or not- but this book definitely was enough to keep me powering through. It turns out that while we see some of the same characters (including the same main antagonist) books 1 and 2 can each stand alone. Despite the many mistakes driving me crazy, I am not sorry I read this book.
August 12, 2018
Dark and dreamy tale of the spiritual and beyond ..
Risks Dark world Saga follows the meanderings of a ghost Katia and her quest to reconnect with her love Victor.
The author does a great job with imagery, mood and reflections. Almost written entirely in first person, we are taken on a journey into time, space and the beyond.
Would have liked to have seen more interaction with the living but because it is a story about the dead it works.
Risks Dark world Saga follows the meanderings of a ghost Katia and her quest to reconnect with her love Victor.
The author does a great job with imagery, mood and reflections. Almost written entirely in first person, we are taken on a journey into time, space and the beyond.
Would have liked to have seen more interaction with the living but because it is a story about the dead it works.
August 6, 2018
An evocative and well crafted story of love and obsession, where death is just the beginning. I was impressed with this supernatural love story of Katia and Victor and can highly recommend it for those who enjoy a gothic romance.
August 12, 2018
This story was very good. The book needs editing.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews